FTC Attorney Says Privacy System "Isn't Working"

A Federal Trade Commission representative delivered a stern indictment of current privacy laws, saying they fail to protect American consumers and instead place too much of a "burden" on them. The existing constellation of privacy laws, which relies heavily on disclosure of data collection and use practices and informed consumer choice, "in some very basic sense isn't working," said Kathryn Ratte, a senior attorney in the FTC's consumer protection bureau.

Four Months After Hearing, Google Books Case Lingers

The Google Books case drags on with no hint of when the six-year dispute might finally be settled, four months after a final hearing was supposed to decide the issue once and for all. Google and the plaintiffs -- representatives of authors and publishers -- agreed to settle the massive case in October 2008 but delays after delays have prevented Google from offering out-of-print yet copyright-protected books in its Google Book Search product.

Ashcroft Encourages Business to Help with Tech Security

Just as the intelligence and law-enforcement communities rely on tips from vigilant citizens, enterprises too must broaden their approach to information security, former Attorney General John Ashcroft said in a speech. Enterprises that relegate their security operations to a siloed department cordoned off from the rest of the organization do so at their own peril, Ashcroft warned an audience of IT security professionals at the Gartner Security and Risk Management Summit.

Connecticut to Lead Multistate Probe of Google's Wi-Fi Practice

Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said his office will lead a multistate investigation into Google's unauthorized collection of personal data from wireless computer networks. Connecticut and states including Massachusetts and Illinois are demanding information on what Google calls the inadvertent gathering of data from wireless networks, such as e-mail and passwords, as it took pictures of streets and houses for its Street View service.

Music Group Wants Google to Remove File-Sharing Links

The British Phonographic Industry, the trade group for the music industry in Great Britain, has requested that Google remove links to some popular file-sharing sites, including Megaupload.com, 4shared.com, Zippyshare.com, and Mediafire.com. "We have identified the following links that are available via Google's search engine," the BPI wrote to Google in a June 11 letter, a copy of which was obtained by the blog Chillingeffects.org.

"Textual Harassment" Becoming More Popular

"Textual harassment" has become a growing aspect of dating violence at a time when cellphones and unlimited texting plans are ubiquitous among the young. Harassment is "just easier now, and it's even more persistent and constant, with no letting up," says Claire Kaplan, director of sexual and domestic violence services at the University of Virginia, which became the focus of national attention in May with the killing of 22-year-old lacrosse player Yeardley Love.

Venture Capitalists Eye Privacy-Related Companies

As privacy snafus mount across companies such as Facebook Inc. and AT&T Inc., venture capitalists have spotted a new market opening and are pumping millions of dollars into privacy-related start-ups. The jump in privacy-related investments underscores how ways to protect privacy on the Web and on mobile gadgets is increasingly viewed as a real business.

Supreme Court Allows Search of Officer's Text Messages

The Supreme Court ruled that a search of sexually explicit text messages sent by a police officer on a department pager was reasonable and did not violate his privacy rights. The justices unanimously overturned a ruling by a U.S. appeals court in California that found that reading the text messages sent on an employer-provided electronic device violated the worker's constitutional privacy rights.

FCC Vote Starts Move Toward Broadband Regulation

The Federal Communications Commission voted 3 to 2 to move toward giving itself the authority to regulate the transmission component of broadband Internet service, a power the commission's majority believes is central to expanding the availability of broadband. The vote formally begins a period of public comment on an FCC proposal to overturn a previous commission ruling that classified broadband transmission as a lightly regulated information service.

New York Creating Digital Database to Flag Child Porn

The office of New York attorney general Andrew Cuomo has spearheaded the creation of a database of "digital fingerprints" to flag child pornography, an announcement explained. With the hash values of over 8,000 known child-porn images stored in the database, Cuomo said that he hopes its intended clients -- social-networking, file-sharing, and photo storage sites -- will start to use it "immediately."

FBI Searches Home of Hacker in iPad E-mail Probe

The FBI searched the home of one of the alleged hackers who breached AT&T's website, capturing 114,000 e-mail addresses of Apple iPad 3G customers, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal. Andrew "Escher" Auernheimer, a member of Goatse, the group that hacked AT&T's website recently, was in jail in Arkansas on charges related to illegal drugs found during the FBI's search of his Fayetteville, Ark. home, the Journal reported.

  • Read the article: MSNBC

Privacy Activists Say Facebook Hasn't Done Enough

Facebook's recent announcement that it had simplified and enhanced its privacy settings wasn't enough to satisfy the privacy activists that have become some of its sharpest critics. In an open letter, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the ACLU of Northern California, and the Center for Democracy and Technology urged Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg to make "instant personalization" opt-in by default and provide more privacy options including allowing users to "control every piece of information they can share via Facebook."

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