January 2013

House panel demands briefing over prosecution of Web activist Swartz

The top lawmakers on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee demanded a briefing from Justice Department officials about the prosecution of Internet activist Aaron Swartz, who killed himself earlier this month. In a letter to Attorney General Eric Holder, Chairman Darrell Issa (R-CA) and ranking member Elijah Cummings (D-MD) said there are "many questions" about how prosecutors handled the case. They demanded a briefing from DOJ officials by Monday, Feb. 4.

Iranian Journalists Are Arrested and Accused of Links With Foreign News Media

Security forces in Iran have arrested journalists from at least four Iranian newspapers and one news agency over the past few days and accused them of consorting with hostile foreign news media, the state-run press reported.

Iranian rights advocates called the arrests part of a broader campaign of intimidation to forestall political unrest before the presidential election in June. The official accounts did not clarify how many journalists had been arrested, the precise nature of the accusations against them or when they might be formally charged. The Committee to Protect Journalists, a media advocacy group based in New York, said at least 11 journalists had been seized, calling the crackdown the largest on Iranian news media since the unrest that swept the country four years ago.

Google sued in UK over Safari tracking

A British law firm says that about a dozen Apple customers are suing Internet search leader Google in the UK over its alleged secret tracking of their Internet browsing habits. London-based law firm Olswang said that 12 Apple users were taking the Internet search leader to court over small pieces of tracking code -- known as cookies -- surreptitiously installed on computers and smartphones.

For Many Digital Music Services, Free Is Not a Choice

The competition among streaming music services is going global. It is also increasingly going free. As CD and download sales cool, the music industry is looking to subscription services like Spotify, Rhapsody and Deezer to provide an attractive alternative to pirated content. But the growth of these companies has been relatively slow, and to compete against one another, more of them are opening free tiers — a move that gets attention, but has always caused worries that it could undermine the value of music.

US warns Antigua against "government-authorized piracy"

The United States warned Antigua and Barbuda not to retaliate against U.S. restrictions on Internet gambling by suspending American copyrights or patents, a move it said would authorize the "theft" of intellectual property like movies and music. "The United States has urged Antigua to consider solutions that would benefit its broader economy. However, Antigua has repeatedly stymied these negotiations with certain unrealistic demands," said Nkenge Harmon, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Trade Representative's office.

Reps Markey, Barton Pledge to Keep Pushing on Privacy

The Congressional Bi-Partisan Privacy Caucus co-chairs celebrated Data Privacy Day with a call for companies not to collect the personal info of anyone without their consent, and particularly children. Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA) and Joe Barton (R-TX) are political opposites who are joined in their support of kids' do-not-track legislation and greater privacy protections from online tracking generally. "Privacy is a priority and it should not be taken lightly. We will continue to work with our colleagues to increase privacy protections, and we look forward to working more on this issue during the 113th Congress," they said.

On Data Privacy Day, Chairmen Upton and Terry Remind Consumers to Be Vigilant with Personal Information Online

In recognition of Data Privacy Day, House Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI) and Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade Subcommittee Chairman Lee Terry (R-NE) are urging American consumers to be vigilant in protecting their online data and privacy. The committee held several hearings last Congress examining how personal information is protected on the Internet and will continue its review of online privacy issues throughout the 113th Congress to ensure individual privacy is protected in a manner that preserves Internet growth and innovation.

“On this Data Privacy Day, I urge American families to take a minute and review their digital footprint. Thanks to American ingenuity and innovation, we are spending more and more of our time online - the Internet is where we shop, learn, and play. But as technology advances, so do privacy threats. It is important for consumers to be aware of how their personal information is viewed and shared online,” said Chairman Upton. “We held a number of hearings last Congress examining online privacy and consumer protection issues, and the committee will continue these efforts in the new Congress to protect consumers without harming innovation.”

“Today we recognize Data Privacy Day to raise consumers’ and policymakers’ awareness of online privacy concerns. Protecting personal information online is becoming an increasingly difficult challenge as technology continues to advance and our society becomes more interconnected. Our challenge as lawmakers is to protect individual privacy without undercutting the Internet economy, innovators and application developers. The Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade will continue to be a voice in the online privacy discussion in the ongoing effort to ensure a balanced approach toward addressing these important consumer issues,” said Chairman Terry.

Disney strikes back at Rep Markey privacy concerns

Disney sent a scathing letter to Rep Ed Markey (D-MA) in response to privacy concerns he raised last week about a new technology being implemented at the company’s theme parks.

The Senate hopeful was inquiring about Disney’s new MyMagic+ program that streamlines visitors’ interactions, allowing them to use a bracelet as a credit card, room key and parking ticket — but also allows Disney to track visitor movements, like what rides someone goes on. CEO Bob Iger pushed back candidly against Markey’s implicit allegations, calling the letter “unfortunate and extremely disappointing.” “We are offended by the ludicrous and utterly ill-informed assertion in your letter dated Jan. 24, 2013, that we would in any way haphazardly or recklessly introduce a program that manipulates children, or wantonly puts their safety at risk,” Iger writes in the letter. “Had you or your staff made the slightest effort, you would have found most of the answers to your questions already existed and were publicly available online.” Iger’s response outlines the program’s privacy considerations and “reiterate[s] the basic facts” that a Disney representative outlined to reporters. The program is completely optional, for example, and parents have full control over their child’s participation, Iger writes. And Disney doesn’t use personal information to market to kids under 13, nor does it share the data with third parties for marketing purposes, he added. In an attachment to the letter, Disney outlines how guests can control how their data is used and request the information be deleted. The company also tempers concerns over location-based information.

Samsung’s lobbying grows with its market share

Samsung is gearing up for battle in both Washington and the marketplace. Its smartphone is outselling Apple’s iPhone, and the South Korean electronics firm is spending more than ever on Washington lobbying. The roughly $800,000 Samsung spent in 2012 is the most the company has ever spent on lobbying in Washington, with $480,000 in the fourth quarter alone going to the lobbying firm Akin Gump, listing “IP infringement” among its issues. Samsung and its subsidiaries spent $370,000 in the first three quarters of 2012, according to The Center for Responsive Politics.

Facebook: Fear not on Graph Search privacy

Facebook’s top privacy officer reiterated the social network’s new Graph Search mantra: Your privacy settings are safe.

The revolutionary search feature, which allows users to query available data by asking simple questions, is rolling out to testers and eventually more users. But some criticism is rumbling amidst one early user’s launch of a blog highlighting information that is made easier to glean through Graph Search. “In terms of privacy and honoring privacy, we are absolutely honoring the controls that people have in the audience that they’ve selected with every piece of content that they share,” Facebook Chief Privacy Officer Erin Egan said at a Data Privacy Panel at The George Washington University on Monday morning. “I think what some of these searches are showing is that there is information that people might have shared with an audience that they didn’t want to see it,” she added, touting the social network’s tools that allow users to check and adjust a data point’s privacy settings. The company highlighted the feature’s privacy considerations from the get-go, as co-founder Mark Zuckerberg was quick to promote the feature as “privacy aware” at its unveiling earlier this month.

Benton

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