May 2018

Surveillance systems that track the locations of cellphone users and spy on their calls, texts and data streams are being turned against Americans as they roam the country and the world, security experts and US officials say.  Federal officials acknowledged the privacy risk to Americans in a previously undisclosed letter from the Department of Homeland Security to Sen Ron Wyden (D-OR), saying they had received reports that "nefarious actors may have exploited" global cellular networks "to target the communications of American citizens." The letter, dated May 22, described surveillance syste

Wireless carriers want the Federal Communications Commission to add a vote on opening up the 3.5 GHz (CBRS) band at its July meeting, and an auction of that spectrum by 2019, according to a letter from CTIA President Meredith Attwell Baker. "The wireless industry urges the Commission to move forward in July on key mid-band spectrum opportunities—the 3.5 GHz band and the 3.7-4.2 GHz band—to address the United States’ international deficit with respect to mid-band spectrum availability," She wrote to the FCC.

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai says he is currently setting the regulatory wheels in motion to secure a 90-day extension of the challenge window for the map the FCC will use to allocate over $4.5 billion in mobile broadband subsidies. In a May 30 letter to Sen Roger Wicker (R-MS), Chairman Pai signaled that was part of his commitment to ensure the map would be high quality, a map whose accuracy will be improved by the challenge process. The FCC put out the map of areas eligible for Mobility Fund Phase II money over the next decade as part of its move to redirect wireles

[Commentary] We in the US are deeply concerned about the way the European Union’s new privacy guidelines, which came into effect last week, will force big changes in the way US and European companies do business. Donald Trump’s administration supports the new General Data Protection Regulation’s goal of protecting personal online data while continuing to enable transatlantic data exchange. We are also committed to working with the EU to implement the new guidelines.