FCC Extends Deadline for Net Neutrality Comments

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission pushed back to July 18 the first deadline to submit comments on the agency's proposed new Internet traffic rules after a surge in traffic overwhelmed its online filing system. Companies, consumer advocates, lawmakers and citizens had sent nearly 680,000 comments on the FCC's proposed so-called net neutrality rules -- which guide how Internet service providers manage web traffic on their networks -- as the deadline for first comments approached.

Chinese Hackers Target Obscure Federal Agencies

After years of cyberattacks on the networks of high-profile government targets like the Pentagon, Chinese hackers appear to have turned their attention to far more obscure federal agencies. Law enforcement and cybersecurity analysts in March detected intrusions on the computer networks of the Government Printing Office and the Government Accountability Office, senior American officials said this week.

Justice Dep't Official Making Online Crime a Priority

International organized crime groups, lured by the prospect of thefts that can net hundreds of millions of dollars, increasingly are turning to cybercrime, said the new head of the Justice Department's criminal division. Leslie Caldwell, who took over the position in June, said she plans to make combating online crime a priority, but acknowledged that the growing threats could be difficult to fight.

Despite Aereo, Appeals Court Won't Stop 'Dish Anywhere'

Three weeks after the Supreme Court shut down Aereo for streaming TV over the internet without permission, a court in California has given the green light for satellite TV company Dish to continue selling a service that does much the same thing. In a short ruling, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals refused a request by Fox to shut down “Dish Anywhere,” which lets consumers record the broadcasters’ shows on a DVR and then beam them over the Internet to a computer or mobile device.

Web Companies Urge FCC to Protect 'Net Neutrality'

Major U.S. web companies urged regulators to restrict the ability of Internet providers including mobile carriers to strike deals for faster delivery of some web traffic and planned a publicity campaign about the government's proposal. The Internet Association, which represents three dozen web companies such as Google Inc, Netflix Inc and Amazon.com Inc, made their case in a filing with the Federal Communications Commission, which plans to establish new so-called "net neutrality" rules.

Chinese Citizen Charged with Hacking Boeing Computers

A Chinese citizen was charged with plotting to steal data from U.S. defense contractors, including a successful hack of Boeing Co.’s computer system, amid an expanding crackdown on industrial espionage by China. Su Bin, the owner of a Chinese aviation technology company with an office in Canada, conspired with two unidentified individuals in China to break into the computer networks of U.S. companies to get information related to military projects, according to charges unsealed July 10 in federal court in Los Angeles.

Parking App Shuts Down in San Francisco After Threat

An Italian company whose mobile app allows San Francisco drivers to get paid for the public parking spaces they exit has temporarily shut down the service following an order from the city attorney. Despite saying last month that it wouldn't stop, MonkeyParking said in a blog that it "temporarily disabled" its bidding service in San Francisco, a day before City Attorney Dennis Herrera's deadline to cease operations or face a possible lawsuit.

Judge Orders Amazon to Disclose Reviewer's Identity

A federal judge has granted a nutritional supplement firm's request to help it learn the identities of those who allegedly left "phony negative" reviews of its products on Amazon.com. The decision means that Ubervita may issue subpoena's to Amazon.com and Cragslist to cough up the identities of those behind a "campaign of dirty tricks against Ubervita in a wrongful effort to put Ubervita at a competitive disadvantage in the marketplace."

Apple Wins Patent Lawsuit Over Streaming Live Video

Apple Inc. defeated a lawsuit brought by Emblaze Ltd. claiming the iPhone-maker pushed organizations including Major League Baseball to adopt its format for streaming live video, causing them to infringe a patent. Mark Fowler, a lawyer for Apple, argued to a federal jury at the outset of trial in San Jose, California, that Emblaze was an example of a failed company targeting the iPhone-maker due to its success.

Dr. Dre Sues Website Operators Over Fake 'Beats'

Hip-hop superproducer Dr. Dre is taking legal action against bosses behind a group of Chinese websites selling illegal counterfeits of his hugely popular Beats by Dre headphones. The rap icon recently sold his high-end Beats Electronics audio equipment company to Apple bosses for a whopping $3 billion, and now he's determined to crack down on cheap Chinese-made knock-offs which he claims are damaging his reputation.

FCC Approves $2 Billion for School E-Rate Program

Regulators have just approved a big package of federal aid for schools and libraries so that they can upgrade their WiFi networks, as part of a larger effort to modernize the way educators connect their charges to the Web. In a 3-2 vote along party lines, the FCC greenlit a plan to spend $2 billion over the next two years on subsidies for internal networks.

Aereo Attempts Comeback as a 'Cable Company'

Aereo Inc.'s defiant stance in the wake of an adverse ruling by the Supreme Court last month is setting off debate over a controversial area of the copyright law, with broad implications for the budding online video sector. But rather than slink away defeated, the company is hoping to turn the court's decision to its advantage. If it were classified as a cable company, Aereo argues, it should be able to qualify for a "compulsory license" -- meaning it could pay limited royalties for the rights to broadcast content.

Apple Gets Trademark in EU for Store Layouts

Apple Inc. has a secured a court ruling allowing the company to register the layout of its retail stores in the European Union as a trade mark, an extension of its intellectual property that it had already acquired in the U.S. The EU's top court said that Apple's flagship stores fulfilled the three criteria for a trade mark: they constitute a sign; they can be represented in a graphic; and they can distinguish the goods or services sold by one company from those of another.

Chinese Users Get Access to Google Services Again

Users in China were able to access online services for Google Inc., after more than a month of severe disruption that almost completely blocked people from using features such as its search, maps and e-mail functions. The Google disruption began in the run-up to the 25th anniversary of the government's bloody crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators around Beijing's Tiananmen Square.

Senator Wants FTC to Look Into Facebook Mood Experiment

Democratic Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia asked the Federal Trade Commission to look into whether Facebook’s experiment on the ability to manipulate emotions on Facebook using the data of 700,000 unwitting users may have violated the company’s privacy agreement with the federal government. “As the collection and analysis of ‘big data’ continues to increase and as it assumes a larger role in the business plans of Internet-based companies, it is appropriate that we consider questions about what, if any, oversight might be appropriate,” Warner said in a letter to the FTC.

Microsoft Says 4.7 Million Infected PCs Freed

Microsoft Corp said it has freed at least 4.7 million infected personal computers from control of cyber crooks in its most successful digital crime-busting operation, which interrupted service at an Internet-services firm. The world's largest software maker has also identified at least another 4.7 million infected machines, though many are likely still controlled by cyber fraudsters, Microsoft's cybercrime-fighting Digital Crimes Unit said.

Ireland Examining Facebook After Emotions Study

The Irish data privacy watchdog said it will take a broader look at Facebook’s research practices, including previous research activity, to review the company’s use of personal user information, after a paper published in June showed how Facebook manipulated the news feeds of nearly 700,000 users to see the effect on people’s emotions. “We will be examining more closely the uses that Facebook is making of personal data for research purposes,” said Billy Hawkes, the data protection commissioner for Ireland.

U.S. Probing Breach of Personnel Management PCs

U.S. authorities are investigating an apparent breach of computer systems at the federal Office of Personnel Management, which stores data on federal employees, according to a Department of Homeland Security official. The DHS unit that monitors government networks detected a "potential intrusion" into the Office of Personnel Management's network in March, the department official said.

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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.