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general internet news - May 01
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us: Censorship and Online Filtering on the Internet
(news release)
http://usinfo.state.gov/gi/Archive/2006/Apr/26-366257.html?chanlid=globalissues
us: Keeping kids safe online (FBI interview)
http://www.fbi.gov/page2/april06/ccctf_interview042806.htm
Online safety for kids a thriving business
http://go.reuters.co.uk/newsArticle.jhtml?type=internetNews&storyID=12016686
cn: Beijing's war on online sex and violence
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,13132-2150786,00.html
cn: Beijing shut down six websites with pornographic
contents
http://english.people.com.cn/200604/30/eng20060430_262231.html
China's Pledge of Allegiance
http://businessweek.com/technology/content/apr2006/tc20060427_804460.htm?chan=technology_technology+index+page_internet
uk: OFT launches fact-finding market study of internet
shopping (news release)
http://www.oft.gov.uk/News/Press+releases/2006/81-06.htm
uk: Guidance on privacy tools from Britain's privacy
chief
http://www.out-law.com/page-6877
us: Mandatory Labeling, ISP Data Retention Proposal
Raises Concern
http://cdt.org/security/
Skype Signs Up More Than 100 Million Users
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/S/SWEDEN_SKYPE
us: Internet Penetration and Impact (news release)
http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/182/report_display.asp
Internet Connections Growing Fastest in Africa
http://allafrica.com/stories/200604280398.html
uk: The BBC's digital future - but will it work?
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/business/story/0,,1764395,00.html
How Google became a rude word in China
http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,,1764106,00.html
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CENSORSHIP, FILTERING & CONTENT REGULATION
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us: Censorship and Online Filtering on the Internet
(news release)
As Internet activity expands every month worldwide,
the effects of Internet filtering in the United States
and globally have become far-reaching. Most nations
censor Internet communication in some fashion.
http://usinfo.state.gov/gi/Archive/2006/Apr/26-366257.html?chanlid=globalissues
us: Keeping kids safe online (FBI interview)
In late February, investigators on our Connecticut
Computer Crimes Task Force (CCCTF) arrested two men
for using an online social networking site to arrange
sexual encounters with underage girls. Unfortunately,
we?re coming across more and more child predators
actively scouring the ?net for victims. We spoke with
Supervisory Special Agent Tom Veivia of the CCCTF?s
Innocent Images program to learn how parents can keep
their kids safe in cyberspace.
http://www.fbi.gov/page2/april06/ccctf_interview042806.htm
Online safety for kids a thriving business
Keeping kids safe on the Internet is not only a big
concern, it's big business.
http://go.reuters.co.uk/newsArticle.jhtml?type=internetNews&storyID=12016686
zw: Government to Tap Cyberspace
Media organisations and ISPs in Zimbabwe are up in
arms about the government's planned introduction of a
bill to regulate cyber-communication in the "interests
of national security".
http://allafrica.com/stories/200604270556.html
us: MySpace Tightens Security After String of
Incidents
In only a few short years, MySpace has grown to over
63 million members. As this popular social networking
Internet service continues to grow, so does the
concern for safety.
http://www.thepolypost.com/story.php?story=3303
cn: Beijing's war on online sex and violence
Beijing has declared war on the wave of "unhealthy"
internet content it says is engulfing the nation?s
cyberspace, amid fears China's young are being
corrupted en masse by an influx of online sex and
violence.
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,13132-2150786,00.html
cn: Beijing shut down six websites with pornographic
contents
Beijing Internet authorities shut down six
pornographic websites in an effort to prevent their
so-called 'negative' influence on society. The six
websites, including "www.ysdm.com" and "www.xf13.net",
contained what was determined to be 'unhealthy
content' and were shut down Friday according to
relevant regulations, the newspaper Beijing News
reported on Saturday.
http://english.people.com.cn/200604/30/eng20060430_262231.html
http://en.ce.cn/National/Local/200604/30/t20060430_6864721.shtml
http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v3/news_lite.php?id=193386
China's Pledge of Allegiance
Internet companies in the country are making public
proclamations to restrict content on the Web and
support the Communist government's stance. How far
will they go?
http://businessweek.com/technology/content/apr2006/tc20060427_804460.htm?chan=technology_technology+index+page_internet
INHOPE And Microsoft Formalise Cooperation to Tackle
Illegal Online Content (news releases)
MoU between INHOPE and Microsoft paves the way for
funding, training and software licenses.
http://iwf.org.uk/media/news.165.htm
http://www.inhope.org/en/news/press_release.php?id=20060426
Dedicated Child Protection Centre Launched Today (news
release)
The new Child Exploitation and Online Protection
(CEOP) Centre and the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF)
combining expertise to combat child abuse online
http://iwf.org.uk/media/news.164.htm
Yahoo cited in jailing of China Internet writer
Yahoo has been cited in a Chinese court decision to
jail a dissident Internet writer for 10 years for
subversion in 2003--the fourth such case to surface
implicating the U.S. Internet giant.
http://news.com.com/2100-1028_3-6066190.html
ca: Parent pans porn access at elementary school
A Calgary parent is demanding the public school board
take action after finding out kids at her son's
elementary school can access porn.
http://cfcn.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/RTGAMArticleHTMLTemplate/B/20060428/internet?brand=generic&hub=&tf=CFCNPlus/generic/hubs/frontpage.html&cf=CFCNPlus/generic/hubs/frontpage.cfg&slug=internet&date=20060428&archive=CFCNPlus&ad_page_name=&nav=home&subnav=fullstory&site_cfcn
us: Help stop internet pornography
The issue of what can be done about internet
pornography was discussed at the March luncheon for
the Emery County chamber of commerce. Paul Vasquez
from Citizen?s Voice and Clean Internet Channel
introduced a national campaign to protect children,
homes, schools and businesses from internet
pornography through technology, legislation and
enforcement.
http://www.ecprogress.com/index.php?tier=1&pub=2006-04-25&page=news
us: DURACELL AND THE NATIONAL CENTER FOR MISSING &
EXPLOITED CHILDREN PARTNER TO HELP EMPOWER AND EDUCATE
FAMILIES (news release)
Duracell today announced the launch of a child-safety
preparedness program in partnership with the National
Center for Missing & Exploited Children® (NCMEC). The
nationwide program, called Power of Parents, has a
goal of reaching 1 million families to educate them on
the importance of having up-to-date ID photos of their
children for emergency purposes.
http://www.missingkids.com/missingkids/servlet/NewsEventServlet?LanguageCountry=en_US&PageId=2355
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CYBERCRIME, CYBERSECURITY AND PRIVACY
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us: Civilians troll for predators
More adults are going online posing as children to
help snare criminals, but are they doing more harm
than good?
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2006-04-28-online-predators_x.htm
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/O/ONLINE_VIGILANTES
uk: UK computer crime laws 'ridiculous'
A British man labelled one of the world's most
dangerous hackers rails against the UK computer crime
laws.
http://technology.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,1763989,00.html
il: Google sued in Israeli court
An Israeli women?s fashion chain, Matim Li, is suing
Google Israel in Tel Aviv Magistrates Court for
$530,000, claiming that Google allowed a rival chain
to register a link in Google's search engine using
ML's trademarks.
http://www.eetimes.com/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=186701279
Chinese Internet writer charged with subversion
A Chinese Internet writer has been charged with
attempting to "subvert state power" for backing a
movement by exiled dissidents to hold free elections
for a new democratic government, his lawyer said on
Thursday.
http://news.com.com/2100-1028_3-6065584.html
br: Brazil clashes with Google over user data
A day after Brazilian police stopped a fight between
rival football fans organised on a popular Google
website, authorities clashed with the Internet giant
over access to user information to prevent crimes.
http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=31&art_id=qw1146200581234A141
bb: Be cautious while on the Internet
The likelihood of someone stealing your identity via
the Internet is very real and so Barbadians are being
urged to be vigilant with respect to spam and while
conducting financial transactions via the worldwide
web.
http://www.barbadosadvocate.com/NewViewNewsleft.cfm?Record=25663
us: Jailed teacher arrested again
Pamela Rogers, 28, of Tennessee, is accused of
violating her probation conditions by sending photos
and videos of herself naked by mobile phone to the
boy.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/jailed-teacher-arrested-again/2006/04/27/1145861461817.html
ca: Accused killer, 12, linked to goth site
CANADIAN police appear baffled by the alleged murder
by a 12-year-old "goth" girl of three members of her
family in a small prairie town.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/accused-killer-12-linked-to-goth-site/2006/04/27/1145861490145.html
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GOVERNMENT & PUBLIC POLICY
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uk: OFT to investigate online shopping
The Office of Fair Trading is to launch a
wide-reaching inquiry into online shopping to test
levels of consumer protection and confidence in the
rapidly growing web marketplace.
http://technology.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,1763462,00.html
http://www.channelregister.co.uk/2006/04/28/oft_probe/
http://www.out-law.com/page-6878
uk: OFT launches fact-finding market study of internet
shopping (news release)
A new fact-finding study into online shopping has been
launched by the Office of Fair Trading. Around 130,000
UK businesses now sell online, in a market
representing about 2.5 per cent of all household
spending (over £18 billion a year in total). In the
last five years, internet retail sales in the UK rose
by over 350 per cent, compared with growth of only 20
per cent for all retail sales. In 2005, the typical
online shopper spent £560 online, and forecasts
suggest that this could grow to over £860 per year by
2010 (see note 5). Other research has, however, also
identified consumer concerns when shopping online
about security of payment, or potential problems with
delivery.
http://www.oft.gov.uk/News/Press+releases/2006/81-06.htm
uk: Guidance on privacy tools from Britain's privacy
chief
The Information Commissioner?s Office (ICO) has issued
brief guidance to bring to a wider audience the use of
privacy enhancing technologies, or PETs, to help
protect people?s personal information.
http://www.out-law.com/page-6877
us: Mandatory Labeling, ISP Data Retention Proposal
Raises Concern
Attorney General Gonzales called for mandatory data
retention requirements for Internet service providers,
asserting that such requirements would be useful in
online child pornography investigations. Data
retention requirements would be burdensome, raise
serious privacy concerns, and be of questionable value
given existing laws that require ISPs to preserve data
at the request of law enforcement. The proposed
legislation would also require mandatory labeling of
sexually explicit content, a provision CDT believes
would be ineffective in protecting kids, as well as
being a form of forced speech that violates the First
Amendment.
http://cdt.org/security/
Congress may consider mandatory ISP snooping
It didn't take long for the idea of forcing Internet
providers to retain records of their users' activities
to gain traction in the U.S. Congress.
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9588_22-6066608.html
us: VoIP products could face export crackdown
After spending the last decade denouncing Cold War-era
laws against overseas shipments of data-scrambling
encryption products, technology firms thought they
were off the hook when President Clinton finally eased
the rules in 1999.
http://news.com.com/2100-1028_3-6065566.html
us: Democrats lose House vote on Net neutrality
A hotly contested Democratic bid to enshrine extensive
Net neutrality regulations in the law books failed
Wednesday in the U.S. House of Representatives.
http://news.com.com/2100-1028_3-6065465.html
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INTERNET & NEW TECHNOLOGY USE
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Skype Signs Up More Than 100 Million Users
Internet telephony provider Skype announced Friday it
now has more than 100 million registered users
worldwide.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/S/SWEDEN_SKYPE
A Convergence Train Wreck
Convergence, the promise of disparate technologies
uniting in a single cohesive and functional unit, has
been something of a Holy Grail for the gadget
business. There were some goofy ideas like
"Internet-ready" refrigerators and ovens, but more
practical applications as well, like camera-equipped
cell phones. Instead of two devices taking up pocket
space, there would be just one.
http://www.fool.com/News/mft/2006/mft06042838.htm
us: Internet Penetration and Impact (news release)
Internet penetration has now reached 73% for all
American adults. Internet users note big improvements
in their ability to shop and the way they pursue
hobbies and personal interests online.
http://www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/182/report_display.asp
us: Internet population hits new high
The U.S. online population has hit an all-time high:
73 percent of adults, or 147 million, now use the
Internet.
http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/news/editorial/14435224.htm
us: Cyberspace inspires changes in grief rituals
Like many 23-year-olds, Deborah Lee Walker loved the
beach, discovering bands, making new friends and
keeping up with old ones, often through the social
networking site MySpace.com, where she listed her
heroes as "my family, and anyone serving in the
military - thank you!"
http://iht.com/articles/2006/04/27/yourmoney/myspace.php
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/27/technology/27myspace.html
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DIGITAL DIVIDE
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Internet Connections Growing Fastest in Africa
Africa is gaining Internet connectivity faster than
any other region and as such, service is spreading to
smaller cities and rural areas via innovative
technologies -- and that only can help the expansion
of free press, democracy and development all across
the continent, says the co-founder and chief executive
officer of allAfrica.com.
http://allafrica.com/stories/200604280398.html
Study: India, China closing digital gap
The digital divide is narrowing as citizens in
emerging markets get online via computers and mobile
phones, with some regions now on a par with developed
nations, a ranking of Web-savvy nations showed on
Wednesday.
http://www.cnn.com/2006/TECH/internet/04/26/digital.divide.reut/
http://dmeurope.com/default.asp?ArticleID=15077
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FILE SHARING
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au: CEO of Co. That Owns Kazaa in Sydney Court
The chief executive of the company that owns the Kazaa
file-sharing network on Friday denied hastily selling
her multimillion dollar Sydney mansion and sending the
proceeds to the tax haven of Vanuatu to make sure
record company lawyers could not get their hands on
it.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/AUSTRALIA_KAZAA
http://zdnet.com.au/news/communications/soa/Kazaa_boss_faces_record_industry_lawyers/0,2000061791,39254286,00.htm
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COMMENT, MICROSOFT & DEVELOPMENTS
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uk: The BBC's digital future - but will it work?
Mark Thompson, BBC director-general, told staff last
week that their future depended on reinventing the
corporation for the digital age. When the plan, funded
by a huge licence-fee hike, is completed it may look
more like a West Coast internet start-up than a
state-owned broadcaster. The Creative Future policy
review, designed to determine how the BBC will look in
five years' time, signals a dramatic shift in
strategy.
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/business/story/0,,1764395,00.html
EU calls for 2012 digital TV switchover
Most European Union countries are expected to try to
conclude the change to digital television broadcasting
from analogue by 2012, according to a report from the
Reuters news agency.
http://dmeurope.com/default.asp?ArticleID=11753
ca: launch of a new online space for Canadian civic
engagement
A new online space for Canadian civic engagement -
Citizens for Open Access to Civic Information and Data
(aka: CivicAccess.ca) has been launched. CivicAccess
is being founded by librarians, civil servants,
academics, lawyers, free- and open-source advocates,
geomatics professionals and community planners from
across Canada. We are motivated by the belief that
open civic information and data are necessary for
being engaged citizens in an "information society".
http://civicaccess.ca/wiki/Launch/PublicAnnouncement
How Google became a rude word in China
Gougou, Gugu, Gege, Goule or Guge? A furious online
debate has opened up in China over the recent adoption
of a Mandarin name by Google - the latest in a series
of controversies to hit the American online search
company since it launched a Chinese service earlier
this year.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,,1764106,00.html
kr: Google Fails to Make Inroads in S. Korea
Google Inc. has seeped into many aspects of online
life across the globe, but the Internet search engine
has failed so far to make any notable inroads in one
of the world's most-wired countries: South Korea.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/S/SKOREA_GOOGLE_STRUGGLES
Is Microsoft Preparing a Big Attack?
In its quarterly report, Microsoft revealed a
significant increase in spending, which could indicate
the company is preparing to take on its online rivals.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/28/technology/28soft.html
Microsoft Software Will Let Times Readers Download
Paper
With Microsoft's new Windows Vista software virtually
any newspaper, magazine or book can be formatted into
an electronic version and read online or off.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/29/technology/29paper.html
Band of Activists in Europe Holds the Line in the Case
Against Microsoft
A brigade of software activists and lawyers have
formed a primary line of defense for the European
Union in its antitrust dispute with Microsoft.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/29/business/worldbusiness/29soft.html
Microsoft's EU appeal case ends
Microsoft used its position to dominate two key
markets, the EU says in the final day of a court case.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/4953682.stm
us: Calif. agency OKs broadband-over-power-lines test
The California Public Utilities Commission approved a
plan on Thursday allowing providers of high-speed
Internet services to test electricity lines to deliver
online access throughout the state.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/04/27/AR2006042701295.html
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ARRESTS/COURT CASES FOR CHILD PORN
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au: Pedophile suspect pleads guilty
A 55-year-old Perth man could spend 10 years in jail
after trying to seduce a policewoman posing as a child
over the internet.
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,18947027-1702,00.html
http://www.smh.com.au/news/breaking/perth-man-trapped-under-new-cyber-laws/2006/04/27/1145861453485.html
au: Child porn surgeon allowed to operate
A 44-year-old surgeon found with 147 images of child
pornography on his home computer will be allowed to
continue practising - but with restrictions.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/child-porn-surgeon-allowed-to-operate/2006/04/27/1145861472454.html
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(c) David Goldstein 2006
David Goldstein
address: 4/3 Abbott Street
COOGEE NSW 2034
AUSTRALIA
email: Goldstein_David @yahoo.com.au
phone: +61 418 228 605 - mobile; +61 2 9665 5773 - home
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