1. Monthly archive
  2. December 2016

December 2016

EU’s highest court declares UK surveillance powers illegal

Britain’s surveillance laws have been deemed illegal by the European Court of Justice in a case that throws into question the fate of the UK’s new Investigatory Powers Act. The ECJ ruled the legislation was illegal because it allowed “general and indiscriminate” retention of electronic communications. The judgment said member states could perform “targeted retention of that data solely for the purpose of fighting serious crime” but not the mass and indiscriminate data collection of everyone in Britain allowed by new UK spying regime. This type of legislation “cannot be considered to be justified within a democratic society, as required by the directive, read in the light of the Charter,” the ECJ said, referring to the charter of European human rights.

FCC Offers Revised Alternative Connect America Cost Model Support

The Federal Communications Commission authorized 35 rate-of-return companies that elected 45 offers of Alternative Connect America Cost Model (A-CAM) support to receive model-based support pursuant to their existing elections. In addition, for the remaining 191 companies that elected model-based support, the FCC announced 228 revised offers of model-based support and the associated revised deployment obligations.

The accompanying report shows the revised state-level offers of model-based support and revised deployment obligations for each carrier that is eligible to elect a second offer. These carriers have until January 19, 2017 (30 days) to notify the FCC, on a state-by-state basis, whether they elect to receive the revised amount of model-based support.

FCC Releases Order on the voluntary Wireless Network Resiliency Cooperative Framework

In this Order, the Federal Communications Commission addresses proposals raised in its earlier Notice, released in the wake of Superstorm Sandy, designed to address the resiliency of the mobile wireless industry’s communications infrastructure.

The FCC finds that the “Wireless Network Resiliency Cooperative Framework” (Framework) -- as submitted by AT&T, CTIA – The Wireless Association (CTIA), Sprint, T-Mobile, U.S. Cellular, and Verizon -- presents a more appropriate path forward to improving wireless resiliency and provider transparency, and the FCC refrains from adopting further regulations at this time. The FCC finds the voluntary framework to be a reasonable approach to achieving the FCC’s stated goals, including promoting availability of wireless mobile services in the event of natural disasters and other emergencies and increasing provider transparency around wireless resiliency. The FCC also believes the framework will bolster situational awareness for the FCC, consumers, and public officials, and provide a mechanism by which consumers will be able to hold providers accountable for service continuity during disaster-related events.

House Encryption Working Group Year-End Report

Members of the bipartisan House encryption working group – established in March 2016 by House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-VA), Ranking Member John Conyers (D-MI), House Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI), and Ranking Member Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) –released a year-end report laying out key observations and next steps.

Key observations of the report.
Any measure that weakens encryption works against the national interest.
Encryption technology is a global technology that is widely and increasingly available around the world.
The variety of stakeholders, technologies, and other factors create different and divergent challenges with respect to encryption and the “going dark” phenomenon, and therefore there is no one-size-fits-all solution to the encryption challenge.
Congress should foster cooperation between the law enforcement community and technology companies.

The report concludes: “Encryption is inexorably tied to our national interests. It is a safeguard for our personal secrets and economic prosperity. It helps to prevent crime and protect national security. The widespread use of encryption technologies also complicates the missions of the law enforcement and intelligence communities. As described in this report, those complications cannot be ignored. This is the reality of modern society. We must strive to find common ground in our collective responsibility: to prevent crime, protect national security, and provide the best possible conditions for peace and prosperity. That is why this can no longer be an isolated or binary debate. There is no ‘us versus them,’ or ‘pro-encryption versus law enforcement.’ This conversation implicates everyone and everything that depends on connected technologies—including our law enforcement and intelligence communities. This is a complex challenge that will take time, patience, and cooperation to resolve. The potential consequences of inaction—or overreaction—are too important to allow historical or ideological perspectives to stand in the way of progress.”

Artificial Intelligence, Automation, and the Economy

In order to ready the United States for a future in which artificial intelligence (AI) plays a growing role, the White House released a report on . This report follows up on the Administration’s previous report, Preparing for the Future of Artificial Intelligence, which was released in October 2016, and which recommended that the White House publish a report on the economic impacts of artificial intelligence by the end of 2016.

The new report examines the expected impact of AI-driven automation on the economy, and describes broad strategies that could increase the benefits of AI and mitigate its costs. AI-driven automation will transform the economy over the coming years and decades. The challenge for policymakers will be to update, strengthen, and adapt policies to respond to the economic effects of AI.

Investing in the Cybersecurity Workforce of Tomorrow

The Obama Administration has worked aggressively on several fronts to rapidly expand and train the cybersecurity workforce of the future. We launched the National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education (NICE), a program led by the National Institute of Standards and Technology at the US Department of Commerce, to create an ecosystem of cybersecurity education, training, and workforce development. And at the community level, we are supporting the development of fast-track tech training programs through TechHire, building public-private collaboration to help train and place people into tech jobs.

NICE was designed to expand the cybersecurity workforce by accelerating learning and skills development; nurturing a diverse learning community; and guiding career development and workforce planning. NICE is undertaking a range of strategies to put these goals into action. This June, the Department of Labor awarded $150 million in TechHire grants for partnerships to develop tech talent following this model across the country. Through these funds and other investments, local communities are launching a range of innovative training and placement models in critical tech fields, including cybersecurity. The demand for cybersecurity skills will only continue to grow. Through local collaborative efforts between employers, training providers, and community leaders, we can be sure that all individuals have the opportunity to build on their tech knowledge and participate in the thriving tech economy.

Police Use of Phony Cellphone Towers Needs to be Reined In, Lawmakers warn

Congress should pass legislation to ensure that phony cellphone towers police use to locate criminals and fugitives are used consistently across the country, according to a bipartisan congressional report released Dec 19. In the absence of those laws, the Justice and Homeland Security departments should refuse to approve the sale of those devices, known as “cell-site simulators” or “stingrays,” to state and local law enforcement unless they agree to abide by current federal rules, according to the staff report from the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.

The report is the result of a year-long staff investigation into stingrays, which federal law enforcement agencies frequently used to track criminals without warrants and using a standard lower than probable cause prior to policy shifts in September and October 2015. Those lower standards are still used by many states and localities, according to the report, which determined “the use of cell-site simulators by state and local law enforcement agencies was not governed by any uniform standards or policies.”

Facebook introduces live audio streams in partnership with the BBC

A year into its expensive investment into live video, Facebook is adding an audio option. The company said that the feature, which is first being made available to publishers, is designed to complement video streams with a lower-bandwidth option.

Initial partners include Britain’s LBC radio, the BBC World Service, Harper Collins, and authors Adam Grant and Britt Bennett. It will be made available to everyone in 2017. Listening to live streams on iOS will require that you have Facebook open on your mobile device the entire time, Facebook said — a feature that seems likely to limit engagement among listeners. Android users can close the app and continue to listen.

Trump confirms he met with Mexican tech billionaire Carlos Slim

President-elect Donald Trump confirmed that he met with Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim recently. Trump and Slim met for a private dinner Dec 17 at Mar-a-Lago, Trump's resort in Florida.

The two feuded throughout the presidential campaign. Trump had accused Slim of launching a media smear campaign against him through his ties to The New York Times and other companies. Slim denied Trump's accusations. He was also a vocal critic of Trump's promises to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement and build a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border that Trump vowed Mexico would pay for. The two are now looking to open a friendly line of communication.

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