FCC Close to Releasing Draft of Net Neutrality Rules

Federal regulators looking to place restrictions on Internet providers will introduce and vote on new proposed net neutrality rules in February, Federal Communications Commission officials said. President Obama's top telecom regulator, Tom Wheeler, told fellow FCC commissioners before the Christmas holiday that he intends to circulate a draft proposal internally in February with an eye toward approving the measure weeks later, said one official who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the agency's deliberations are ongoing. Read the article: The Washington Post

Obama OKs More Sanctions on N. Korea After Sony Attack

President Barack Obama authorized additional sanctions on North Korea in the wake of the "destructive and coercive" cyber attack on Sony Pictures Entertainment. The new sanctions target three entities -- including the country's primary intelligence organization -- and 10 individuals as agencies or officials of the North Korean government, according to the Treasury Department.

Google Could Use Utility Poles for Fiber Project

Google Inc. said open-Internet rules being considered by the U.S. government should give the company’s Fiber project a right to use utility poles, removing a “substantial barrier” to expansion. If the Federal Communications Commission adopts the utility-style regulatory approach backed by President Barack Obama, it should make sure broadband providers have the same access to poles, conduits and other infrastructure as cable-television and telephone companies, Austin Schlick, Google’s director for communications law, said in a Dec. 30 filing at the agency.

Facebook Suspends Chinese Dissident's Account Over Nudity

Just as scrutiny of how Facebook treats China-related content is mounting, the social-networking service suspended the account of a prominent Chinese dissident writer, citing its policy against nudity. Liao Yiwu, who lives in Berlin, said that he received notifications from Facebook that the company had temporarily blocked his ability to post updates to his page.

British Police Arrest Hacker Linked to 'Lizard Squad'

A 22-year-old man arrested by police investigating cyber-fraud offences in 2013-14 has been linked to the Lizard Squad hacking group thought to be behind the attacks on Sony’s PlayStation Network and Microsoft’s Xbox Live gaming services over Christmas. The unnamed man from Twickenham was arrested in a raid on his home by the South East Regional Organised Crime Unit (SEROCU) before being released on bail.

Chick-fil-A Probing 'Suspicious' Payment Card Activity

Chick-fil-A has is working with law enforcement to look into potential unusual activity involving card payments used at a few of their restaurants, the fast-food chain said in a press release on New Year's Eve. The restaurant first learned on December 19 that there was "limited suspicious" payment card activity "appearing to originate from payment cards used at a few of our restaurants."

  • Read the article: CNN

Companies Pushing Legal Limits to Fight Hackers

A growing number of companies are pushing the limits of existing law to consider ways to break into hackers’ networks to retrieve stolen data or even knock computers offline to stop attacks, cybersecurity professionals said in interviews. In one case, the Federal Bureau of Investigation is looking into whether hackers working on behalf of any U.S. financial institutions disabled servers that were being used by Iran to attack the websites of major banks last year, said two people familiar with the investigation.

Low-Risk 'Worm' Linked to S. Korean Nuclear Plant

South Korean authorities have found evidence that a low-risk computer "worm" had been removed from devices connected to some nuclear plant control systems, but no harmful virus was found in reactor controls threatened by a hacker. Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co Ltd said it would beef up cyber security by hiring more IT security experts and forming an oversight committee, as it came in for fresh criticism from lawmakers following recent hacks against its headquarters.

U.S. Suspects Outsiders Helped N. Korea Attack Sony

U.S. investigators believe that North Korea likely hired hackers from outside the country to help with last month's massive cyberattack against Sony Pictures, an official close to the investigation said. As North Korea lacks the capability to conduct some elements of the sophisticated campaign by itself, the official said, U.S. investigators are looking at the possibility that Pyongyang "contracted out" some of the cyber work.

Security Experts Predict More Cyber Threats in 2015

Scary cybersecurity news dominated the headlines constantly in 2014, with breaches, bugs and attacks involving Home Depot, Heartbleed, iCloud, Sony and others. Unfortunately, security experts say the attacks will only continue in 2015. But they're hoping there's a silver lining to this brutal year: the start of a long-overdue conversation about the potential attacks that threaten everyone online.

'Lizard Squad' Hacker Claims Role in Attack on Sony

In an unusual interview, a self-proclaimed member of the "cyberterrorist" group said Lizard Squad also played a role in the massive attack against Sony Pictures Entertainment. A person identifying himself as a Lizard Squad administrator said the group provided a number of Sony employee logins to Guardians of Peace, the organization that allegedly broke into Sony's network and prompted the film studio to initially withdraw "The Interview" from theaters.

Qualcomm Settles Antitrust Investigation in China

The settlement of China's antitrust probe into Qualcomm Inc. is likely to intensify global scrutiny of the firm's highly profitable patent licensing business, and may even call into question its worldwide contracts with smartphone makers such as Apple and Samsung. China's National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) is moving to wrap up its 13-month investigation into the U.S. chipmaker as soon as possible, the regulator said in a statement, bringing to an end one of the most high profile of a slew of such investigations by Beijing into western firms.

North Korea Blames U.S. for Internet Outage

North Korea lashed out at the United States, blaming it for disruptions that cut off the nation’s already limited connections to the Internet, while once again rejecting American accusations that it was behind the hacking of Sony Pictures. The statement, carried by the North’s state-run Korean Central News Agency, also called President Obama a “monkey” for urging the film studio to release “The Interview,” a comedy depicting the assassination of the North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un.

Facebook Deletes Post About Monk's Death in China

A prominent Tibetan writer says Facebook deleted her post on the self-immolation of a monk in Sichuan Province, raising concerns about politically motivated censorship. Tsering Woeser, who has written several books about Tibet and is a critic of Chinese policies in the region, said she posted a short item about Kalsang Yeshi, a 37-year-old monk who set himself on fire in front of a police station on Dec. 23 in Dawu County, part of the Kardze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in northwestern Sichuan.

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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.