Momentum May Topple Anti-Piracy Bills

U.S. legislation aimed at curbing online piracy, which had appeared to be on a fast track for approval by Congress, appears likely to be scaled back or jettisoned entirely in the wake of critical comments from the White House, people familiar with the matter said. The legislation, known as SOPA in the House of Representatives and PIPA in the Senate, has been a major priority for entertainment companies, publishers, pharmaceutical firms and many industry groups, who say it is critical to curbing online piracy that costs them billions of dollars a year.

Israeli Hackers Claim Retaliatory Attack on Stock Sites

Israeli hackers claim to have opened a new front in the escalating cyber war with their Arab rivals, by launching an attack on the websites of stock markets in Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi. The attack, carried out by a group calling itself IDF Team, came in reply to a similar hacking assault that targeted the websites of the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange and of El Al, the Israeli national airline.

States' Tax Benefits for Online Gambling Not Clear

Several states are thinking about trying to plug budget gaps by profiting again from the optimism of their residents -- by legalizing, licensing and taxing Internet gambling. But as desperate as states are for new revenue, after four years of often-painful austerity, there are questions about just how big a jackpot they can expect from online gambling.

Google Apologizes for Misrepresentation in Kenya

Google confirmed that a Kenyan-based Google team tasked with helping get local businesses online had improperly mined the customer database of a Kenyan online business directory and, in some cases, misled customers. The news came to light after the CEO of the business directory company published “Google, What Were You Thinking?” a blog post detailing a months-long company investigation into strange traffic spikes on its business profile pages and complaints from some of its customers.

Facebook to Publicize Info About 'Koobface' Gang

Five men believed to be responsible for spreading a notorious computer worm on Facebook and other social networks — and pocketing several million dollars from online schemes — are hiding in plain sight in St. Petersburg, Russia, according to investigators at Facebook and several independent computer security researchers. The men live comfortable lives in St. Petersburg — and have frolicked on luxury vacations in places like Monte Carlo, Bali and, earlier this month, Turkey, according to photographs posted on social network sites — even though their identities have been known for years to Facebook, computer security investigators and law enforcement officials.

Company Stops Production of Steve Jobs Doll

The maker of a controversial Steve Jobs doll is ceasing production and sales of the 12-inch figure in response to "immense pressure" from Apple and Jobs' family. "Though we still believe that we have not overstepped any legal boundaries, we have decided to completely stop the offer, production and sale of the Steve Jobs figurine out of our heartfelt sensitivity to the feelings of the Jobs family," Tandy Cheung, head of the Hong Kong-based In Icons, said in a statement announcing the decision.

Zappos Says Hackers Got Data on 24 Million Customers

Popular online shoe retailer Zappos.com said that hackers had accessed its network, stealing customer account information from as many as 24 million customers. Credit card information was not stolen, company CEO Tony Hsieh said in a statement sent to users, but email addresses, billing and shipping addresses, phone numbers, the last four digits from credit cards -- and more -- may have been compromised.

ITC Judge Rules for Motorola in Apple Patent Suit

Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc. said it has received a favorable initial determination in patent infringement litigation filed by Apple Inc. According to Motorola Mobility, an administrative law judge in the U.S. International Trade Commission issued an initial determination finding no violation for any of the three Apple patents listed in Apple's suit, which was filed in October 2010.

White House Opposes Parts of Internet Piracy Bills

The Obama administration said that it strongly opposed central elements of two Congressional efforts to enforce copyrights on the Internet, all but killing the current versions of legislation that has divided both political parties and pitted Hollywood against Silicon Valley. The comments by the administration’s chief technology officials, posted on a White House blog, came as growing opposition to the legislation had already led sponsors of the bills to reconsider a measure that would force Internet service providers to block access to Web sites that offer or link to copyrighted material.

Indian Court Hears Case on Offensive Content Online

Internet giants including Google and Facebook are embroiled in a growing battle in India over offensive content with a judge warning websites may be blocked "like in China," stoking worries about freedom of speech in the world's largest democracy. The Delhi High Court resumes a hearing of an appeal by Google, Facebook and others against a lower court case by a private petitioner seeking to remove images considered offensive to Hindus, Muslims and Christians from websites.

Google Renews Expansion in China Despite Censorship

Google Inc., which pulled its Web-search engine out of mainland China two years ago after a confrontation with Chinese authorities over censorship, has renewed its push to expand there, in an acknowledgment that it can't afford to miss out on the world's biggest Internet market. The search giant is hiring more engineers, salespeople and product managers in China and working to introduce new services for Chinese consumers, according to Daniel Alegre, Google's top executive in Asia.

Software Ass'n Seeks Trademark Help for Domains

As the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers moves forward, despite ongoing concerns, with its decision to launch a program to sell new generic top-level domains, the organization should take new steps to protect trademarks and other intellectual property, a U.S. software trade group said. ICANN should react to problems it sees developing as applications come in for new gTLDs, said the Software and Information Industry Association (SIIA), a trade group that has questioned the need for a new gTLD program.

Israel Discourages Hackers from Being Vigilantes

Israel called on computer hackers not to take the law into their own hands to avenge attacks on Israeli credit card companies, and said the authorities were capable of countering all cyber threats. "We call on Israeli citizens to abide by (the law). Just as the Israeli government has found answers for terrorism, we will find answers to this challenge... we call on Israeli citizens not to... act as vigilantes," Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon said in a statement.

Dutch Cable Companies Must Block Access to Pirate Bay

Two Dutch cable companies were ordered by a court to block access to the website The Pirate Bay to prevent the illegal downloading of free music, films and games in a case brought on behalf of the entertainment industry. In Sweden, where the website was founded, Pirate Bay’s owners have been prosecuted and the website has been banned, but the popular site is still available online around the world.

U.S. Official Approves of ICANN's Domain Expansion

Calls for the U.S. government to halt a plan by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) to offer new generic top-level domains are shortsighted because they could lead to other countries attempting to exert control over ICANN, a U.S. government official said. ICANN's plan to begin accepting applications for new gTLDs should move forward, even though there are major concerns about the gTLD plan, said Lawrence Strickling, administrator at the U.S. National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA).

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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.