***************************************************** Edupage is a service of EDUCAUSE, a nonprofit association whose mission is to advance higher education by promoting the intelligent use of information technology. *****************************************************
TOP STORIES FOR WEDNESDAY, JULY 30, 2003 Pentagon Gives Up Futures Market on Terrorism Wyden Bill Goes After Federal Threats to Privacy FTC Cautions File Sharers about Privacy Threats AND Feds Make Last-Minute Accommodations to SEVIS Training Centers Will Bring Technology to Rural Minnesota PENTAGON GIVES UP FUTURES MARKET ON TERRORISM Not long after details of its operation were made public, the Policy Analysis Market--and its subsequent initiative, the Futures Markets Applied to Prediction--have been canceled. The programs came out of the Pentagon's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and were intended to predict future terrorism by selling futures on specific events, such as North Korean missile attacks or the assassination of Yasser Arafat. Just as commodities futures markets are used to predict ups and down in global petroleum markets, for example, so too were these programs supposed to serve as indicators, based on futures that individuals would purchase, of specific upcoming terrorist activities. Senators Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.) brought the programs to public attention with a letter they sent to John Poindexter, head of DARPA. In it, the senators said, "Spending taxpayer dollars to create terrorism betting parlors is as wasteful as it is repugnant. The American people want the federal government to use its resources enhancing our security, not gambling on it." The Pentagon has agreed to end the programs. Internet News, 29 July 2003 http://dc.internet.com/news/article.php/2241421 WYDEN BILL GOES AFTER FEDERAL THREATS TO PRIVACY Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) has introduced the Citizens' Protection in Federal Databases Act, designed to put severe limits on federal programs that, according to Wyden, "shine a spotlight onto the personal records of law-abiding citizens who have a constitutionally protected right to privacy." The bill would require federal agencies using commercial databases to file reports with Congress about exactly how they are using personal information. Agencies that do not would risk losing funding. The bill also would not allow data mining, to prevent the federal government from going on "fishing expeditions" looking for people who match certain profiles. Wyden has been one of Congress's most fervent opponents of what he sees as violations of the rights of individuals in the United States. He has strong support from groups including the American Civil Liberties Union and the Electronic Privacy Information Center. Wired News, 30 July 2003 http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,59824,00.html FTC CAUTIONS FILE SHARERS ABOUT PRIVACY THREATS Amid recent activities to discourage illegal file sharing, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has issued a warning advising file traders to beware of other problems they could face. The warning includes several possible threats, including downloading viruses, mislabeled pornography, or spyware. The warning also points out the legal repercussions for downloading and sharing copyrighted files. The FTC's alert does not urge consumers to discontinue file-sharing activities, however, but advises taking several steps to minimize potential exposure to the threats identified. Those steps include using antivirus software, being mindful of the potential of spyware, and watching carefully to make sure only the files users want to share are available to others on peer-to-peer networks. CNET, 30 July 2003 http://news.com.com/2100-1029_3-5057814.html AND ***************************************************** FEDS MAKE LAST-MINUTE ACCOMMODATIONS TO SEVIS The Department of Homeland Security has made some last-minute, one-time accommodations to the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS) to avoid unnecessary disruptions to foreign students returning to school in the United States. Recognizing that SEVIS was not going to be fully implemented by the August 1 deadline, the agency has taken steps--including setting up a call center and sending extra personnel to certain airports--to ensure that legitimate students are allowed to enter the country. SEVIS requires that all institutions create records for foreign students, in an effort to better track foreign nationals inside the United States. The system has suffered from technical glitches, and its implementation has been running behind schedule. Of an estimated 1.2 million students who should have records in SEVIS, only about 1 million currently do. The percentage of students likely to experience difficulty is small, but several thousand students could still be affected. Chronicle of Higher Education, 30 July 2003 (sub. req'd) http://chronicle.com/daily/2003/07/2003073001n.htm TRAINING CENTERS WILL BRING TECHNOLOGY TO RURAL MINNESOTA The Minnesota State Colleges and Universities Northeast Higher Education District is using a $1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Labor to establish a set of training centers to help residents of the northern part of the state gain necessary job skills to move from jobs in timber, tourism, and mining into technology fields. The True North program aims to set up a training center, called a Tech Prep Center, in each town that has a college. Teachers at the centers will be faculty from area colleges, and the specific courses offered would vary across centers depending on what job skills carry the most demand. John Ondov of the Lifelab Institute, which is managing the program, said the newly trained technology workforce could offer an alternative to U.S. corporations looking to outsource certain operations to overseas personnel to save money. Chronicle of Higher Education, 29 July 2003 (sub. req'd) http://chronicle.com/daily/2003/07/2003072901t.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. For information on EDUCAUSE publications see http://www.educause.edu/pub/ ***************************************************** CONFERENCES For information on all EDUCAUSE learning and networking opportunities, see http://www.educause.edu/conference/ ***************************************************** COPYRIGHT Edupage copyright (c) 2003, EDUCAUSE
