In our 634th issue:
Stop CISPA: A Week of Action to Oppose Overbroad Cybersecurity Legislation
EFF joins a week of action to combat CISPA, the Cyber
Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act. CISPA is one of the greatest
threats to Internet users since SOPA. We are most deeply concerned that
CISPA would:
- eviscerate existing privacy laws by giving overly broad legal immunity to companies who share users' private information, including the content of communications, with the government,
- authorize companies to disclose users' data directly to the NSA, a military agency that operates secretly and without public accountability, and
- employ broad definitions that allow users' sensitive personal information to be used for a range of purposes, including for "national security," not just computer and network security.
National Security Letters Are Unconstitutional, Federal Judge Rules
EFF has won a major victory: A federal district court judge in
San Francisco ruled that National Security Letter (NSL) provisions in
federal law violate the Constitution. The decision came in a lawsuit in
which EFF is challenging a NSL on behalf of an unnamed
telecommunications company.
Hey, USTR: Leave Copyright and Patent Provisions Out of TAFTA
Last month, President Barack Obama announced the launch of a
new trade deal between the United States and the European Union -- a
transatlantic free trade agreement (TAFTA). EFF joins 44 U.S. and EU
organizations in calling for legitimate transparency in upcoming TAFTA
negotiations, and also that the treaty exclude any provisions related to
patents, copyright, trademarks, data protection, or other forms of
so-called "intellectual property." Government leaders should put an end
to secretive trade deals that bind our nations to international legal
obligations that run counter to economic, cultural, and digital
freedoms.
EFF Updates
Andrew "Weev" Auernheimer has been sentenced to 41 months in
federal prison for revealing to media outlets that AT&T had
configured its servers to allow the harvesting of iPad owners' unsecured
email addresses. EFF is joining Auernheimer's legal team to litigate
his appeal, arguing that fundamental problems with computer crime law
result in unfair prison sentences like the one in this case.
The Department of Justice has announced the indictment of
journalist Matthew Keys for violating the CFAA. For allegedly aiding an
act of vandalism, Keys was charged with three felony crimes. And as
seems to be standard DOJ protocol these days, the press release played
up the possibility of an extremely long jail sentence for a crime that
caused little harm, noting that Keys faced a maximum punishment of 10
years for two of the counts and five years for the third—totaling
twenty-five years.
EFF has been working for some time -- with your help -- to
ensure that improvidently granted patents don't threaten exciting and
growing 3D printing technology. Now we've decided to partner with Ask
Patents, a project of Stack Exchange, to help find the best prior art to
attack what we think are some pretty questionable patent applications.
We're excited about this because we think you, the people who use and
build 3D printers or any other technology that might be threatened by
bad patents, are in the best position to make this process work.
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has issued an important
copyright judgement in Universal Music Group v. Veoh, finding once again
that video-sharing site Veoh fell squarely within the safe harbor
provision of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. It's a good ruling,
and it puts yet more weight behind the idea that a robust safe harbor is
not just beneficial but necessary for user-generated content sites to
thrive on the Internet.
In a shocking move, Google has recently deleted AdBlock Plus
from the Android Play Store. This is hugely disappointing because it
demonstrates that Google is willing to censor software and abandon its
support for open platforms as soon as there's an ad-related business
reason for doing so.
In an important new decision, the Ninth Circuit Court of
Appeals created the first explicit limits on the government's ability to
search electronic devices at the border. The court's decision in United
States v. Cotterman establishes that government agents must have
"reasonable suspicion" before conducting a forensic examination of a
computer.
At a recent hearing before the House Judiciary Subcommittee on
Courts, Intellectual Property and the Internet, Congress heard
overwhelming evidence about how patent trolls -- companies that assert
patents as a business model instead of creating products -- are abusing
the system to stifle innovation. Witness after witness testified about
patent trolls who use the threat of ruinous defense costs to pressure
companies into paying settlements on vague and overbroad patents.miniLinks
In an important copyright case, the Supreme Court has decided that Thai student Supap Kirtsaeng's book-importing business was not a copyright crime.The above-mentioned indictment of Matthew Keys, 26, in relation to a 2010 incident of online vandalism has led to an outcry over sentencing in computer crimes.
This week marks is the one year anniversary of the illegal jailing in Syria of Bassel Khartibil, well known free internet pioneer, software engineer, teacher, husband, family-man and friend.
Supported by Members
Our members make it possible for EFF to bring legal and technological expertise into crucial battles about online rights. Whether defending free speech online or challenging unconstitutional surveillance, your participation makes a difference. Every donation gives technology users who value freedom online a stronger voice and more formidable advocate.
If you aren't already, please consider becoming an EFF member today.
Administrivia
Editor: Parker Higgins, Activist
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EFFector is a publication of the Electronic Frontier Foundation.
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