While it's well-intentioned, there are certainly some items that contradict US laws, and make it rather controversial from an American perspective.
See also: Kevin Poulson, "US Defends Cybercrime Treaty" http://www.securityfocus.com/news/8529 FYI, the full text of the final draft treaty is available at: http://www.privacyinternational.org/issues/cybercrime/coe/cybercrime-final.h tml -rick Senate debates cybercrime treaty Last modified: June 18, 2004, 6:23 AM PDT By Declan McCullagh Staff Writer, CNET News.com A controversial treaty that is the first to focus on computer crime is inching toward ratification in the U.S. Senate. Sen. Richard Lugar, R-Ind., said at a hearing Thursday that the Council of Europe's cybercrime treaty should be ratified quickly because it "will help the United States continue to play a leadership role in international law enforcement and will advance the security of Americans at home and abroad." Lugar is the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Commission. < snip > The Bush administration supports the proposal. If ratified by the Senate, the treaty would "enhance the United States' ability to receive, as well as render, international cooperation in preventing, investigating and prosecuting computer-related crime," said Samuel Witten, a legal adviser at the U.S. State Department, when he testified Thursday. "Such international cooperation is vitally important to our efforts to defend against cyberattacks and generally improve global cybersecurity." An addition to the treaty would require nations to imprison anyone guilty of "insulting publicly, through a computer system" certain groups of people based on characteristics such as race or ethnic origin, a requirement that could make it a crime to e-mail jokes about Polish people or express doubts about whether the commonly accepted version of the Holocaust is correct. The Department of Justice has said that it would be unconstitutional for the United States to sign that addition because of the First Amendment's guarantee of freedom of expression. Because of that objection, the Senate is not considering the addition, but other nations ratifying the treaty are expected to adopt both documents. < snip > http://news.com.com/Senate+debates+cybercrime+treaty/2100-1028_3-5238865.htm l?tag=nefd.top -- You are a subscribed member of the infowarrior list. Visit www.infowarrior.org for list information or to unsubscribe. This message may be redistributed freely in its entirety. Any and all copyrights appearing in list messages are maintained by their respective owners.
