[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]
general internet news - 24 April
Reporters Without Borders website blocked
Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières) today
deplored as a blow to free expression a decision by the
Chinese authorities to block access to the organisation's
website and called for the immediate lifting of the ban,
which may have been imposed because of a press release on
the site about the extended imprisonment of cyber-dissident
Liu Di. Internet users reported on 14 April that the site,
www.rsf.org, was inaccessible in China.
http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=6132
German law shields children from content
Germany became the first country in Europe to enact
legislation protecting minors from harmful media content.
The Treaty on Human Rights & the Protection of Minors in
Broadcasting and Telecommunication Media creates a new
central commission for decisions on illegal and harmful
media and Web content. The new version of Germany's Minor
Protection Law, moreover, introduces much stricter rules
for computer games. Other countries in Europe are watching
Germany closely and could follow its lead, said Harald
Summa of the Electronic Commerce Forum, an association of
German ISPs.
http://www.computeruser.com/news/03/04/03/news5.html
ASACP, ICRA Trade Links: "We Share A Common Mission"
Adult Sites Against Child Pornography and the Internet
Content Rating Association have exchanged links under the
Industry Resources category, ASACP executive director Joan
Irvine announced April 1.
http://www.avn.com/articles/12138.html
Greek Hotline Safeline.Gr in operation (from
SaferInternet.org)
SafeLine (www.safeline.gr) is the first hotline in Greece
dealing with illegal Internet content. It launched its
operation on 14 April. SafeLine accepts reports concerning
websites or newsgroups found on the Internet and contain:
http://www.saferinternet.org/news/index.asp#safeline
http://www.safeline.gr
Pakistan moves to curb porn browsing at internet cafes
A scan of the history folder on almost any computer in a
Pakistani internet cafe reveals a library of web
pornography.
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/04/23/1050777280537.html
Surveillance law unconstitutional in Austria
New rules across Europe require surveillance assistance and
the retention of data by ISPs and telcos. Who should pay
the associated costs is a source of dispute - but not in
Austria, where the industry recently won a landmark
decision.
http://www.out-law.com/php/page.php?page_id=surveillancelawunc1051020567&area=news
FTC Publishes Agenda for Three-day Public Spam Workshop
The Federal Trade Commission has published an agenda and
list of participants for a three-day "Spam Forum" it will
host Wednesday, April 30 through Friday, May 2. The forum
is being held to address the proliferation of unsolicited
commercial e-mail and to explore the technical, legal, and
financial issues associated with it. The forum will be held
at the Federal Trade Commission, 601 New Jersey Avenue,
N.W., Washington, D.C. It will be open to the public and
preregistration is not required. The detailed agenda is
available at
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/workshops/spam/agenda.pdf
Fake hate e-mails mar activists' reputations
Arab-American activist Nawar Shora checked his e-mail one
day and found scores of angry messages asking why he hated
Americans and Jews. The messages were responding to e-mails
marked as coming from him. Only one big problem: Shora
never sent the hate mail.
http://edition.cnn.com/2003/TECH/internet/04/21/hate.email.ap/index.html
Want to Beat the Enemy? Win the Information War
Bruce Berkowitz, a noted analyst at the RAND Corporation
and the Hoover Institution at Stanford, has produced a
readable and well-informed study of information technology
and its implications for future warfare. Even though he
wrote his book just before the conflict in Iraq, his
observations about technology and its role in future
warfare have not been radically altered by the outcome of
the war to overthrow Saddam Hussein.
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/04/23/books/23OHAN.html
Students charged for swapping music
The Australian Federal Police has charged two students and
detained a third for illegally swapping music files over
the internet.
http://afr.com/it/2003/04/24/FFXGSLG7UED.html
Consumer Groups Charge Amazon Violates Web Privacy
Consumer groups charged on Tuesday Internet retailer
Amazon.com Inc. with violating a children's privacy law and
asked the U.S. government to look into the matter.
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=internetNews&storyID=2607945
Organised crime on the internet: hidden dangers
Management perceives major threats from viruses and teenage
hackers. But bigger threats come from organised crime
involving fraud and commercial espionage, argues David
Love, former head of security at NATO and current Head of
Security Strategy for Europe, the Middle East and Africa at
Computer Associates.
http://www.out-law.com/php/page.php?page_id=organisedcrimeont1050497394&area=news
Have-not world more plugged-in than we think
Concerns over the widening technology gap between the
world's haves and have nots — frequently referred to as the
digital divide — have attracted increasing attention from
government and technology companies.
http://www.torontostar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1035781084037&call_pageid=968350072197&col=969048863851
Development of wireless local area networks in OECD
countries
Wireless technology provides business executives, office
workers, small businesses and residential users with
expanded opportunities to connect to the Internet outside
the limited area dictated by fixed networks.
http://www.oecd.org/pdf/M00040000/M00040494.pdf
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Check out http://www.auda.org.au/about/news for the latest
domain news. The domain name news is supported by auDA.
Also see
http://greta.electric.gen.nz/mailman/listinfo/internet-news
or http://www.alfa-redi.org/noticia for an archive or to
subscribe to the general news.
Sources include Quicklinks (www.qlinks.net) and BNA
Internet Law News (www.bna.com/ilaw)".
=====
David Goldstein
address: 2/4 Dundas Street
COOGEE NSW 2034
AUSTRALIA
email: Goldstein_David@yahoo.com.au
phone: +61 418 228 605 - mobile; +61 2 9665 0015 - home
http://mobile.yahoo.com.au - Yahoo! Mobile
- Check & compose your email via SMS on your Telstra or Vodafone mobile.
