Don't forget to check out http://auda.org.au/domain-news/ for a more recent edition of the complete domain news, including an RSS feed - already online!
And see my website - http://technewsreview.com.au/ - for daily updates in between postings. ********************************************************** Sponsored by the Singapore Internet Research Centre Nanyang Technological University, Singapore http://www.ntu.edu.sg/sci/sirc/ ********************************************************** The Germans get their Flickrs in a twist over 'censorship' http://observer.guardian.co.uk/business/story/0,,2104594,00.html Yahoo! defends its record on human rights in China http://news.independent.co.uk/business/news/article2656170.ece Is Content Filtering the New DRM? by Michael Geist http://www.michaelgeist.ca/content/view/2023/125/ Dealing With Unlawful Content by Michael Geist http://www.michaelgeist.ca/content/view/2019/125/ Countries worldwide turn to Council of Europe Cybercrime Convention (news release) https://wcd.coe.int/ViewDoc.jsp?id=1150107 Queen goes online with first email address http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/06/15/nqueen115.xml Change vs. Stability in Web Usability Guidelines - Jakob Nielsen's Alertbox http://www.useit.com/alertbox/guidelines-change.html Jakob Nielsen says: I was right by Jack Schofield http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/technology/archives/2007/06/15/jakob_nielsen_says_i_was_right.html China overtaking US for fast internet access as Africa gets left behind http://technology.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,2102652,00.html Warnings of 'internet overload' http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/click_online/6756899.stm Overdoing it? Will Joost overload the internet? http://economist.com/science/tq/displaystory.cfm?story_id=9249193 Forrester: One Billion PCs In Use By The End Of 2008 (news release) http://www.forrester.com/ER/Press/Release/0,1769,1151,00.html 100Gbps Internet2 link spans US http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/06/16/internet2_spans_us/ TorrentSpy ruling a 'weapon of mass discovery' http://news.com.com/2100-1030_3-6190900.html Lewis Black (Back in Black) on Google, on The Daily Show (Comedy Central) http://www.comedycentral.com/shows/the_daily_show/videos/lewis_black/index.jhtml?playVideo=88240 Google power 'less than thought' as eBay starts boycott http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/media/article1940506.ece *********** CENSORSHIP *********** The Germans get their Flickrs in a twist over 'censorship' Initially, there were few overt signs of Flickr's change of status following its takeover by Yahoo. Yahoo closed its own photo-hosting service. Then Flickr users were required to acquire a Yahoo ID to access their accounts. But, overall, things continued as before; until a few days ago, when Flickr users in Singapore, Germany, Hong Kong and Korea noted that they were unable to alter one of their account settings: the 'safe search' option, which allows them to specify whether they want searches for images to filter out certain types of content. Under the new dispensation, Flickr users in these territories could only find images that had been flagged as 'safe' - which meant, as one disgruntled protester put it, 'only flowers and landscapes for Germans'. Nothing irritates internet users like censorship, whether real or apparent, and a revolt spread through the Flickr community. ... The Flickr firestorm is just the latest refutation of the enduring myth that the internet is uncontrollable. While technologically adept users can usually find anything they're looking for, the vast majority of the internet's 1.1 billion users are at the mercy of local laws, ordinances and customs. Flickr users in Singapore, Germany, Hong Kong and Korea are finding themselves at the sharp end of this, because Yahoo needs to conform to local laws if it is to continue to trade in those jurisdictions. The same forces explain why Google provides only a restricted search service to its Chinese users. Libertarianism is all very well when you're a hacker. But business is business. http://observer.guardian.co.uk/business/story/0,,2104594,00.html Yahoo! defends its record on human rights in China Yahoo! has defended its record on human rights in China, and said it was asking the US government to challenge censorship in the communist country. In remarks that damped down a potential shareholder revolt over the company's policies in China, the Yahoo! founder, Jerry Yang, said it was working with human rights groups to draw up some principles on freedom of expression, and had been actively lobbying the US government for help in fighting censorship. http://news.independent.co.uk/business/news/article2656170.ece us: Court Rejects FCC's Expansive Regulation of "Indecency" In a victory for free expression, a federal appeals court today limited the Federal Communications Commission's ongoing effort to expand its authority to regulate speech over broadcast media. http://cdt.org/headlines/1008 th: Internet censorship critics fear new computer-crime laws "Sorry! The website you are accessing has been blocked by the Ministry of Information and Communications Technology." The steely eye on the cold green background has become a common sight to Internet-users in Thailand. Appearing at random, it denies access to websites on subjects ranging from car repairs to cooking. It popped up when Canadian CJ Hinke tried to enter one website looking for information on Thai-language books for his children. http://nationmultimedia.com/2007/06/17/headlines/headlines_30037083.php Egyptian jailing of blogger sparks outrage Egypt's decision to jail a blogger has caused international outrage, with groups calling for the UN to abandon plans to hold the 2009 Internet Governance Forum in the country. http://www.itp.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=8707%3Ajailing-of-blogger-sparks-outrage&Itemid=1 zw: Parliament’s lower house approves bill for intercepting communications Reporters Without Borders voiced concern today about the Zimbabwean House of Assembly’s approval on 13 June of a draft law that would allow the government to intercept mail, phone calls and email without having to seek a court order. The government submitted a similar bill to parliament last year but withdrew it after complaints from national and international organisations. http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=17623 ************************************************ CHILD PROTECTION, FILTERING & CONTENT REGULATION ************************************************ Is Content Filtering the New DRM? by Michael Geist There was a time when Internet service providers would not touch the idea of blocking or filtering content, particularly after the Stratton Oakmont decision in the U.S., which intimated that ISPs that got into the content monitoring business would face potential liability for legal issues arising from such content. No longer. Over the past two years, there has been growing concern about net neutrality issues including content blocking (Telus), application discrimination (Shaw on VoIP), traffic shaping (Rogers), and content delivery tariffs (Videotron). Today's LA Times reports that AT&T is prepared to take the next step - full scale content filtering on behalf of Hollywood interests. http://www.michaelgeist.ca/content/view/2023/125/ http://www.latimes.com/business/printedition/la-fi-piracy13jun13,1,402794.story us: MySpace data helps nab seven sex offenders (Reuters) Texas police arrested seven convicted sex offenders after MySpace handed over identity details about the former members of the Internet social network, the Texas attorney general's office said on Thursday. http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9588_22-6191140.html http://ecommercetimes.com/story/57873.html Child porn targeting forums using web script Child pornography is being injected into web forums by hackers using Cross Site Scripting (XSS), a technique typically deployed to distribute malware. According to Sophos principal virus researcher Fraser Howard, the attacks occur because many websites allow Java-based content on their forums, or do not require adequate user authentication for posting. http://pcadvisor.co.uk/news/index.cfm?newsid=9736 http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,21906554-5006364,00.html http://computerworld.com.au/index.php/id;494225057;fp;16;fpid;1 au: Net savvy school children should be left to teach themselves Regional schoolchildren are to going to be among those to benefit the most from a new education paradigm being explored by teachers across Western Australia. Marc Prensky is a computer programmer and author who has been speaking to Western Australian teachers about the impact of digital communications on school education. He says there's "a huge opportunity for kids to get world culture through the internet". http://abc.net.au/greatsouthern/stories/s1950564.htm au: Three-year-old children 'copying pornography' There was child sex abuse in every Aboriginal community in the Northern Territory visited by a high-profile inquiry, involving children as young as three. Releasing the inquiry report in Darwin today, co-chair Pat Anderson said young children were being exposed to pornography and then later imitating the actions with each other. They were also sexually abused by both indigenous and non-indigenous adults, she said. http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,21910717-2,00.html au: No money available to chase internet pedophiles Pedophiles preying on children over the internet are going unpunished because state and federal police do not have the resources to investigate. The Daily Telegraph has obtained a series of letters from Federal Police agents asking NSW Police to take over cases because they do not have the staff to investigate pedophiles. http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,21923386-662,00.html us: Get out of my Facebook, parents told For decades, American parents have made their children cringe by performing arrhythmic gyrations on the dance floor at weddings, or by vain attempts to deploy teenagers' slang. Now they are embarrassing their offspring in cyberspace as well, thanks to an internet invasion which has seen adults taking over the social websites which their children once called their own. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/06/17/wface117.xml Facebook - a thoroughly modern addiction 'Matthew d'Ancona," the email said, "added you as a friend on Facebook. We need you to confirm that you are, in fact, friends with Matthew." ROTFLMAO, as we say on the internet. Even the editor of The Spectator has now joined Facebook. Like many adult crazes, Facebook is for children: a "social networking" website where you post photos, big up your fave pop stars, and, through the links to other people's pages, snoop around stalking your exes and spying on your friends. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?xml=/opinion/2007/06/16/do1604.xml us: Who's afraid of bloggers? Scooter Libby, apparently by Gal Beckerman The lawyers for Scooter Libby made a bizarre argument - at least to my ears - for why the letters attesting to Libby's character, written to the judge in his perjury case, should be kept out of the public eye: "the real possibility that these letters, once released, would be published on the Internet and their authors discussed, even mocked, by bloggers." http://cjr.org/the_kicker/whos_afraid_of_bloggers.php us: Miss America promotes Internet safety Having already helped police target sexual predators online, Miss America Lauren Nelson now cooperates with a security software company to educate parents and children about dangers on the Internet. http://english.pravda.ru/news/world/18-06-2007/93479-internet_safety-0 http://www.kotv.com/news/local/story/?id=129634 us: HSE Schools pondering ways to rein in online use The Hamilton Southeastern School Board Monday night moved toward adopting new rules designed to better establish the do's and don't's of student Internet and technology use at school. The board also reviewed guidelines drafted to more clearly define what is considered illegal, obscene or disruptive for students to do with school technology -- as well as how students can be punished even if their behavior doesn't break a law or occur on school property. http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070612/LOCAL/706120438/ Training addresses Internet-related child exploitation - Jordan Law enforcement authorities joined international experts on Saturday to address the growing global threat of Internet-related sexual crimes against children. Officials from the Public Security Department (PSD), the Family Protection Department (FPD) and Interpol convened for the five-day training session led by Save the Children Denmark. http://menafn.com/qn_news_story_s.asp?StoryId=1093156537 *************************************** CYBERCRIME, CYBERSECURITY AND PRIVACY *************************************** Dealing With Unlawful Content by Michael Geist I spoke yesterday on an exceptionally challenging panel on Illegal Content and Lawful Access at the 2007 Canadian Telecom Summit. The panel, which included passionate (and disturbing) presentations on child exploitation and online hate, was bookended by Pam Dinsmore from Rogers (presenting the ISP perspective) and myself. The slides from my brief presentation are posted below. The gist is that these issues are complicated and one size does not fit all. I tried to identify some core principles that cut across all issues that include: where possible offline=online; judge made decisions/oversight; transparency; accountability and err on the side of free speech. Admittedly, no real solutions, but a better sense from the panel of how difficult it is to find the right solution. http://www.michaelgeist.ca/content/view/2019/125/ Countries worldwide turn to Council of Europe Cybercrime Convention (news release) To fight ICT-based crimes like child pornography, money laundering, fraud and terrorism through the internet, countries worldwide are turning to the Council of Europe’s innovative Cybercrime Convention, which includes provisions for a 24 hours per day, 7 days per week online crime-fighting network and facilitates public-private partnerships. https://wcd.coe.int/ViewDoc.jsp?id=1150107 http://egovmonitor.com/node/11886 NATO says urgent need to tackle cyber attack NATO defense ministers agreed on Thursday that fast action was needed to tackle the threat of "cyber attacks" on key Internet sites after Estonia suffered a wave of assaults on its computer networks last month. http://uk.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUKJOH45001020070614 http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/06/15/cyber_war_screaming_fist/ http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20070614.wgtnato0614/BNStory/ us: Homeland Security to detail IT attacks Officials from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security will hold a hearing on Capitol Hill on June 20 to discuss the findings of an investigation into the agency's own problems in battling electronic attacks and IT systems intrusions. In a hearing labeled "Hacking the Homeland: Investigating Cyber-security Vulnerabilities at the Department of Homeland Security," officials including DHS chief information officer Scott Charbo and Gregory Wilshusen, director of information security issues at the Government Accountability Office are scheduled to detail their findings in response to requests from Congress to test the agency's IT security defenses. http://www.infoworld.com/article/07/06/15/Homeland-Security-on-the-hot-seat_1.html Cyberattack Fools You Once, Evades Detection Cyberattackers have adapted the ability of Web sites to analyse the demographics of site visitors in order to create a new breed of drive-by malware downloads that defy detection. These so-called "evasive attacks," as labeled by Web security appliance maker and security researcher Finjan in its most recent Web security trends report, are especially sneaky because they infect visitors only once before fading into obscurity. http://informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=199904381 uk: Copycat sex attacker found guilty A hospital worker has been convicted of assaulting a teenager in a sex attack he copied from an internet site. Carley Furness, 17, was saved by emergency surgery after being stabbed in the throat and stomach by 28-year-old Peter Anscombe. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/london/6745359.stm http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/crime/article1923518.ece http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/06/13/nattacks113.xml Revealed: The British links to internet rape site Credit-card giant Visa has pledged to investigate its commercial links to a vile internet site watched by a sex attacker before he stabbed his teen-age victim. An Old Bailey jury heard last week how Peter Anscombe accessed a website specialising in scenes of violent rape in the run-up to his assault on Carley Furness. His actions closely mirrored scenes from the website. In one, a rapist stalks his prey through parkland in broad daylight and throws her into bushes before carrying out a sexual attack. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=462502&in_page_id=1766&ito=1490 uk: Webcam teen sex show warning The British government's internet child protection agency (CEOP) has warned of an increasing number of teenagers being approached online to perform sex shows on webcams. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/6757827.stm us: Blogger’s Ejection May Mean Suit for N.C.A.A. The National Collegiate Athletic Association, which on Sunday ejected Brian Bennett of The Courier-Journal of Louisville, Ky., during the Louisville-Oklahoma State game at Jim Patterson Stadium in Louisville, contends it is merely enforcing long-established principles as they apply to a new technology. But the newspaper is weighing a legal challenge on First Amendment grounds — the right to free speech as it applies to reporting news in a public place. http://nytimes.com/2007/06/14/sports/baseball/14blogs.html http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-blogger12jun12,1,6806498.story Is there a difference between privacy and anonymity? That depends who you ask. Online privacy has been big news this week, with two of the net's most powerful names finding themselves at the forefront of rows over privacy issues. But despite being closely related, the two are often separate problems that become confused. The most high-profile accusations came in a report by the advocacy group Privacy International, which labelled Google "hostile to privacy". http://technology.guardian.co.uk/weekly/story/0,,2101811,00.html Microsoft CEO calls Google complaint 'baseless' (Reuters) Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer on Friday said a complaint lodged by Google was "baseless," as the software company was complying with a 2002 antitrust settlement. http://news.com.com/2100-1014_3-6191487.html http://news.zdnet.com/2100-3513_22-6191487.html EBay reports progress against fraud The online auction giant eBay wants the world to know that it is trying to clean up its site. In January, eBay announced what it characterized as a significant shift in its philosophy toward protecting eBay members from fraud. Instead of a more hands-off approach that emphasized giving members the tools to make their own choices, it rolled out new efforts to combat the sale of counterfeit items and revised its feedback system to give buyers and sellers more information about each other. http://iht.com/articles/2007/06/14/business/ebay.php Wall Street panel to propose guidelines for e-mail The stockbroking industry's two self-policing groups, NYSE Regulation and NASD, were expected Thursday to release proposed guidelines for the regulation of written electronic communications, including internal and external exchanges. The guidelines represent nearly two years of work by a committee of NYSE Regulation and NASD representatives, Wall Street firm members and lawyers, as well as contributions by the Securities and Exchange Commission. They are intended to clarify how forms of communication unimaginable when the rules were last revised, in 1998, fit into existing regulations, said Grace Vogel, the executive vice president of NYSE Regulation who led the committee. http://iht.com/articles/2007/06/14/business/email.php Dutch police arrest 111 over suspected Internet fraud Police in Amsterdam arrested more than 100 West Africans Saturday as part of a seven month long investigation into Internet fraud, they said. Spokeswoman Sita Koenders told AFP that 111 people were arrested for being in the Netherlands illegally and "now we must investigate in what way they are implicated in Internet fraud." http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/06/17/1182018912555.html U.S. Internet defamation suit tests online anonymity (Reuters) It bills itself as the world's "most prestigious college discussion board," giving a glimpse into law school admissions policies, post-graduate social networking and the hiring practices of major law firms. But the AudoAdmit site, widely used by law students for information on schools and firms, is also known as a venue for racist and sexist remarks and career-damaging rumours. http://uk.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUKN1529267420070617 Aussie piracy 'mastermind' facing sentence A NSW man will be sentenced in the US this week for his role as mastermind of a global software piracy gang. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/06/16/1182018928123.html Chinese Internet addict kills mother over cybercafe money A teenage boy in southern China, "heavily addicted" to the Internet, killed his mother and severely injured his father with a kitchen knife after he was refused money to go to a cybercafe, state media said. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=5&objectid=10445851 http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/06/14/net_addict_murder/ ************************** GOVERNMENT & PUBLIC POLICY ************************** uk: Calls mount for probe into Google's dominance The former deputy chairman of the Competition Commission has called for UK regulators to probe Google’s “huge commercial power” to arrest a “dangerously imbalance” in the online advertising market. The move comes amid growing pressure from rivals, including WPP, the advertising group, and Microsoft, the software giant, for regulators to curb Google's expansion. Baroness Kingsmill, widely seen as a cheerleader for intervention during her six years on the Competition Commission, said in today’s Financial Times that the “concentration of power” created by Google’s dominance of the internet search market “creates risks for businesses and consumers that ought to be the subject of a market inquiry in the UK”. http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/technology/article1926595.ece €1bn in digital technologies for Europeans to age well Responding to the needs of Europe's growing ageing population, the Commission has today adopted a European Action Plan for "Ageing Well in the Information Society". This Action Plan is accompanied by a new joint European research programme raising to over EUR 1bn the research investment on information and communications technologies (ICT) targeted at improving the life of older people at home, in the workplace and in society in general. These new EU initiatives will contribute to allowing older Europeans to stay active for longer and live independently. Together they promise a triple win for Europe: improved quality of life and social participation for older people in Europe, new business opportunities for Europe's industries and more efficient and more personalised health and social services. http://ec.europa.eu/information_society/newsroom/cf/itemdetail.cfm?item_id=3457 EU seeks comment on loosening copyright rules (Reuters) Authors and composers have until July 9 to comment on proposed new European Union rules that would loosen restrictive territorial contracts for copyright registration on material transmitted via the Internet, satellite and cable. http://news.com.com/2100-1028_3-6190917.html us: Bush administration attacks 'shield' for bloggers The Bush administration on Thursday blasted a congressional proposal that would shield a broad swath of news gatherers, including some bloggers, from revealing their confidential sources. The latest draft of the Free Flow of Information Act would pose a grave threat to national security and federal criminal investigations by protecting far too large a segment of the population, a U.S. Department of Justice official told Congress. http://news.com.com/2100-1028_3-6191053.html ***************************** INTERNET & NEW TECHNOLOGY USE ***************************** Queen goes online with first email address The Queen’s latest foray into the world of modern technology has led her to setting up her own email account, it has emerged. But, in true majesterial fashion, she does not actually type her emails herself - rather she dictates them. The 81-year-old monarch, already the proud owner of a mobile phone and an iPod mini, revealed her aquisition of an email address at a recent Buckingham Palace garden party. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2007/06/15/nqueen115.xml Change vs. Stability in Web Usability Guidelines - Jakob Nielsen's Alertbox Summary: A remarkable 80% of findings from the Web usability studies in the 1990s continue to hold today. http://www.useit.com/alertbox/guidelines-change.html Jakob Nielsen says: I was right by Jack Schofield http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/technology/archives/2007/06/15/jakob_nielsen_says_i_was_right.html China overtaking US for fast internet access as Africa gets left behind Almost 300 million people worldwide are now accessing the internet using fast broadband connections, fuelling the growth of social networking services such as MySpace and generating thousands of hours of video through websites such as YouTube. There are more than 1.1 billion of the world's estimated 6.6 billion people online and almost a third of them are now accessing the internet on high-speed lines. According to the internet consultancy Point Topic, 298 million people had broadband at the end of March and that is already estimated to have shot over 300 million. The statistics, however, paint a picture of a divided digital world. While there are high levels of broadband penetration in western Europe, North America and hi-tech economies such as South Korea, usage in developing countries, and especially in Africa, is pitiful. Many of these emerging economies lack telephone services, let alone the sort of broadband internet access that has become available to every household in Europe. http://technology.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,2102652,00.html Warnings of 'internet overload' As the flood of data across the internet continues to increase, there are those that say sometime soon it is going to collapse under its own weight. But that is what they said last year: Back in the early 90s, those of us that were online were just sending text e-mails of a few bytes each, traffic across the main US data lines was estimated at a few terabytes a month, steadily doubling every year. ... But since 2003, we have seen another change in the way we use the net. The YouTube generation want to stream video, and download gigabytes of data in one go. "In one day YouTube sends data equivalent to 75 billion e-mails, so it's clearly very different," said Phil Smith, head of technology and corporate marketing at Cisco Systems. "The network is growing up, is starting to get more capacity than it ever had, but it is a challenge. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/click_online/6756899.stm Overdoing it? Will Joost overload the internet? Internet-service providers are worried that new online-video services, such as Joost, will overload their networks http://economist.com/science/tq/displaystory.cfm?story_id=9249193 Forrester: One Billion PCs In Use By The End Of 2008 (news release) By the end of 2008, there will be more than one billion personal computers in use worldwide, according to a new report from Forrester Research, Inc. (Nasdaq: FORR). With PC use growing rapidly in emerging markets and high-profile programs in place to reach previously untapped markets, Forrester predicts that there will be more than two billion PCs in use by 2015, representing more than 12 percent compound annual growth rate (CAGR) between 2003 and 2015. http://www.forrester.com/ER/Press/Release/0,1769,1151,00.html us: Online sales lose steam as buyers grow Web-weary Has online retailing entered the Dot Calm era? Since the inception of the Web, online commerce has enjoyed hypergrowth, with annual sales increasing more than 25 percent overall, and far more rapidly in many categories. But in the last year, growth has slowed sharply in major sectors like books, tickets and office supplies. http://iht.com/articles/2007/06/17/business/online.php http://news.com.com/2100-1038_3-6191519.html Phone porn blocked by conservative carriers Mobile porn could be a booming business in United States, but phone carriers fear a public backlash. Adult content for cellphones is expected to become a multi-billion dollar industry in the next few years. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=5&objectid=10446403 It started with a click >From online personals for 'friends with benefits' to illicit blogs and even an >electronic 'poke' ... the digital age has created a technosexual generation >hooked on no-strings casual sex. Hephzibah Anderson meets the people who >aren't looking for love ... 'There are an awful lot of walls between us. Most >of us need a bit of help,' says BT futurologist, Ian Pearson. He forecasts >that in the next 10 or 15 years, urban positioning technologies will have >enhanced messaging services to the extent that you'll be able to text the >attractive stranger at the bar simply by pointing your phone at them. His >other predictions include 'ego badges', jewellery-like devices on to which >you'll be able to upload key data about yourself - your likes, dislikes, >desires, effectively your personality. The badge will then transmit that >information directly to passers-by, swapping it for theirs and processing it >all within moments in order to alert you to that perfect partner whom you might otherwise have missed. ... According to futurologist Ian Pearson, research shows the average teenager now communicates on five or six platforms and has literally hundreds of instant messaging 'friends'. http://observer.guardian.co.uk/magazine/story/0,,2101234,00.html 100Gbps Internet2 link spans US A 100Gbps link between the east and west coasts of the US has been established for the first time by the Internet2 project. The network is already providing high-speed networking resources for the US research and academic community. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/06/16/internet2_spans_us/ Apple: More than 1 million copies of Safari browser for Windows downloaded in 48 hours Apple said Thursday that users have downloaded more than 1 million copies of the Windows version of its Safari Internet browser in the first 48 hours it was available. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/06/15/1181414504086.html http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,132937-page,1/article.html Its buyers are all on hold ... but can the iPhone live up to expectations? It is known as The God Machine. Sleek, black, barely larger than a credit card, and with a 3½inch (9cm) colour screen that changes from portrait to landscape depending on which way you hold it, Apple’s iPhone is creating mass-market hysteria ahead of its launch later this month. http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/personal_tech/article1940519.ece http://observer.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,,2104917,00.html ***** SPAM ***** 'Spam King' to Stay in Slammer Until Trial A man accused of defrauding people through tens of millions of spam e-mail messages sent around the world was denied bail Wednesday. U.S. Magistrate Judge James P. Donohue said Robert Soloway, 27, of Seattle, should remain in jail until his trial scheduled for Aug. 6 because he has minimal ties to Washington state and has family in Sweden. http://ecommercetimes.com/story/57842.html nz: Codes of Practice: No Requirements to enforce them The ISP Spam Code of Practice is insufficient in its present form and is cosmetic only. There will be no visible improvement of services and ISPs will be allowed to ignore the problems as they will not be required to do anything material. http://scoop.co.nz/stories/BU0706/S00150.htm *************** DIGITAL DIVIDE *************** us: The Digital Divide Within Schools This is a follow-up post to “1-2-3 -- Red Light.” There's still a lot of talk about the digital divide in this country. I've seen it firsthand as I've worked with schools and school districts around the country on technology-leadership issues; some student populations do lots of online and computer work at home, but other schools serve students who don't have computers and Internet access at home, so the choices for after-school technology work are limited. http://www.edutopia.org/node/4160 Q&A: Intel's Maloney discusses digital divide Intel wants to see its low-cost Classmate PC help transform they way students in developing countries are educated. And the company is not alone. The One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) project also hopes its low-cost XO laptop can close the "digital divide" that exists between the developed world and emerging markets. Much has been made of these two efforts, which are often painted as rivals by the media and observers. Sean Maloney, executive vice president and general manager of the Intel's sales and marketing group, recently spoke with IDG News Service about the Classmate PC and the challenges Intel hopes to address with the device. http://www.infoworld.com/article/07/06/11/Intel's-Maloney-discusses-digital-divide_1.html?source=rss&url=http://www.infoworld.com/article/07/06/11/Intel's-Maloney-discusses-digital-divide_1.html ************ FILE SHARING ************ TorrentSpy ruling a 'weapon of mass discovery' CNet news analysis It was a pro-copyright ruling that stunned nearly everyone dealing with the issue of online piracy. In a decision reported late Friday by CNET News.com, a federal judge in Los Angeles found (PDF) that a computer server's RAM, or random-access memory, is a tangible document that can be stored and must be turned over in a lawsuit. If allowed to stand, the groundbreaking ruling may mean that anyone defending themselves in a civil suit could be required to turn over information in their computer's RAM hardware, which could force companies and individuals to store vast amounts of data, say technology experts. Roaming the Web anonymously was already nearly impossible. This ruling, which brings up serious privacy issues, could make it a lot harder. http://news.com.com/2100-1030_3-6190900.html http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9588_22-6190900.html AT&T Moves to Take Over the Internet Remember how the big phone companies tried to dismiss Net Neutrality as a "solution in search of a problem"? Well, here's the problem. In an interview this week with the Los Angeles Times, AT&T Senior Vice President James Cicconi revealed that AT&T is developing technology designed to detect and block "pirated" films, music and other media on its Internet networks. The announcement is a savvy way to start taking away your Internet freedom. Why savvy? Because by putting the focus on blocking "piracy" of movies, music and other copyrighted content, AT&T can win the support of powerful allies: movie studios, record labels and publishers. And hey, who supports pirates? http://www.huffingtonpost.com/josh-silver/att-moves-to-take-over-t_b_52241.html us: Universities strike back in battle over illegal downloads With 1.3 billion music files pirated by college students last year, schools are turning to technology to curb the practice. Congress watches with interest. http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0618/p13s01-legn.html uk: Downloads fail to stem CD sales Britain's music shops were given some badly needed good news yesterday with industry figures showing British shoppers led the world in CD purchases in 2006. http://technology.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,2103830,00.html ********************************* COMMENT, MICROSOFT & DEVELOPMENTS ********************************* Lewis Black (Back in Black) on Google, on The Daily Show (Comedy Central) In his most recent Daily Show segment, Lewis Black (Back in Black) discusses Google and other technologies. Lewis says "technology used to be about making life easier, now it's about making it creepier. Take Google, at first it was nothing more than a fun way to stalk your ex-girlfriend." Lewis describes Google as the "worldwide leader in freaking people out", and then discusses StreetView. Lewis also says "Big Brother is watching, but only because he's bored at work. To see the hilarious and topical segment, as is everything about The Daily Show, click on the link and search for Lewis Black and StreetView. http://www.comedycentral.com/shows/the_daily_show/videos/lewis_black/index.jhtml?playVideo=88240 Google power 'less than thought' as eBay starts boycott There was encouraging news for the growing army of Google-haters yesterday when a leading internet advertising researcher suggested that the search engine’s stranglehold on online promotions was looser than he had expected. Bill Tancer, a research analyst at Hitwise, the internet research firm, said that eBay’s decision to pull all its advertising from Google in the US had had only a small impact on the “traffic” flowing from the search engine to the online auctioneer’s site. http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/media/article1940506.ece Angry eBay pulls Google adverts The move comes after Google angered eBay with a provocative decision to hold an event on the same evening as eBay's annual merchants' conference. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/6755789.stm http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/technology/article1934844.ece us: Google and eBay in furious dust-up There is nothing more enraging than a clash in social diaries, as two of Silicon Valley's top firms have just discovered. A decision by Google to hold a party in the middle of an eBay conference has prompted a furious dust-up between the two technology companies. The row erupted when Google attempted to lure customers, technology experts and partners away from a major marketing event hosted by eBay in Boston this week. http://business.guardian.co.uk/story/0,,2103329,00.html http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/main.jhtml?xml=/money/2007/06/15/bcngoogle115.xml Tony Blair backs Church over cathedral game The Prime Minister today gave his backing to the Church of England in the row over Sony's use of Manchester Cathedral as a setting for a gory computer game. http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/faith/article1929072.ece Safari for Windows: All About the Money? The debate is still on about why Apple decided to develop a version of its Safari browser for Windows. http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,132981-page,1/article.html ******************* TELECOMMUNICATIONS ******************* au: Broadband plan 'a quick fix' The Labor Party has dismissed the Federal Government's broadband package as a "quick fix'' after Prime Minister John Howard confirmed it would spend almost $1 billion improving speeds and access in regional areas. The Government announced Opel, a joint venture between Optus and Elders, had been awarded $958 million from the Broadband Connect Infrastructure Program to build a wireless internet network in regional Australia. In addition, Opel will contribute about $900 million of its own funds to the network. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/06/18/1182018977106.html http://abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/06/18/1954279.htm au: Opel team wins broadband rollout deal Federal Communications Communications Minister Helen Coonan says 99 per cent of Australians will have access to fast affordable broadband internet by June 2009. Senator Coonan today announced Opel, a joint venture between Optus and Elders, had been awarded $958 million from the Broadband Connect Infrastructure Program to build a wireless internet network in regional Australia. http://theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,21922708-601,00.html au: Broadband going to the bush The Federal Government will today unveil its long-awaited broadband package, including almost $1 billion of new funding for Telstra's biggest rival, Optus, to improve access and speeds in regional areas. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/06/17/1182018939232.html au: Bush net deadline missed THE federal Government has missed another deadline as it scrambles to launch the final phases of its rural broadband subsidy program at the beginning of next month. The federal Communications Department gave rural internet providers until last Friday to apply for funding under its $162.5 million Australian Broadband Guarantee, which is due to launch on July 1. http://australianit.news.com.au/story/0,24897,21888700-5013041,00.html nz: Broadband for all on agenda New Zealanders are likely to get a legal entitlement to broadband under a proposal for a new, contestable Kiwi Share agreement that Communications Minister David Cunliffe expects to put in front of the Cabinet by the end of the year. http://stuff.co.nz/stuff/4097567a28.html us: Telecom: Back From The Dead All those YouTube videos and MySpace pages zipping back and forth on the Net have revived the telecom industry -- and charged up the economy http://businessweek.com/magazine/content/07_26/b4040001.htm ******* MOBILE ******* us: Spectrum public safety plan meets resistance A plan to have private investors build a national wireless broadband network for police and fire departments met resistance at a U.S. Senate hearing Thursday, including from the man in charge of New York's emergency broadband network. http://www.infoworld.com/article/07/06/14/Spectrum-public-safety-plan-meets-resistance_1.html London leads in city wi-fi race London has taken the title of top wi-fi city according to a survey. The RSA Security report looked at the growth of wi-fi in three key financial centres: London, New York and Paris. According to the findings wireless access points in London grew by 160% in the last 12 month putting it ahead of the other two cities. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/6755829.stm http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/06/14/london_wifi/ Google lobbies for 'open' wireless networks Google and its allies may have lost key Capitol Hill votes on Net neutrality laws last year, but now they're mounting a counterattack: a lobbying effort to extend similar rules to forthcoming wireless broadband networks. http://news.com.com/2100-1039_3-6190863.html http://www.usatoday.com/tech/products/cnet/2007-06-14-google-lobbies-to-open-spectrum_N.htm http://news.zdnet.com/2100-1035_22-6190863.html ********************************** ARRESTS/COURT CASES FOR CHILD PORN ********************************** FBI tip-off leads to child porn arrest A NSW Blue Mountains man has been charged with child pornography offences following a tip-off from the FBI, Australian Federal Police say. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2007/06/15/1181414516954.html http://theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,21910875-2702,00.html http://bordermail.com.au/news/bm/national/827661.html http://itnews.com.au/newsstory.aspx?CIaNID=54302 au: Think of the stress they'll suffer THE death of loved ones, work stress and, God forbid, house renovations taking longer than expected – welcome to the stresses of everyday life, Patrick Power. Fortunately, the overwhelming majority of people do not use the ups and downs of modern living as an excuse to commit crimes that, by their nature, are only possible if the most vulnerable members of society – children – are abused in the most vile way. Some 29,000 images, including 433 photos and 31 videos of children, some under the age of 10, engaged in a variety of sex acts with adults, were discovered on the then-deputy senior crown prosecutor's work computer last year. http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,21921304-5001031,00.html +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Check out http://auda.org.au/domain-news/ for the most recent edition of the domain news, including an RSS feed - already online! The domain name news is supported by auDA. For information on subscriptions to the domain name and/or general internet news please contact me. For archives of postings to the list, see http://lists.technewsreview.com.au/pipermail/technewsreview/. Also see http://technewsreview.com.au/ for recent updates. Sources include Quicklinks <http://qlinks.net/> and BNA Internet Law News <http://www.bna.com/ilaw/>. +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ (c) David Goldstein 2007 --------- 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 _________________________________________________________________________________ Yahoo!7 Mail has just got even bigger and better with unlimited storage on all webmail accounts. http://au.docs.yahoo.com/mail/unlimitedstorage.html _______________________________________________ APPLe mailing list [email protected] http://mailman.apnic.net/mailman/listinfo/apple
