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TOP STORIES FOR WEDNESDAY, JUNE 11, 2003 FTC Looking for Spam-Fighting Muscle Internet Gambling Bill Passes the House Microsoft Gets into the Anti-Virus Software Game AND MIT Merges Technology Labs Mentoring Program Supports Women in Science and Engineering FTC LOOKING FOR SPAM-FIGHTING MUSCLE The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has proposed to Congress rules changes that would give the agency much broader authority to track down and prosecute spammers. Though not specific to spam, the International Consumer Protection Enforcement Act (ICPEA) would give the FTC a range of new powers, including making confidential demands of ISPs to provide customer records and cooperating with foreign governments investigating illegal activity. Civil liberties groups objected to the ICPEA, saying that the proposed legislation is overly broad and lacks adequate checks. They also objected to a provision in the bill that frees the FTC from compliance with the Freedom of Information Act in certain circumstances. Marc Rotenberg of the Electronic Privacy Information Center said that despite his group's support of anti-spam efforts, the ICPEA "opens the door to abuse in that it creates new enforcement authority without corresponding safeguards." CNET, 10 June 2003 http://news.com.com/2100-1028_3-1015517.html INTERNET GAMBLING BILL PASSES THE HOUSE In the latest effort to regulate online gambling, the U.S. House of Representatives has passed a bill that outlaws electronic payments to offshore casinos. Online gambling is widely considered illegal under existing U.S. laws, but because most online casinos are not in U.S. jurisdiction, authorities have difficulty enforcing those laws. The Unlawful Internet Gambling Funding Prohibition Act covers U.S.-based financial institutions, such as banks and credit card companies, giving law enforcement officials the authority to limit online gambling. Darlene Hooley (D-Ore.) said, "What this bill really does is take something already illegal and enforces the law." The bill includes an exception for state-regulated sites that take bets on horse and dog racing, but it does not include penalties for violators. If the bill included penalties, it would pass through the House Judiciary Committee, which last month approved a similar bill only after eliminating the exemption for state-run betting sites. Internet News, 11 June 2003 http://dc.internet.com/news/article.php/2220141 MICROSOFT GETS INTO THE ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE GAME Microsoft has announced plans to acquire GeCAD Software, a Romanian company that develops anti-virus software, and to begin offering its own anti-virus products. Aside from an unsuccessful foray in the mid 1990s, Microsoft has stayed out of the anti-virus market, while for years Windows has been near the top of the list for targets of virus writers. Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at anti-virus firm Sophos, said, "People think it is ironic that they could be getting fixes from the company that built the problems into the software in the first place." Microsoft did not say when its anti-virus products would be available or whether they would be bundled with Windows or sold as stand-alone products. BBC, 11 June 2003 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/2980936.stm AND ***************************************************** MIT MERGES TECHNOLOGY LABS The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has announced plans to merge two high-profile labs into what will be one of the largest research labs in the world. The Laboratory for Computer Science and the Artificial Intelligence Laboratory will be combined to form the New Laboratory for Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence (NLCSAI), which will comprise 750 faculty, staff, and students. According to a statement from MIT, the NLCSAI "will aspire to germinate and cultivate the most far-reaching new ideas and carry out the world's best research in information and intelligence technology and science." Rodney Brooks, who will be co-director of the NLCSAI, offered this comment on the kinds of research the new lab might do: "[I]magine instead of growing a tree, cutting it down and building a table, you just grow a table, digitally instruct the organism how to grow." Wired News, 11 June 2003 http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,59137,00.html MENTORING PROGRAM SUPPORTS WOMEN IN SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING MentorNet is a national nonprofit organization whose goal is to provide support in the form of e-mail mentoring for women studying science and engineering. The program matches female students with working professionals who give advice and encouragement. Many women feel uncomfortable in a field dominated by male students and faculty. Participants in the program--both students and mentors--say that e-mail mentoring is effective, despite the perception that it is impersonal. E-mail allows students and mentors in different time zones to communicate at their convenience. One mentor said, "[Y]ou don't have to drop what you are doing ... and I can take time to think about my answer." MentorNet was started in 1997 by Carol Muller, who, as associate engineering dean at Dartmouth College, was disturbed to see that women left science and engineering programs at twice the rate of men. San Jose Mercury News, 10 June 2003 http://www.siliconvalley.com/mld/siliconvalley/news/local/6053553.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 "EQ" and "EDUCAUSE Review," books, and other materials dealing with the impacts and implications of information technology in higher education. 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