Archive for the ‘Internet Law’ Category
EFF Raises Privacy Concerns About AIM Upgrade
AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) has released an upgrade, but the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) has recommended that AIM users “not switch to the new version, as it introduces important privacy-unfriendly features.” Why the concern from the EFF? According to the statement, the new system “started storing more logs of communications and . . . apparently [...]
Quantifying the Value of a Twitter Follower
The New York Times reports that Phonedog.com is suing a former employee for the value of Twitter followers he accumulated during the course of their business relationship. According to what Noah Kravitz told the NY Times, he ended his tenure with Phonedog on good terms, so when the company asked him to send out the [...]
Dump GoDaddy Day Movement Picks Up Momentum
Mashable reports that Reddit user SelfProdigy’s declaration that December 29 should be Dump GoDaddy Day is gaining momentum across the online community. The suggestion is based on frustration with GoDaddy’s initial support of the controversial Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), which is making its way through Congress. The proposed provisions of the anti-piracy SOPA are [...]
FTC and Facebook Come to Privacy Agreement
Facebook and privacy concerns have been walking hand in hand for years now, and now the social media giant has agreed to tighter controls by the Federal Trade Commission, including regular privacy audits conducted by an independent agency biannually for the next 20 years. The agreement comes between the FTC and Facebook on the heels [...]
Twitter Must Turn Over Data in WikiLeaks Case
A federal court judge has ruled that the private Twitter information of three WikiLeaks associates must be handed over to a grand jury investigating the case; the 60-page memorandum opinion (PDF) penned by Judge Liam O’Grady upheld a previous decision by a Magistrate Judge Theresa Carroll Buchanan. Birgitta Jonsdottir, a member of Iceland’s parliament, and [...]
FTC Proposes Changes to Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act
Accept/delete (tracking) cookies by stallio on Flickr The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently proposed changes to the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) that would further restrict the kinds of personal information websites could collect from users under 13 years old; the proposed amendments are intended to address issues that have come up in the [...]
Court Stops Missouri’s Law Restricting Online Teacher/Student Communications
A few weeks ago, we talked about Missouri’s Amy Hestir Student Protection Act, which restricts student-teacher online communications. The law was set to come into effect August 28, but a Missouri judge has agreed with the plaintiffs, represented by the Eastern Missouri ACLU, in a lawsuit challenging its constitutionality and has issued an preliminary injunction [...]
Businesses Can Buy Exemption from .xxx Domain Registry
As we mentioned back in May, ICANN has approved the .xxx top-level domain. When the new .xxx domain comes into effect, businesses will have the opportunity to protect their own names from potential cybersquatters—for a fee payable to the company that will be running the .xxx domains. Why would businesses want or need to protect [...]
Center for Copyright Information’s “Six Strikes” Plan Against Piracy
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has teamed up with the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), other media outlets, and Internet service providers (ISPs) to form the brand new Center for Copyright Information (CCI) and tackle piracy with a “six strikes plan.” The gist of the plan is that ISPs will send up [...]
ISPs Set to Band Together to Fight Piracy
Greg Sandoval at CNET reports that Internet service providers (ISPs) including Verizon, Comcast, and AT&T may be ready to come together to fight piracy. Sandoval’s unnamed source revealed that a deal which “appears to have the potential to become one of the most potent antipiracy strategies ever implemented” may be announced as soon as next [...]
