general internet news - September 30

[David Goldstein <goldstein_david@yahoo.com.au>]

***************************************************
Sponsored by the Singapore Internet Research Centre
Nanyang Technological University, Singapore

http://www.ntu.edu.sg/sci/sirc/
Internet in Asia blog: sirc.blogspot.com
***************************************************
Pan Asia ICT R&D Grants Programme - October 2004
Competition Round
The Pan Asia ICT R&D Grants Programme is pleased to
announce the October 2004 Competition round for ICT
R&D grant applicants from the Asia Pacific region.
This open-theme competition welcomes proposals in the
following areas:
*       Research and development into innovative ICT
applications, with a clear focus on practical and
replicable approaches and techniques;
*       Research on Internet infrastructure design,
performance, management policy and related topics;
*       Development of practical solutions based on
the application of proven and readily available
Internet technologies with minimum basic    research;
*       Research on the outcomes and social impacts of
specific ICT policies and interventions and
application of Internet technologies;
*       Research on policy matters affecting Internet
networking in the Asia Pacific region, especially
where linked to areas such as the impact of policies,
gender equity, social equity, sustainable communities,
and technology diffusion/transfer and benefits to
rural areas;
*       Technology related issues such as Broadband
Connectivity, Last mile innovation, Mobile and
Wireless technologies for the developing world and
Increasing the capacity/efficiency of existing network
infrastructures.
For more information see:
 http://web.idrc.ca/en/ev-9609-201-1-DO_TOPIC.html

*******************************
CENSORSHIP & CONTENT REGULATION
*******************************
Australian censors ban Manhunt
The Classification Review Board has voted 3-1 to ban
the violent computer game Manhunt following an
application by the federal Attorney General on the
request of the Western Australian Minister for
Justice.

http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/business/0,39023166,39161068,00.htm

au: Family First seeks net gag
CONSERVATIVE political newcomer Family First wants an
annual levy of $7 to $10 on all internet users to fund
a $45 million mandatory national internet filtering
scheme aimed at blocking pornographic and offensive
content at server level.

http://australianit.news.com.au/articles/0,7204,10900684%5E15318%5E%5Enbv%5E15306,00.html
 http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/09/27/net_levy/

uk: New rules cut porn risks
IT managers worried about the repercussions of
discovering paedophile content on company systems have
been advised by online watchdog the Internet Watch
Foundation (IWF) that they can report such material
without fear of prosecution.
 http://www.vnunet.com/news/1158365

http://out-law.com/php/page.php?page_id=howdochildpornla1096381414

87% of IT Professionals NOT aware of changes to the
law on child abuse images (news release)
Research published today by the Internet Watch
Foundation (IWF) shows that of the 1,000 senior IT
Management professionals questioned*, the overwhelming
majority were not aware of the recent Sexual Offences
Act 2003.
 http://iwf.org.uk/news/archive/latest_news.epl

uk: Civil servants in net porn probe
More than 200 civil servants have been disciplined for
downloading pornographic images at work.
 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/3600686.stm

uk: Civil Servants and Internet Misuse Investigation
(news release)
It was revealed today that more than 200 civil
servants from the Department of Work and Pensions have
been disciplined for downloading pornographic images
at work, following monitored computer use over an 8
month period. The 2 million pages of pornography which
were accessed were said to include some child abuse
images.

http://iwf.org.uk/news/archive/detail_news.epl?INFO_ID=230&RECORD_SKIP_FIRST=5

The Internet has made it convenient for those who
sexually exploit children
They don't even have to leave the privacy of their
homes to go looking for the smut they de-sire. But,
child predators who sexually exploit children should
beware. They should beware, because cybercrime law
enforcement agents "have their number," and classes
are being taught on how to "catch" these exploiters of
innocent children.
 http://crime-research.org/news/25.09.2004/660/

tw: Web crackdown infringing on freedoms, Ho believes
Recent police crackdowns on those posting Internet ads
are overstepping legal boundaries and hampering
freedom of speech, a gender rights activist said
yesterday.
 http://asiamedia.ucla.edu/article.asp?parentid=15155

EuroISPA Newsletter
Issue 5 of the EuroISPA newsletter focusses on 'safer
internet' with contributions from Stephen Balkam
(ICRA) and Cormac Callanan (INHOPE), both writing on
the topic.

http://www.euroispa.org/newsletter_archive/04_august.pdf

China cracks down on free expression in the midst of
human rights dialogue with the EU
Reporters Without Borders challenged the EU to react
to China's latest crackdown in which in one week a
website and a discussion forum have been blocked, an
influential magazine banned, a New York Times
contributor arrested and the press failed to report
the arrest of hundreds of demonstrators in Beijing.
 http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=11468

ir: Online journalist freed but two others still held
Reporters Without Borders today welcomed the release
on 21 September of Iranian online journalist Babak
Ghafori Azar, detained for two weeks for allegedly
writing for the news website Rouydad, but said two
others arrested around the same time are still being
held and urged bloggers and other Internet users and
to send e-mail messages of support.
 http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=11452

us: Boy held for plot to bomb school  
A boy who said on the Internet that he planned to bomb
his high school was turned in by the daughter of a
university police officer who heads a cyber crimes
unit, authorities said.
 http://www.todayonline.com/articles/26311.asp

*******************
LEGAL AND SECURITY
*******************
ng: 419: Court Denies 4 Bail
An Ikeja High Court judge, Justice Morenike Obadina,
has denied bail requests of four accused persons who
are facing a 77-count charge of advance fee fraud
a.k.a. 419 allegedly took place at the Federal
Secretariat, Ikoyi, Lagos between May 5, 2003 and
February 26, this year within Ikeja judicial division.
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200409270790.html

Cyber terrorism - terrorism of future
As civilization more and more uses technologies, we
should be sure that there is enough degree of control
in order to protect those who use these technologies.
 http://crime-research.org/news/29.09.2004/669/

Hackers use porn groups to target Microsoft JPEG hole
- 29/9/04
Malicious hackers are seeding Internet news groups
that traffic in pornography with JPEG images that take
advantage of a recently disclosed security hole in
Microsoft's software.

http://idg.com.sg/idgwww.nsf/unidlookup/B0241EF91F10723048256F1E0007C5FC

******
POLICY
******
CPSR's 2004 Annual Weekend - Georgetown University,
Washington, DC, October 16-17
Annual Conference - Making the Grade?: A Report Card
on US Policies for the Information Society - setting a
public interest agenda; Norbert Wiener Award Reception
for Barry Steinhardt of ACLU's Program on Technology
and Liberty; and Member Meeting.
 http://cpsr.org/conferences/annmtg04/

us: Schwarzenegger signs anti-spyware bill
California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed an
anti-spyware bill on Tuesday banning unauthorized
installation of deceptive software that hides in
personal computers and secretly monitors user
activity.
 http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1009_22-5388122.html

us: Pedophiles, kids: Beware of Internet
It’s a dark time in law enforcement circles: Between
2:30 and 5 p.m., thousands of children nationwide are
virtually unsupervised, many with access to computers.
"The bad guys out there know that," says Veivia’s
boss, Supervisory Special Agent Joseph Dooley.

http://www.newbritainherald.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=13008461&BRD=1641&PAG=461&dept_id=10110&rfi=6

*****
SPAM
*****
MS, Amazon form phishing alliance
MICROSOFT and Amazon.com have joined up to take legal
action in an effort to halt a series of fraud schemes
using faked or "spoofed" websites.

http://australianit.news.com.au/articles/0,7204,10916230%5e16123%5e%5enbv%5e,00.html

http://infoworld.com/article/04/09/28/HNmsamazonphish_1.html
 http://afr.com/articles/2004/09/29/1096401615308.html

http://computerworld.co.nz/news.nsf/UNID/2ECFE9C26CF80F16CC256F1E0012C38E

************
INTERNET USE
************
sg: Your child's online activity is this
technopreneur's business
Enabling parents to play "big brother" for their
children may become big business for Mr Chui Wei
Leong, who recently joined the ranks of
technopreneurs.
 http://www.todayonline.com/articles/26493.asp

Viagra bought online 'often fake'
Half of men buying the impotence drug Viagra online
are getting counterfeit tablets, study findings
suggest.
 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/3696820.stm

Broadband hits new high in the UK
Broadband in the UK has hit a new milestone, with more
than five million people now having high-speed net
connections, say broadband analysts.
 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/3697892.stm

http://reuters.co.uk/newsArticle.jhtml?type=internetNews&storyID=6340439

nz: Broadband price war
Expect the cost of broadband to drop again before
Christmas as service providers battle it out to get
new subscribers and win existing ones from rivals.
 http://stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3047915a28,00.html

Can Skype live up to the Net phone hype?
When Sun Chun first heard of Skype and its promise of
free, high-quality Internet phone service, he figured
the claims were mostly hype.

http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/communications/0,2000061791,39160921,00.htm

uk: London Internet Exchange becomes world's largest
internet hub
The London Internet Exchange (Linx) has become the
largest independent internet hub in the world.
 http://www.vnunet.com/news/1158386

Playboy.com Celebrates 10th Anniversary With Free
Memberships
To celebrate its tenth anniversary on the Web,
Playboy.com is giving away a one-month membership to
anyone who signs up today, Sept. 27, before 7 p.m.
Pacific Time.

http://avn.com/index.php?Primary_Navigation=Articles&Action=View_Article&Content_ID=194381

Switzerland Tests Virtual Democracy in National
Referendum
Swiss authorities Sunday hailed as a success what they
said was the world's first binding Internet vote in a
national referendum.

http://technologyreview.com/articles/04/09/ap_092604.asp

Virtual democracy (reg req'd)
Swiss authorities have hailed as a success what they
say is the world's first binding internet vote in a
national referendum.

http://smh.com.au/articles/2004/09/27/1096137141979.html

us: Internet fails to shine for 'silver surfers'
The problem with Harvey Bingham is that he's not your
typical senior citizen.

http://news.com.com/Internet+fails+to+shine+for+silver+surfers/2100-1046_3-5385220.html

Hackers invade Jihad group's Web site
Hackers on Tuesday attacked a Web site of a group
thought to have beheaded two U.S. hostages in Iraq,
rerouting visitors to a page showing a penguin toting
a machine-gun and warning against hosting such sites.

http://news.com.com/Hackers+invade+Jihad+groups+Web+site/2100-1028_3-5387746.html

http://reuters.co.uk/newsArticle.jhtml?type=internetNews&storyID=6354785

us: Fear and Laptops on the Campaign Trail (reg req'd)
The bloggers covering the presidential race are
maverick, funny, mostly partisan and always
hypercaffeinated. Are they ruining political
journalism or recharging it?
 http://nytimes.com/2004/09/26/magazine/26BLOGS.html

*****
WSIS
*****
tn: President Ben Ali Receives Secretary General of
Itu, Wsis Discussed
President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali received Friday Mr
Yoshio Utsumi, secretary-general of the International
telecommunication (ITU).
 http://allafrica.com/stories/200409270058.html

Fifth Publication of the UN ICT Task Force Series
The following is the introductory excerpt from the
United Nations ICT Task Force's recently published
"Internet Governance: A Grand Collaboration". This
publication offers a collection of works from the
March 2004 meeting.
 http://www.circleid.com/article/769_0_1_0_C/

******************
ONLINE MUSIC & P2P
******************
ca: IP Report Online (reg req'd)
On June 30, 2004, the Supreme Court of Canada rendered
its long awaited judgment concerning the copyright
tariff proposed by the Society of Composers, Authors
and Music Publishers of Canada (SOCAN) for the use of
musical works on the Internet. The case deals with
important issues relating to Internet usage, including
the extent to which music forming part of Internet
communications is protected under Canadian copyright
legislation and the entities that can be held liable
for the payment of royalties for such use.
 http://www.mondaq.com/i_article.asp?articleid=28665

us: US bill targets Net song swappers
Users of Internet "peer to peer" networks, already
dodging lawsuits from the recording industry, could
face up to three years in prison under a bill passed
by the U.S. House of Representatives.

http://reuters.co.uk/newsArticle.jhtml?type=internetNews&storyID=6363174

http://nytimes.com/reuters/technology/tech-tech-copyright.html

E-mail turns to P2P technology
Peer-to-peer technology has been used to create an
e-mail network said to be free of spam, viruses and
snoopers.
 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/3694974.stm

***************
RESEARCH PAPERS
***************
SOFTWARE, SOVEREIGNTY AND THE INTERNET: CIRCUMVENTING
CHAOS THROUGH TRIPs by Manavinder Singh Bains
This article explores the applicability,
enforceability and logic of anti-circumvention
provisions under international copyright law.
 http://cbeji.com.br/br/downloads/secao/bains.pdf

The future for the policing of cybercrime by Peter
Sommer, London School of Economics
What can we reasonably expect from law enforcement in
terms of policing high tech crime? What can the police
reasonably expect from us in terms of adequacy of
prevention and co-operation when a suspected crime
occurs? Cyber Crime Policing can only be understood
within the broader issues facing the criminal justice
system. It seems to me that both sides may be
expecting too much of each other and a more realistic
approach might be more productive. In this
presentation I will concentrate on the situation here
in the UK; however similar patterns occur in many
other countries. Let’s start off with the good news.
 http://cbeji.com.br/br/downloads/secao/policing.pdf

************************
COMMENT, MICROSOFT & DEVELOPMENTS
************************
E-mail turns to P2P technology
Peer-to-peer technology has been used to create an
e-mail network said to be free of spam, viruses and
snoopers.
 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/3694974.stm

de: Munich all set for Linux switch
The German city is going ahead with its move away from
proprietary software in favour of open source, despite
worries over patents
 http://news.zdnet.co.uk/0,39020330,39168236,00.htm

http://reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=technologyNews&storyID=6355956

IBM says Blue Gene breaks speed record
IBM claimed unofficial bragging rights Tuesday as
owner of the world's fastest supercomputer.

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/techinnovations/2004-09-29-bluegene_x.htm

***********************
ARRESTS FOR CHILD PORN
***********************
au/us:  Police 'smash child porn ring'
AUSTRALIAN police and American FBI agents have smashed
a global internet child pornography ring with
operatives in Australia.

http://theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,10920892%255E1702,00.html

ie: Judge Curtin 'well enough to assist inquiry,' says
committee
Calls to adjourn an Oireachtas investigation into the
case of Judge Brian Curtin on the grounds of ill
health were rejected today. A joint Oireachtas
committee concluded that the Circuit Court judge,
acquitted of possessing child pornography, was well
enough to cooperate with its inquiry.

http://breakingnews.iol.ie/news/story.asp?j=118997712&p=yy89984y8

uk: Net meeting leads to rape (reg req'd)
A British man has been found guilty of rape and
indecent assault of a 13-year-old girl he met over the
internet by pretending to be a girl.

http://smh.com.au/articles/2004/09/28/1096137208693.html

Hong Kong man sentenced to community service for
possession of child pornography
A 22-year-old man caught with 6,012 child pornography
images on his computer was sentenced Tuesday to 160
hours of community service, police said.
 http://asia.news.yahoo.com/040928/ap/d85ci7ho0.html

us: Child predators on every social level
In wake of porn arrests, parents advised to keep
closer watch on children - A Monroe County sheriff's
deputy arrested this month on child pornography
charges joined distinguished company.

http://democratandchronicle.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040928/NEWS01/409280329/1002/NEWS

us: Supervisor in clerk's office jailed on child porn
charges
The supervisor of records for the Harris County
district clerk's office has been charged with
possessing child pornography after investigators
allegedly found more than 100 sexually explicit images
involving children on his personal computer, the
district attorney's office said Tuesday.

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/metropolitan/2820626

us: Defendant says virus 'infected' computer with porn
A Fitchburg man admitted Monday that two hours after
police searched his house looking for child
pornography, he sent out an e-mail with the following
message: "DESTROY EVERYTHING!!!!"

http://sentinelandenterprise.com/Stories/0,1413,106~4992~2432150,00.html

us: Orthodontist Pleads Innocent To Child Pornography
Charges
A local orthodontist faces charges of cyber-sex with
some of his young female patients.
 http://komotv.com/stories/33261.htm

us: Man gets 20 years for child pornography
Richard Edward Brillhart was awaiting sentencing on a
child pornography charge when he tried to get a friend
to mail him some "erotic stories dealing with kids
having sex."

http://news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040928/NEWS01/409280417/1002

us: Man charged with 20 more counts in Reno child
pornography case
A 44-year-old Reno man arrested at a post office on a
Pennsylvania warrant charging him with possessing
child pornography was booked on 20 more counts after
detectives found in his home photos and videos of
girls — as young as 5 — depicted in sex acts with men,
authorities said.
 http://rgj.com/news/stories/html/2004/09/28/81529.php

us: Corinth couple charged with transfer of child porn
A Corinth couple were being held Tuesday on charges
related to the transfer of child pornography over the
Internet, authorities say.
 http://www.sunherald.com/mld/thesunherald/9781599.htm

us: Former trooper to stand trial for having child
pornography
A former Pennsylvania state police trooper has pleaded
not guilty to charges he possessed child pornography
on a computer at his parents’ home in Skippack last
September.

http://pottstownmercury.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=13008252

us: Molester found with child porn returns to prison
A Wildwood man already on probation for child
molesting was sent to prison Monday for having child
pornography in his computer.

http://www.dailyherald.com/search/main_story.asp?intid=3825874

us: Fairfax teacher busted on child porn charge
A Fairfax County school teacher is under arrest on
child pornography charges.
 http://www.wavy.com/Global/story.asp?S=2353929

http://timescommunity.com/site/tab5.cfm?newsid=13026993

us: Pension Cut After Teacher Convicted Of Child Porn
A former Hudson, Mass., elementary school teacher
convicted in a child-pornography case not only will
stop receiving a monthly pension check, but has been
ordered to pay back to the state the portion of the
$43,700 he has received since his guilty plea.

http://www.thebostonchannel.com/news/3762463/detail.html

http://wrgb.com/news/regional/regional.asp?selection=article_21248

us: PORNOGRAPHY SHOWS UP AT A LOCAL LIBRARY
Decatur Police say they've arrested a Decatur man who
admits to altering library videos with pictures of
pornography.
 http://www.wandtv.com/SendPage.asp?5605

us: Pediatrician faces child porn charge
A prominent pediatrician who taught bioethics courses
at the Medical College of Wisconsin used his office
computer to view more than 600 images of children
engaged in sexually explicit conduct, according to a
federal indictment handed down Tuesday.

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/krmilwaukee/20040929/lo_krmilwaukee/pediatricianfaceschildporncharge
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Check out http://auda.org.au/domain-news/dn-news for
the latest domain news. Within 24 hours of this news
being posted, a more recent edition of the news will
normally be posted to the auDA web site. The domain
name news is supported by auDA.

 * with support of Alfa-Redi

Also see
http://greta.electric.gen.nz/mailman/listinfo/internet-news
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)".

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

(c) David Goldstein 2004

=====
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

Find local movie times and trailers on Yahoo! Movies.
http://au.movies.yahoo.com