Stores in China Installing Internet-Monitoring Software

New regulations that require Chinese bars, restaurants, hotels and bookstores to install costly Web monitoring software are prompting many businesses to cut Internet access and sending a chill through the capital’s game-playing, Web-grazing literati who have come to expect free Wi-Fi with their lattes and green tea. The software, which costs businesses about $3,100, provides public security officials the identities of those logging on to the wireless service of a restaurant, cafe or private school and monitors their Web activity.

Arrested Hackers Have Atypical Profiles

The FBI’s arrests of 14 people last week were the most ambitious crackdown yet on a loose-knit group of hackers called Anonymous that has attacked a string of government agencies and private companies over the last eight months. But at least some of the suspects are not your typical hard-core hackers, judging from interviews with two of them and the online traces of others.

Customers of Fake Apple Store in China Want Refunds

Customers at an apparent Apple Store in the Chinese city of Kunming berated staff and demanded refunds after the shop was revealed to be an elaborate fake, sparking a media and Internet frenzy. Long a target of counterfeiters and unauthorized resellers, Apple was alerted to the near flawless fake shop by an American blogger living in the southwestern city, more than 1,000 miles from the nearest genuine Apple stores in Beijing and Shanghai.

China Orders Two Fake Apple Stores Closed

Chinese officials in Kunming have ordered two fake Apple shops to close, not because of piracy or copyright concerns, but because the stores in the southwestern city did not have an official business permit. Five self-branded "Apple Stores" were found to be selling Apple products without authorization from the California-based company but only two were told to shut, officials said.

Director of U.S. Cyber Attack Team Resigns

The head of a U.S. agency that helps respond to cyber attacks resigned suddenly after several high-profile attacks on government computer systems but the Department of Homeland Security declined to comment on the reason. Randy Vickers resigned as director of the U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team, according to an email from Roberta Stempfley, acting assistant secretary for cyber security and communications at Homeland Security, which was sent to some employees.

Musicians Sue Grooveshark for Copyright Infringement

A group of songwriters and music publishers filed a lawsuit in Tennessee against the digital-music service, claiming Grooveshark enables users to obtain music illegally and therefore is liable for copyright infringement, contributory infringement, and vicarious infringement. Grooveshark, based in Gainesville, Fla., is a service that offers free music by enabling users to post their own tracks to the site and then share them with other users.

Microsoft Faces Patent Suit Over Kinect Controllers

A Bay Village, Ohio, company has sued Microsoft for allegedly infringing on its patents with the rapidly selling Kinect motion-sensing video game controller. Impulse Technology filed the suit in federal court in Delaware, accusing Microsoft and several game makers -- including Electronic Arts, Ubisoft, and THQ -- of violating patents related to, among other things, tracking and assessing movement skills in multidimensional space.

Google Changes Local Results Amid Antitrust Probe

Google Inc. has made changes to the way its search engine displays information about local businesses, a move that follows the disclosure of a U.S. antitrust investigation of its business practices. The company said it removed snippets of customer reviews that were taken from other Web firms for its Google "Places" service, which has millions of pages for local businesses.

Angry Birds Maker Sued for Patent Infringement

Rovio, the maker of the iconic mobile game Angry Birds, has been swept up in an ongoing patent war that has hit many app developers and embroiled Apple in a bitter legal exchange. Lodsys, a Texas-based patent licensing company, filed an amended complaint with the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, which names a number of other big games makers including Atari, EA, and Take-Two Interactive.

Judge Drops File-Sharing Damages from $1.5 Million to $54,000

A federal judge has lowered a file sharing verdict to $54,000 from $1.5 million, ruling Friday that the jury’s award “for stealing 24 songs for personal use is appalling.” The decision by U.S. District Judge Michael Davis follows the third trial in the Recording Industry Association of America’s lawsuit against Jammie Thomas-Rasset, the first file sharer to take an RIAA lawsuit to a jury trial.

  • Read the article: Wired

Insurer for Sony Denies Coverage for Data Breach

One of Sony Corp's insurers has asked a court to declare that it does not have to pay to defend the media and electronics conglomerate from mounting legal claims related to a massive data breach earlier this year. The dispute comes as demand soars for "cyberinsurance," with companies seeking to protect themselves against customer claims and associated costs for data and identity theft.

Google Rejected $100 Million Patent Deal with Sun

Google Inc. rejected an offer by Sun Microsystems Inc to pay $100 million in royalties to use Java in its development of the Android operating system before Sun was acquired by Oracle Corp., a Google lawyer said. Robert Van Nest, Google’s attorney, said at a hearing in federal court in San Francisco that the proposed $100 million three-year “all-in” deal in 2006 was for a technology partnership to jointly build Android, rather than for just a patent license.

Police Departments to Use iPhone Iris Scanners

Dozens of police departments nationwide are gearing up to use a tech company's already controversial iris- and facial-scanning device that slides over an iPhone and helps identify a person or track criminal suspects. The so-called "biometric" technology, which seems to take a page from TV shows like "MI-5" or "CSI," could improve speed and accuracy in some routine police work in the field.

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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.