general internet news - 18 September

[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/

**********************************************************

uk: Warnings over social site 'abuse'
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/5344722.stm

Iranian authorities boast of success in Internet
filtering
http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=18864

vn: Tech tools connect, energize Vietnam's dissidents
http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/business/technology/15529189.htm

ca: Canadian shootings linked to website, videogames
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/09/15/canadian_shooting/

au: Man may have sent two billion Viagra spam e-mails
(AP)
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2006-09-13-viagra-spam_x.htm

ITU: 'Least developed countries' now more connected
http://www.zdnetasia.com/news/communications/0,39044192,61953026,00.htm

nz: Network separation key issue in Amendment Bill
discussion
http://www.internetnz.net.nz/media/2006-09-14-network-separation

******************************************
CENSORSHIP, FILTERING & CONTENT REGULATION
******************************************
uk: Warnings over social site 'abuse'
Social networking sites such as Bebo and MySpace must
do more to police what users do, warns Computing
Which? A study of the sites by the consumer watchdog
unearthed pornographic images, evidence of bullying
and inappropriate adverts.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/5344722.stm
http://technology.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,1871945,00.html
http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1356162006
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/09/14/nchild14.xml

uk: Bebo website boosts safety for children (news
release)
Social networking site Bebo has beefed up its safety
measures to help youngsters stay clear of 'cyber
bullies'. The move comes a day after a Computing
Which? investigation found numerous examples of
bullying on both Bebo and MySpace, the two most
popular social networking sites for young people.
http://www.which.co.uk/reports_and_campaigns/computers_and_internet/reports/internet/Bebo_boosts_safety_news_article_557_95180.jsp

uk: Sinister side of networking sites (news release)
Kids and teenagers using popular social networking
sites such as Bebo and MySpace are in danger of being
exposed to pornography and bullying, warns Computing
Which?
http://www.which.co.uk/reports_and_campaigns/computers_and_internet/reports/internet/Sinister_social_network_news_article_557_95116.jsp

us: Cyber bullying manifests in real life
The alleged videotaped assault of a Centennial High
School student revealed a trend among adolescents who
take bullying to a depraved level.
http://www.kget.com/news/local/story.aspx?content_id=ccaf9698-4632-4ecc-a53f-2620840776ef

uk: I've caught my 13-year-old son using porn websites
(Times reader question with response by Dr Tanya
Byron)
I discovered yesterday that my 13-year-old son was
looking at a pornographic website while masturbating.
I suppose this is the modern version of finding the
proverbial Playboy magazine under the mattress. My
partner and I haven?t yet spoken to him about it (he
isn?t aware that I?ve discovered this) and we?re not
sure how to tackle the matter. I realise that it?s
normal behaviour for a 13-year-old boy to masturbate,
but the use of a pornographic website is worrying
(Playboy seems safe compared with this). I have to say
that I?m having difficulty accepting that he is
exposed to (and interested in) all this at such a
young age. On the other hand, I don?t want to make him
feel guilty for an otherwise normal part of his
development in puberty. How do you suggest I react?
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,8124-2349765,00.html

Iranian authorities boast of success in Internet
filtering
Iran is doing its utmost to isolate its citizens from
the rest of the world by purging the Internet of
independent content, in the name of ?morality?, says
Reporters Without Borders, noting that the authorities
even brag about the success of their censorship.
http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=18864
http://www.payvand.com/news/06/sep/1166.html
http://rferl.org/featuresarticle/2006/9/0c6bc4f4-9417-4615-b6f3-538b5e366165.html

vn: Tech tools connect, energize Vietnam's dissidents
Diem Ngo, the San Jose-based leader of a Vietnamese
pro-democracy group, once arranged secret meetings in
the jungles of Cambodia for his underground network.
Now from his base in San Jose, he's in daily contact
with his lieutenants and those of other dissident
political groups inside Vietnam -- thanks to e-mail,
the Web and software that allows free telephone calls
over the Internet.
http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/business/technology/15529189.htm

***************************************
CYBERCRIME, CYBERSECURITY AND PRIVACY
***************************************
ca: Canadian shootings linked to website, videogames
The task of apportioning blame has begun in earnest in
the wake of the Montreal college shootings as Canada
and its media try to digest the incident.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/09/15/canadian_shooting/
http://news.com.com/2100-1028_3-6115756.html (Reuters)
http://news.findlaw.com/ap/i/628/09-15-2006/8b080052e18f78ed.html
(AP)

us: Gonzales asks for stronger penalties against
online sex predators (AP)
Joint federal and local task forces arrested more than
1,600 people nationwide last year who were accused of
exploiting children over the Internet, a fivefold
increase over 2000.
http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/news/local/15519922.htm

us: Court Panel Denies Blogger?s Appeal
In a case closely watched by First Amendment
advocates, a federal court panel has rejected an
appeal by a freelance journalist and blogger who has
refused to appear before a grand jury or turn over
video he shot of a violent protest last summer.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/12/us/12video.html

eu: Lobby group hopes to dismantle EU data laws
An Irish lobby group aims to dismantle Europe's laws
forcing telecoms firms to retain phone and internet
data on citizens. The group, Digital Rights Ireland,
is taking a case both against the Irish Government and
the European Directive on data retention.
http://out-law.com/page-7303

us/ie: GoDaddy Caves To Irish Legal Threat
"An Irish website RateYourSolicitor.com, which aims to
let clients find and rate solicitors (a British Isles
flavor of lawyer), has received an Irish High Court
injunction to remove defamatory material about one
such rated solicitor.
http://yro.slashdot.org/yro/06/09/16/1741242.shtml

EFF's Six Tips to Protect Your Online Search Privacy
In the wake of AOL's publicly revealing customers'
Internet search histories, the Electronic Frontier
Foundation (EFF) has published "Six Tips to Protect
Your Online Search Privacy."
http://www.eff.org/news/archives/2006_09.php#004900

us: 'Bad guys' win DHS cybersecurity war game (AP)
Fake cyberattackers and hackers largely foiled
government and industry attempts to fight back quickly
and effectively during a test of computer security
systems, the government said Wednesday.
http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/news/editorial/15511440.htm

us: Surfing a bigger risk than spam to company
networks
Company networks are now more likely to pick up
malicious software via employee Web surfing than from
e-mail attachments, according to a new study.
http://news.com.com/2100-7355_3-6116244.html
http://news.zdnet.co.uk/internet/security/0,39020375,39283339,00.htm

us: Phishers catch on to the Net's 'long tail'
The number of brands exploited by online con artists
grew to a record 154 in July, according to a report
from the Anti-Phishing Working Group.
http://news.com.com/2100-7349_3-6114815.html

Cybercrime Is Getting Organized
If you read the news, you'd think that most
cybercriminals are lonely, maladjusted teenage hackers
stealing credit card numbers from their windowless
rooms. But the real damage is being done by organized
syndicates, and they're playing for much higher
stakes.
http://wired.com/news/wireservice/0,71793-0.html

fr/at: French police arrest heads of Austria's BWIN
for allegedly marketing online gambling
Police on Friday jailed the co-chief executives of
Austrian online company BWIN for allegedly violating
French gaming laws, police and judicial officials
said.
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2006/09/16/1158334715103.html

*****
SPAM
*****
uk/us: Spam fighter hit with $11.7 million judgment
The nonprofit group behind a popular blacklist used to
block spam has been hit with a multimillion-dollar
judgment, but the order may not be enforceable.
http://news.com.com/2100-7350_3-6116009.html
http://news.zdnet.co.uk/internet/security/0,39020375,39283356,00.htm

us: FTC Puts a Permanent Halt to Illegal Spamming
Operations (news release)
The Federal Trade Commission has brought a permanent
halt to four illegal spamming operations ? including
one that offered the opportunity to ?date lonely
wives? and two that hijacked the computers of
unwitting third parties and used them to pelt
consumers with graphic sexually-explicit e-mail.
http://ftc.gov/opa/2006/09/spammers.htm

us: FTC shuts down four spam rings
The Federal Trade Commission has shut down four
illegal Internet spam operations, including two that
hijacked computers to send sexually explicit spam.
http://news.com.com/2100-1030_3-6115948.html

au: Man may have sent two billion Viagra spam e-mails
(AP)
An Australian man under investigation for illegal
spamming sent more than 2 billion e-mails promoting
Viagra in a year, an official said Wednesday.
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2006-09-13-viagra-spam_x.htm
http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/news/editorial/15510335.htm

au: ACMA executes search warrant for alleged major
breaches of the Spam Act (news release)
The Australian Communications and Media Authority has
recently executed a search warrant on a residential
premises in relation to an allegation that an
Australian resident was sending billions of
unsolicited commercial electronic messages, referred
to generally as ?spam?.
http://www.acma.gov.au/ACMAINTER.590146:STANDARD::pc=PC_100759

Microsoft wins record amount from spammer
Microsoft has won what it believes to be the largest
civil award against a spammer in Europe. Paul Fox,
whose e-mail messages were intended to direct traffic
toward his pornographic download site, was this week
forced by a court order to pay Microsoft GBP45,000
(US$84,177), for breaching the terms and conditions of
its free Hotmail service. Those terms explicitly
prohibit the delivery of spam to its customers.
http://news.com.com/2100-7348_3-6115328.html

*****************************
INTERNET & NEW TECHNOLOGY USE
*****************************
Hanging with the in-crowd: Big media firms and
investors are cosying up to social-networking websites
WEBSITES for social networking have never had so many
friends. The best known, MySpace, recently became the
most visited website in America. Its acquisition last
year by News Corporation, a media giant headed by
Rupert Murdoch, for $580m now looks like a
masterstroke. Other media groups and investors are
crowding around other such websites, which allow
people to create their own pages with photos and blogs
and make connections with other people. Takeover
rumours have been swirling around two smaller sites,
Facebook and Bebo. And a group of investors recently
put $10m into Friendster, an early example of the
genre that is trying to make a comeback. Even
Wal-Mart, an American retailing giant, has started a
social-networking site, called The Hub?to widespread
derision, because it forbids the racy content that
users enjoy.
http://economist.com/business/displaystory.cfm?story_id=7918729

Data transfer is no substitute for a chat
LET'S hear it from the high priest of the information
technology revolution, Bill Gates, himself: "Email is
a unique communication vehicle for a lot of reasons.
However, email is not a substitute for direct
interaction. Email helps out with other types of
communication. It allows you to exchange a lot of
information in advance of a meeting and make the
meeting far more valuable." Are we in danger of losing
that perspective?
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2006/09/15/1157827154245.html

us: Sun setting on TVs, research shows
If you had to choose between your PC, TV set or mobile
phone, which one would you pick? That was one of the
questions researcher Forrester posed to almost 4800
households in the US and, although the TV set still
ruled the roost in most homes, the study showed that
it was no longer the top gadget of choice among the
young and prosperous.
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2006/09/12/1157826926545.html

Wi-Fi gives kids access to unchaperoned Net
Wireless cities may be the new Wild West for parents
who want to control their kids' Internet access. An
increasingly wide range of mobile devices are giving
the kids who use them entry points to wireless
broadband outside of the home and parental control.
Portable game players like Sony's PSP (PlayStation
portable system) and Nintendo DS are just a couple of
the popular mobile gaming devices that also let kids
log onto the Net or connect to a peer-to-peer chat
network. And Microsoft's upcoming Zune portable media
player will likely let kids join social networks on
the fly via built-in Wi-Fi.
http://news.com.com/2009-1025_3-6114522.html

EU digital divide fuelled by fat pipe take-up
Wide discrepancies in broadband penetration rates are
increasing the digital divide, with Denmark topping
Ecta's league table but some countries significantly
lagging behind
http://news.zdnet.co.uk/business/0,39020645,39283337,00.htm
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/09/15/euro_broadband_rates/

au: Broadband tops 3.5m
THE number of broadband subscriptions in Australia
topped 3.5 million at the end of June, but uptake
continues to slow.
http://australianit.news.com.au/articles/0,7204,20411288%5e16123%5e%5enbv%5e,00.html
http://zdnet.com.au/news/communications/soa/Aussie_broadband_takeup_hits_3_5_million/0,130061791,339271068,00.htm

Broadband take-up strong and steady: ACCC (news
release)
Take-up for broadband services continues to increase,
according to the latest Australian Competition and
Consumer Commission Snapshot of Broadband Deployment.
http://www.accc.gov.au/content/index.phtml/itemId/762527/fromItemId/142

eu CONFERENCE: Broadband Europe (December 2006,
Switzerland)
This conference, hosted by ITU and organised by the
BREAD project on behalf of the 'Broadband for All'
strategic objective, will be the most authoritative
European Forum of its kind. It will feature exclusive
scientific presentations, broadband project research
results, semi-scientific commercial presentations
(including agencies, municipalities on trials and
roll-outs on broadband) and semi-commercial
presentations from companies on broadband products and
services.
http://bbeurope.org/

The end of privacy? (sub req'd)
You wouldn't tell a stranger on the bus about your
sexual habits, so why do people reveal this stuff on
websites available to everyone? Will their openness
return to haunt them?
http://www.newscientisttech.com/channel/tech/mg19125691.700

Mobiles put the web in your hands
BBC Click investigates the new ways phone companies
are trying to get us to access the net through our
mobiles.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/click_online/5348424.stm

The world wide web: past, present, and future
In just 15 years, the World Wide Web has gone through
many iterations: document-sharing tool for
researchers, key source of news and information,
shopping mecca, multimedia playground, and incredibly
popular means of socialising and self-expression. How
did the Web get so far so fast?
http://www.itnews.com.au/newsstory.aspx?CIaNID=37028

Facebook: Opening the Doors Wider
The mega-popular social-networking site is opening up
to allow anyone in certain geographic areas to sign
up. Will this expand or dilute its appeal?
http://businessweek.com/technology/content/sep2006/tc20060912_682123.htm

Social Networks: Execs Use Them Too
Networking technology gives companies a new set of
tools for recruiting and customer service?but privacy
questions remain
http://businessweek.com/technology/content/sep2006/tc20060911_414136.htm

Marketing to Kids Where They Live
Companies hoping to attract young customers are
building whole marketing campaigns around social
network sites such as Facebook and MySpace
http://businessweek.com/technology/content/sep2006/tc20060908_974400.htm

In Asia, MySpace Clones Stalk Cyberspace
The huge success of the social networking site in the
U.S. has inspired similar sites all over Asia. The
business model is a perfect fit
http://businessweek.com/technology/content/sep2006/tc20060911_808191.htm

MySpace: No Free Ride in Europe
The social-networking site rules in the U.S. Overseas
is another matter, due to competition and a fragmented
market
http://businessweek.com/technology/content/sep2006/tc20060911_501990.htm

***************
DIGITAL DIVIDE
***************
Progress made in bridging the digital divide - ITU
report cites advances in connectivity among least
developed countries (news release)
The International Telecommunication Union launched a
report in New York today on ICT/Telecommunication
development in least developed countries. The report
examines key developments in the information and
communication technology and telecommunications sector
including trends and challenges in the world?s poorest
countries in the period 2001 to 2005. ITU?s findings
reveal that considerable progress has been made to
bridge the digital divide and that teledensity targets
set by the Brussels Programme of Action have been met
by 25 of the 50 LDCs.
http://www.itu.int/newsroom/press_releases/2006/16.html

ITU: 'Least developed countries' now more connected
The International Telecommunication Union is making
significant inroads in its attempt to bridge the
digital gap between the rest of the world and 50 of
the globe's poorest economies.
http://www.zdnetasia.com/news/communications/0,39044192,61953026,00.htm

Africa online: getting set for a digital revolution
Only 2.6 per cent of Africans have access to the
Internet, compared with 69 per cent of Americans. But
plans are afoot to bridge the 'digital divide' and
transform Africa from passive consumer to a producer
of Internet content.
http://www.scidev.net/gateways/index.cfm?fuseaction=readitem&rgwid=4&item=Features&itemid=550&language=1
http://allafrica.com/stories/200609070731.html

************
FILE SHARING
************
us: Record label finds new foe
UNIVERSAL Music, the world's biggest record company,
is stepping up pressure against websites YouTube and
MySpace, accusing them of infringing copyright.
http://australianit.news.com.au/articles/0,7204,20410649%5E27317%5E%5Enbv%5E15306-15319,00.html

Morris: YouTube, MySpace Abuse Copyright (AP)
Universal Music Group contends the wildly popular Web
sites YouTube and MySpace are violating copyright laws
by allowing users to post music videos and other
content involving Universal artists.
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/UNIVERSAL_MUSIC_CEO
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2006/09/15/1157827138697.html

Taiwan site to stop its online music swapping
(Reuters)
Taiwan online music file-sharing network Kuro has
agreed to shut down its file swapping service and pay
undisclosed damages to settle a recording industry
lawsuit, the industry group behind the conflict said.
http://news.com.com/2100-1030_3-6116047.html

us: Another File Sharer Toes the Line (AP)
The firm behind popular online file-sharing software
eDonkey has agreed to pay $30 million to avoid
potential copyright infringement lawsuits from the
recording industry, according to court documents filed
Tuesday.
http://www.wired.com/news/culture/music/0,71771-0.html

*********************************
COMMENT, MICROSOFT & DEVELOPMENTS
*********************************
Curbing the CO2 that comes from PC use
You'd never guess it, but your PC puts about 450kgs
(1,000 pounds) of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere
every year.
http://news.com.com/2100-11398_3-6116121.html

The Rise of Baidu (That?s Chinese for Google)
Baidu is doing what no other Internet company has been
able to do: clobbering Google and Yahoo in its home
market.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/17/business/yourmoney/17baidu.html

*******************
TELECOMMUNICATIONS
*******************
nz: Network separation key issue in Amendment Bill
discussion
InternetNZ was amongst a number of organisations and
industry companies presenting last night to the
Finance and Expenditure Select Committee on the
Telecommunications Amendment Bill.
http://www.internetnz.net.nz/media/2006-09-14-network-separation

fj: Minister urges phone monopoly removal
Information Minister Isireli Leweniqila says there is
an urgent need for the removal of the
telecommunications industry monopoly before the
proposed Telecommunications Bill is passed in
parliament.
http://fijilive.com/news/show/news/2006/09/17/09Fijilive1702.html

Iran to help develop Afghan telecommunications sector
Based on an agreement signed between an Iranian
telecommunications company as well as an Indian
company and Afghan Ministry of Telecommunications,
Iran will assist in the development of the
telecommunications sector in the war-torn country.
http://www.payvand.com/news/06/sep/1159.html

*****
VoIP
*****
The Internet Needs an Area Code!
As that new global network becomes a reality, we need
an area code for the Internet. A ?Worldwide Internet
Area Code? would allow any landline or wireless user
in the world to dial directly to any VoIP user. Calls
could pass seamlessly between the old world and the
new.
http://www.convergedigest.com/bp-ttp/bp1.asp?ID=408&ctgy=Home

VoIP: Is it Secure Enough?
With all the bad press about a dangerous, unsecured
Internet, why should you send your telephone calls
over it? Deb Shinder explains steps you can take to
optimize security for your VoIP network. - When
considering whether to cut the telco cord and go
exclusively with IP-based telephony, transmission
quality and reliability top the list of concerns among
business owners. But sending your voice calls over
today's attack-prone, virus- and worm-infested
Internet raises a third issue: security.
http://articles.techrepublic.com.com/5100-1035_11-6114900.html

Report: VoIP Market on The Upswing
VoIP service providers have something more to remind
them of summer than sand in their pockets: Increased
revenues and a strong demand for next-generation voice
services.
http://itmanagement.earthweb.com/mowi/article.php/3632321

**********************************
ARRESTS/COURT CASES FOR CHILD PORN
**********************************
uk: Net ban and jail for 'addicted' collector of child
porn
A man who amassed one of the largest collections of
child pornography found in the UK was jailed for a
minimum of four and half years yesterday and banned
from using the internet for life.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/crime/article/0,,1873074,00.html
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/london/5347206.stm

uk: Comic actor given bail on child sex charges
Comic actor Chris Langham, 57, appeared in court at
Sevenoaks, Kent, yesterday charged with nine child sex
offences and 15 counts of making indecent images of
children.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,,1872897,00.html

au: Child porn on bank man's laptop
A bank employee is due to appear in court next month
after child pornography images were allegedly found on
his work laptop.
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2006/09/15/1157827124436.html
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2006/09/15/1157827124267.html

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

Check out http://auda.org.au/domain-news/ for the most
recent edition of the domain news - already online!

The domain name news is supported by auDA.

Also see
http://internews.tv/mailman/admin/internetnews_internews.tv
for an archive and to subscribe to the domain name or
general internet news.

Sources include Quicklinks <http://qlinks.net/> and
BNA Internet Law News <http://www.bna.com/ilaw/>.

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

(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)

"Every time you use fossil fuels, you're adding to the problem. Every time you forgo fossil fuels, you're being part of the solution" - Dr Tim Flannery


		
____________________________________________________ 
On Yahoo!7 
Check out the new Great Outdoors site with video highlights and more 
http://au.travel.yahoo.com/great-outdoors/index.html