EFF Warns About 'Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act'

The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is raising some red flags about a new House bill aimed broadly at stopping cyber threats that, in practice, would go much further. The Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act of 2011 (H.R. 3523) was introduced by Rep. Mike Rogers and Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger and “allows companies or the government free rein to bypass existing laws in order to monitor communications, filter content, or potentially even shut down access to online services for ‘cybersecurity purposes,’” according to the EFF.

AOL Sells 800 Patents to Microsoft for $1.056 Billion

AOL agreed to sell a portfolio of over 800 patents, and license about 300 more, to Microsoft for $1.056 billion, amid an arms race within the technology industry over intellectual property. Under the terms of the transaction, AOL will retain a license for the patents it is selling, while Microsoft will receive a nonexclusive license for the technologies AOL is retaining.

Hackers Publish E-mails from Tunisian Prime Minister

Activists claiming affiliation with the hacking group Anonymous published about 2,700 emails purportedly between Tunisian Prime Minister Hamadi Jebali and other members of his government. A mask-wearing man in a video posted online said the publication had been prompted by recent events in Tunisia, notably the violent dispersal of a rally for unemployed people on Saturday in which several were injured.

  • Read the article: AFP

Marine Faces Dismissal for Obama Facebook Post

A Marine who posted on Facebook that he would not follow orders from President Barack Obama should be dismissed from the military with a less-than-honorable discharge, a Marine Corps review board ruled. Gary Stein, 26, did not comment on the ruling, one day after his lawyers unsuccessfully sought to delay the review board by seeking an injunction in federal court in San Diego.

Widespread Virus Shows Mac Users They're Not Immune

For years, Mac users have been told that not only are they cooler than their PC counterparts, they are safer too. Apple has always held that computer viruses and malware only dogged its competitors. That is no longer the case, as security researchers discovered a new computer virus had infected half a million Mac users -- about half of them in the United States.

Twitter Files Suit Against Five Alleged Spammers

Twitter took a new step in its fight against spammers, filing a lawsuit in a San Francisco federal court against companies that create tools to automate posting to and following people on Twitter. The suit names five defendants: TweetAttacks, TweetAdder, TweetBuddy, James Lucero and Garland Harris -- which Twitter claims are the biggest offenders in the Twitter spamming racket -- arguing they are the arms dealers to those who fill the service with fake profiles and unwanted @ messages.

  • Read the article: Wired

New York Forces Sex Offenders Off Online Gaming

State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman announced that New York has partnered with several tech companies to purge thousands of registered sex offenders from online gaming networks in what he dubbed "Operation: Game Over." So far, more than 3,500 accounts of registered sex offenders in New York have been removed from online video game platforms such as Xbox Live or games like World of Warcraft.

Appeals Court Reverses Ruling Against Viacom in YouTube Case

A federal appeals court reversed a lower court’s decision to throw out a $1 billion lawsuit filed against YouTube by Viacom and other media companies five years ago. The copyright infringement suit, which has become a symbol of the clash between entrenched media companies and the upstarts that compete with them, sought damages for unauthorized video clips from shows like “The Daily Show With Jon Stewart” that had been uploaded by users to YouTube.

'Anonymous' Claims to Hack 500 Sites in China

Anonymous has recently turned its attention to the human rights struggle in China, hacking and defacing hundreds of government and commercial Web sites in that country. The online hactivist group claims to have compromised more than 500 Web sites over the past couple of days, defacing them with messages claiming responsibility for the breach while The Who's "Baba O'Riley" plays in the background.

Three Publishers May Settle E-Book Pricing Probes

Talks to resolve U.S. and European price-fixing probes into e-books are heating up, with three international publishers inclined to settle the matter, according to people familiar with the matter. Apple Inc., another target of the investigation, and two publishers appear reluctant to settle on the terms sought by antitrust authorities in both the U.S. and Europe, those people said.

Zynga, Wynn Resorts Discuss Online Gambling Deal

Eager to marry the popularity of social gaming with real-life betting, Zynga is in talks with casino company Wynn Resorts about a potential online gambling partnership, The New York Post has learned. Zynga, which sees huge revenue potential in moving from pretend to real-life wagering, needs to form partnerships with casino operators in a number of states if it is to cash in on an expected boom in Internet gambling.

Facebook Misses Privacy Deadline, Austrian Group Says

Facebook has failed to meet a deadline to improve its privacy policies that was set by the data commissioner in Ireland, home to it overseas headquarters, an Austrian advocacy group said. "Now it seems that Facebook is not even sticking to the obligations under this report," said Europe-versus-Facebook, a group set up by an Austrian student, Max Schrems, who has fought a long battle against the social networking website.

  • Read the article: AFP
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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.