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TOP STORIES FOR FRIDAY, JULY 26, 2002 IT Lapse in National Security Plan Criticized ACLU Files Suit Against DMCA German Court Decides Against Deep Linking New PC Targets the eMac AND Congress Ups Funds for Network Security Scholarships Yale Accuses Princeton of Hacking Registrar's Audit Results in Expulsions IT LAPSE IN NATIONAL SECURITY PLAN CRITICIZED As part of the White House's proposal for a Homeland Security department, companies that own and operate critical computer systems could share information on network vulnerabilities and hacker attacks with federal investigators without risking exposure of the information through Freedom of Information Act requests. Critics assert that the FOIA already bars disclosure of trade secrets and that the proposed new exemption permits industry to conceal health and safety information and to avoid liability for corporate misbehavior. White House spokesmen defended the measures as necessary to permit quick government response to a cyberterrorist attack on the national infrastructure. Washington Post, 24 July 2002 (sub. req'd) http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A58311-2002Jul24.html ACLU FILES SUIT AGAINST DMCA The American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit to reverse parts of the 1998 Digital Millennium Copyright Act as unconstitutional. The suit asks a federal judge to rule that the DMCA is so sweeping that it interferes with researchers' ability to evaluate the effectiveness of Internet filtering software. The ACLU is acting on behalf of Ben Edelman, a 22-year-old programmer researching Internet filters. Edelman served as an expert witness in the ACLU filing against library filtering requirements. CNET, 25 July 2002 http://news.com.com/2100-1023-946266.html GERMAN COURT DECIDES AGAINST DEEP LINKING A ruling by Munich's Upper Court determined that using a search engine to find stories on a newspaper's Web site violates European Union law. The decision is the latest ruling in a two-year court battle between German newspaper Mainpost and German search service NewsClub. Mainpost claims that searching through and linking directly to Mainpost content flouts the EU "Database Directive," which grants copyright protection to database creators for selecting and arranging the information in a database even when they do not hold the copyright on the information. The law also protects against unfair extraction of items in a database, specifically downloading or hyperlinking. NewsClub faces more legal hearings, but without any expectation that the Upper Court decision will be reversed. Wired News, 25 July 2002 http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,54083,00.html NEW PC TARGETS THE EMAC Northgate Innovations has introduced a Windows XP-based machine running an Intel Pentium 4 processor as a challenger to Apple's iMac and flat-screen eMac. The Integra PC is also a TV, digital film editor, DVD home theater, FM radio, and recording studio, according to the company. It has four USB ports for video and high-speed connections, a built-in firewall, and optional wireless network connectivity. It comes with either a 15- or 17-inch LCD screen. Prices start at $1,009, the same as the eMac. Northgate sells computers through TV shopping channels, mail-order companies, electronic chain stores, and its two Web sites. NewsFactor Network, 25 July 2002 http://www.newsfactor.com/perl/story/18748.html AND ************************** CONGRESS UPS FUNDS FOR NETWORK SECURITY SCHOLARSHIPS Congress approved an additional $19.3 million in funding to help students learn to secure computer networks from outside attack and make sure no internal bugs disrupt a system. Some of the money funding the initiative will go directly to participating institutions for technology education and to hire more faculty. The National Science Foundation runs the scholarship program Federal Cyber Service: Scholarship for Service. Students who receive the scholarships must study computer networks at certified institutions, take an internship at a federal agency, and then work at a government agency for an additional two years after graduation. Students who fail to meet the requirements will have to pay back the scholarship money. So far, about 300 students are participating in the program at 11 institutions. Chronicle of Higher Education, 26 July 2002 (sub. req'd) http://chronicle.com/free/2002/07/2002072601t.htm YALE ACCUSES PRINCETON OF HACKING Yale University told the Federal Bureau of Investigation that it found 18 unauthorized log-ins to its prospective-student Web site that were traced to computers at Princeton, including in the admissions office. Princeton gained access by looking up students who had applied to both schools, for whom it had Social Security numbers. Stephen LeMenager, Princeton's dean of admissions, said that his university was concerned about the security of online acceptance systems and wanted to check potential security issues. Yale said Princeton's actions violated student privacy. The Web site included a notice that only students, not parents or others, may access the site and warned that Yale would investigate and act on any unauthorized use. Associated Press, 25 July 2002 http://www.nandotimes.com/technology/story/478341p-3820436c.html REGISTRAR'S AUDIT RESULTS IN EXPULSIONS Florida Memorial College in Miami fired two employees and expelled three students after a May audit in the registrar's office uncovered evidence that employees changed students' grades as far back as 1992. Most changes were made during the spring 2002 semester, however, according to registrar Lourdes Silva. Initial disciplinary hearings targeted 12 students who had "major" changes (five or more grades) to their transcripts. At least 60 others had "minor" changes. College officials said that they have notified the state attorney's office in Miami-Dade County and that a criminal investigation is under way. President Albert E. Smith appointed a committee of seven administrators to revise security procedures at the registrar's office. Chronicle of Higher Education, 26 July 2002 (sub. req'd) http://chronicle.com/daily/2002/07/2002072604n.htm ***************************************************** EDUPAGE INFORMATION To subscribe, unsubscribe, or change your settings, visit http://www.educause.edu/pub/edupage/edupage.html Or, you can subscribe or unsubscribe by sending e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] To SUBSCRIBE, in the body of the message type: SUBSCRIBE Edupage YourFirstName YourLastName To UNSUBSCRIBE, in the body of the message type: SIGNOFF Edupage If you have subscription problems, send e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] For past issues of Edupage or information about translations of Edupage into other languages, visit http://www.educause.edu/pub/edupage/edupage.html ***************************************************** OTHER EDUCAUSE PUBLICATIONS EDUCAUSE publishes periodicals, including "EDUCAUSE Quarterly" and "EDUCAUSE Review," books, and other materials dealing with the impacts and implications of information technology in higher education. 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