global minilinks for 2008-12-02

• Citizen Safeguards Struck Out in EU Council
  La Quadrature Du Net analyse the latest moves in Europe's telecoms package - still a mixed bag for protecting rights online.
• Inside Italy's Net Filters
  An overview of the "P-Box" - the bespoke Debian install intended to filter content at Italian ISPs.
• Google's Gatekeepers
  The New York Times investigates who decides when Google is told to block content.
• Internet Users to Expect "Remote Searches" from EU Police?
  The EU's five year cybercrime plan include proposals for government-permitted trojan software and "joint investigation teams" (rightsholders and police working together).
• Nokia Wants Law to Allow Snooping on Finnish Employees
  After lobbying by the phone giant, Finland considers allowing businesses to examine the email logs of workers suspected of leaking secrets.
• Michael Geist - Why Copyright?
  Canadian thinkers, artists and businesspeople speak out on copyright in this film by Michael Geist and Daniel Albahary.
• Studying Chinese Blog Censorship
  Rebecca Mackinnon takes a closer look at what goes on when private companies aid in domestic censorship.
• Anger at Indonesian Tagging Plan
  Country plans to plant RFIDs in "sexually aggressive" HIV positive citizens.
• Obama and IP
  Senior Phillippines IP Attorney hopes Obama will bring change to the international intellectual property policies of the United States.
• Four Google Officials Face Italian Trial for Third-Party Video
  Video upload prompts unknown charges against the employees of the company hosting it.

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global minilinks for 2008-11-06

• French Senate Votes for Three Strikes
  The bill still has to pass the National Assembly, however — and faces a clash with developing European law.
• No Clean Feed - Stop Internet Censorship in Australia
  The battle against the Australian goverment's plans to install compulsory filters on all Internet traffic grows in strength. Electronic Frontiers Australia offers action items for worried Aussie Net users.
• Circumvention in New Zealand
  Content Agenda summarizes what's been happening in NZ copyright law.
• Join the Public Domain Calculators
  The Open Knowledge Foundation is working on a system to determine whether works are in the public domain in your country or not. Join volunteers in Argentina, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Italy, Norway, Philippines, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, United States and add your country to the calculator.
• Internet and Freedom in Egypt
  Egyptian bloggers talk about how the Net and free speech fare in Turkey.
• UK Net Users Wrongly Accused of File-sharing Infringements
  British games companies are sending threatening letters to Internet users who have never touched a computer game.
• Linking Alone is Not Defamation in Canada, Court Declares
  The British Columbia Supreme Court asserts that websites linking to a document are not "publishing" the document for purposes of libel law. One of the defendants, p2pnet, comments.

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minilinks for 2008-10-23

• Hollywood (Unintentionally) Agrees with EFF
  The MPAA's response to an EFF blog post unwittingly validates our point -- that the MPAA's legal attack on RealDVD is about controlling innovation.
  
• Record Label 'Infringes' Own Copyright
  A donation-based record label that distributes its music for free had its site taken down for copyright "infringement."
  
• Interim Spying Report Kept Secret
  Why did the NSA mark a "public" report on wiretaps as "classified" instead?
  
• NSA Spy Boss: We'll Investigate
  Reports of NSA employees listening in on soldiers' private conversations has let DNI McConnell to launch an investigation.
  
• "Security Theater," With Your Host, Bruce Schneier
  The Atlantic gets tips from Bruce Schneier on how to outwit airport security -- with minimal effort.
  
• Another Win for Cached Content on Search Engines
  In Parker v. Yahoo, a judge rejected claims that the search engine was infringing when it stored copyrighted material in its indexes.
  
• Feds Use Trademark to Seize Gang's Identity
  A crackdown on the Mongols gang barred the gang from wearing their trademarked name.
  
• Privacy of Leaked Documents
  WikiLeaks describes the ways leaked documents can be traced back to
  the leaker.
  

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minilinks for 2008-10-15

• NSA Spying Overseas: Legal or Not?
  Marty Lederman asks whether NSA spying on Americans abroad — as described by new whistleblowers — is a violation of FISA or the 4th Amendment.
• Savage Sued for Takedown
  Stanford's Fair Use Project says the radio host sent a bogus takedown notice to YouTube.
• Police Put Activists on Terror List
  Maryland police illegally entered the names of law-abiding political activists into federal databases that track terrorism.
• Flash Cookies: The Silent Privacy Killer
  Cookies stored with the Macromedia Flash Player aren't controlled by the browser. Here's how to delete them.
• Use Skype -- Go Directly To A Chinese Prison
  Michael Robertson has some questions for eBay and TOM-Skype and a plugin for the security features of Gizmo5.
• Bush Signs Two Online Predator Bills Into Law
  The "Kids Act of 2008" requires registered sex offenders to provide their Internet information to registries and the "Protect Our Children Act of 2008" requires the Justice Department to create a new task force to track predators.
• Is the Palin E-Mail Hack Indictment Legally Flawed?
  Orin Kerr asks whether the felony charge against the hacker who broke into Sarah Palin's email account is legally sound.
• Will Your ISP Stand Up for Your Free Speech Rights?
  Your choice of ISP can make a big difference in whether your legitimate speech is protected in the face of legal threats.
• Lessig on Art, Commerce, and the Hybrid Economy
  Lawrence Lessig says digital technology has made it easy to create new works from existing art, but copyright law has yet to catch up.
• A Game Designer & CEO on the Evils of DRM
  Three Rings' David James explains why using DRM in game design is like beating your customers with a rusty pipe.
  

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global minilinks for 2008-10-11

• A Contentious Meeting with New Zealand's Copyright Minister
  Colin Jackson hits a brick wall when he and others talk to New Zealand ministers about the new copyright act.
• Former Pink Floyd Manager: End the P2P Lawsuits
  Peter Jenner continues to advocate for collective licensing, this time in Berlin.
• EuroISPA on the Recent "Three Strikes" EU Battle
  The ISP association attempts to unpick what Sarkozy thinks he's doing in the EU.
• The Third COMMUNIA Workshop in Amsterdam, Oct 20-21
  European workshop on fair dealing, fair use and its global equivalents.
• Ad-Powered Surveillance: Okay For Citizens, Too Prying for Parliament?
  Is the UK's House of Commons blocking Phorm's prying eyes?
• Malaysian Blogger Goes On Trial
  A "frail" Raja Petra is charged with sedition.
• Hong Kong Consults on Internet Filtering
  The Chinese administrative region is considering blocking sites under the country's obscenity laws.
• Key US Senators Warn Bush Administration On ACTA
  The Judiciary committee is displeased with the secrecy on the anti-counterfeiting trade agreement, especially on liability for internet intermediaries (like ISPs).
• When Wikipedia Met The Great Firewall
  Jimmy Wales meets with China's censorship body.
• Echo in the Dark
  The New Yorker looks at censorship in Russia.
• Does Web Censorship Affect International Trade?
  Nart Villeneuve sees if the Great Firewall of China messes with connections to Western commerce websites.
• Australian Councils use Google to Monitor Citizens
  Using Google Earth and Google Maps to look for planning violations.

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minilinks for 2008-10-03

• Passport Hack Resurrects Elvis
  A hacker was able to access the personal data on an RFID passport, inserting the identity of Elvis Aaron Presley.
• House Limits Constituent Emails
  A massive influx of public input on the bailout bill has led the House to limit emails in an attempt to prevent websites from crashing.
• Schneier Covers Privacy and the Presidential Election
  On Oct. 6, Privacy Guru Bruce Schneier will discuss privacy and its role in the upcoming election at the National Press Club in Washington D.C., joined by other experts in law and technology.
• Congress OKs Research on U.S. Broadband Access
  The Broadband Data Improvement Act requires the government to measure broadband access.
• "Free" Movie Not So Free
  Michael Moore's latest film, "Slacker Uprising," was released free on the Internet -- but now Moore's lawyers are issuing takedown notices.
• The Song (Download Royalty) Remains the Same
  iTunes breathes a sigh of relief as the Copyright Royalty Board rules that download royalties should remain at 9.1 cents per download.

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global minilinks for 2008-09-23

• South Korean Government Seeks to End Anonymity, Allow Arbitrary Content Takedown
  All forum and chat room users will be required to make verifiable registrations using their real names; Web sites can be taken down for 30 days if they receive complaints of fraud or slander.
• Confidential Data on Millions of Norwegians Sent to Media
  CD containing all Norway's tax records (which are public) also included ID numbers (which are not).
• France Scales Back Big Brother Database, But Protests Continue
  The "Evige File" will not contain every French citizen active in politics, just those who "pose a security risk."
• ...Has It Killed Three Strikes Too?
  No sign of the Olivennes proposal on the French Senate schedule; rumor is that the Edvige protests have delayed it indefinitely (Google translation).
• British Police Decline to Investigate Phorm
  Says there was no "criminal intent" in unauthorised scanning of British Telecom subscribers' web traffic.
• Is the ITU Undermining Internet Anonymity?
  Declan McCullough reports on a proposal to more directly track the source of IP traffic, edited by, among others, Cisco, a Chinese ministry, and the NSA.
• Turkey bans biologist Richard Dawkins' Website
  Due to "defamatory" review of Turkish creationist book.
• Tech Companies: Why Doesn't US Champion Fair Use Abroad?
  CCIA points out that US trade negotiators are happy to include strong copyright requirements in trade agreements, but never include fair trade or liability protection for intermediaries.

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global minilinks for 2008-09-11

• Bloggers Less Well-Defended than Press in Morocco
  The arrest and two-year sentence of Mohammed Raji marks the first time anyone has been punished for a blog post in Morocco.
• EDVIGE and the Angry French
  Opposition to a massive new "Big Sister" database has been boosted by a member of President Sarkozy's own cabinet.
• Brussels Says Blogs Scuppered Lisbon Treaty
  A secret European Commission report has come out strongly against the "anti-establishment activity" of blogging as part of an analysis of the internet and "its implications for public opinion about the EU".
• Google Says EU Data Laws do not Apply
  Even though Google has data servers in the EU, it is too American a company to have to obey data privacy laws, it claims.
• The End of "the American Internet" and the Future of Content Controls
  Will traffic moving through more countries affect free speech online?
• Xavier Niel, France's ISP Billionaire, Hates the Olivennes Law
  "Will filter everything and listen to all" (Google Translation)
• Feminist Bloggers in Iran Sentenced to Six Months in Jail
  Reporters Without Borders writes on the cases of Parvin Ardalan, Jelveh Javaheri, Maryam Hosseinkhah and Nahid Keshavarz.

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minilinks for 2008-09-10

• Comcast Appeals FCC Web Traffic-Blocking Decision
  As expected, Comcast is challenging the FCC's authority to regulate the ISP's web traffic blocking behavior.
  
• Judge: Harry Potter Lexicon is Not Fair Use
  A fan's reference text to the Harry Potter series has been found to be infringing.
  
• Judge: Law Protects Anonymous Comments on News Sites
  A District Court judge found that commenters on the Billings Gazette website are protected by state law that shields anonymous news sources.
  
• "Kicking Stupendous Quantities of Ass" at WIPO
  EFF Fellow Cory Doctorow describes his efforts to reform the World Intellectual Property Organization.
  
• The Law is Not Copyrighted
  Carl Malamud's latest project is scanning and posting state and local laws for all to copy and use.
  
• Video Shows Easy Hacking of Voting Machines
  A new study from the Security Group at UCSB has released a paper and a video detailing a successful attack on electronic voting machines.
  
• Free Music Downloads Without Legal Peril
  A look at the legal alternatives to LimeWire.
  

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global minilinks for 2008-09-04

• Europe's Privacy Czar Attacks Telecom Amendments in EU
  Says that they could allow over-reaching controls over Internet technology.
• Kremlin Web Critic Shot by Police in Ingushetia
  Magomed Yevloyev, owner of the ingushetiya.ru site, and vocal critic of Ingushetia regional administration, was shot by a police officer, and died from his injuries, after being detained.
• NZ Judge bans Net Naming of Defendants Online
  Worries about "viral nature" of reporting, censors website.
• Wiretapping Comes to Uganda
  New "privacy" bill is slammed by Amnesty International.
• Malaysia Clamping Down on Internet Free Speech
  Rumors of portal site blocked, and a cabinet decision to sue critics of the new government for defamation.
• India's Info-Activism Camp
  Want to use digital advocacy in the developing world? Come to Tactical Tech's Info-Activism Camp - Feb 2009, India.
• Stop Software Patents Petition
  Activists in Europe take the initiative to stop software patents permanently.
• Egyptian Blogger Mohamed Refaat is Arrested
  He had already been detained for a month before being charged under Egypt's emergency laws.
• Britain Plans Mandatory ISP Logging of Internet
  Data retention will enter into British law after consultation, but without parliamentary debate.

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