Lawmakers Plan to Revive Internet "Kill Switch" Bill

A controversial bill handing President Obama power over privately owned computer systems during a "national cyberemergency," and prohibiting any review by the court system, will return this year. The point of the proposal is to assert governmental control only over those "crucial components that form our nation's critical infrastructure," according to Brandon Milhorn, Republican staff director and counsel for the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.

Texter Who Fell in Mall Fountain Considers Lawsuit

The problems continue to pile up for the Pennsylvania woman who became the unwitting star of a viral video after she fell into a mall fountain while text messaging. In the hours that followed Cathy Cruz Marrero's appearance on "Good Morning America" to talk about the fall and its aftermath, she was in court for a status hearing on charges of five felony counts, including theft by deception and receiving stolen property.

China to Promote Use of Legal U.S. Software

As part of Chinese President Hu Jintao's state visit to Washington, the White House said that China has agreed to boost its efforts to promote the use of legal U.S. software by Chinese government agencies and the private sector in China. China has agreed to allocate government funding for the purchase of legal software, audit the use of legal software and publish the results of those audits, and also encourage private companies and state-owned enterprises to use legal software, according to a fact sheet released by the White House.

New Congress to Address Internet Issues

The new Congress has only just started, but its Internet and technology agenda is quickly filling up. Top on the list for Republicans will be efforts to undo the Federal Communication Commission's late-December "Open Internet" Order. After that, expect bipartisan action on efforts to slake the voracious appetite for wireless spectrum of mobile Internet users and possible reform of the $8 billion Universal Service Fund.

ICE Director Defends Seizure of Domain Names

The head of the Homeland Security Department's Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency defended his agency's aggressive efforts to combat online piracy and counterfeiting by seizing Internet domain names. During a speech at the annual State of the Net conference, ICE Director John Morton defended the agency's "Operation In Our Sites" actions that involved the issuance of warrants in June to seize nine Internet domain names engaged in piracy of copyrighted content.

Two Men Charged with Hacking iPad User Info

Two men described as "Internet trolls" have been charged with allegedly hacking AT&T's servers to obtain the information of 120,000 iPad users, including some boldface names like Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and President Obama's former chief of staff. The hack attack occurred during the initial release of Apple's tablet computer, court documents state.

Italy Ends Google News Antitrust Investigation

The Italian antitrust authority said that it had ended an investigation into Google’s Internet news service after the company took steps to ease newspaper publishers’ concerns about control over their content and the sharing of advertising revenue. The Italian Federation of Newspaper Publishers had complained to the regulator in 2009 about Google News, contending that its members were unable to remove articles from the service without pulling them out of Google’s main search engine, a move that would cost them advertising revenue.

Spanish Court to Hear Google's Privacy Challenge

A legal case pitting Internet search giant Google Inc. against Spain's privacy laws will be heard by a Spanish court, a Google spokeswoman said. The case, a significant test of tightening privacy laws in the developed world, stems from a 2008 Google challenge to Spain's Agency of Data Protection, a government organization that deals with complaints from citizens over the handling of their personal data on the Internet.

Facebook Privacy Change Discloses Addresses, Phone Numbers

A tweak to Facebook's permissions and privacy settings means third-party developers can now access your home address and phone number, warned security firm Sophos. Facebookers now expressly grant third-party apps like Farmville and sites the right to see your address and phone number via the standard permissions dialogue -- although the social network maintained that the new changes would not provide access to the data of a user’s friends.

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The GigaLaw Firm helps companies of all sizes protect their brands online, using domain name dispute policies – such as the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP) – and other legal tools available to copyright and trademark owners on the Internet.