Computer vision ramps as Intel, Amazon, Google push ahead

Intel's move to put its RealSense 3D Cameras in laptops in the second half of 2014 and tablets in early 2015, coupled with Amazon's Fire Phone and Google's Project Tango, are all pointing to early commercialization efforts for computer vision, which allows devices to see depth.

On Tuesday, Intel's Future Showcase, a view of the tech world five years from now, rolled through New York and computer vision via gesture viewing, face tracking and integrated 3D depth cameras played a big role. Rest assured that these RealSense cameras will ultimately make it to Intel's open source Jimmy the Robot efforts (currently $1,600 for a version that can be 3D printed and $16,000 for one that's more suited to universities).

Brian David Johnson, Intel's futurist, said computer vision could change the robotic equation dramatically and allow them to sense depth and avoid pitfalls. "If 3D cameras can fit in a laptop it'll easily fit on Jimmy," said Johnson.

Project Tango, an effort by Google, also launched a tablet reference kit for developers. The aim is to create new experiences for consumers and businesses. In the end, Google will want to scan rooms and settings just like it does streets. Naturally, advertising and data nuggets will provide an overlay.

read full article at ZDnet

New guidelines to help EU businesses use the Cloud

Guidelines to help business users save money and get the most out of cloud computing services are being presented to the European Commission today. Cloud computing allows individuals, businesses and the public sector to store their data and carry out data processing in remote data centres, saving on average 10-20%.

 The guidelines have been developed by a Cloud Select Industry Group as part of the Commission’s European Cloud Strategy to increase trust in these services. Contributors to the guidelines include Arthur's Legal, ATOS, Cloud Security Alliance, ENISA, IBM, Microsoft and SAP, Telecom Italia, (complete member list here).

 Today's announcement is a first step towards standardised building blocks for Service Level Agreements (SLAs) terminology and metrics. An SLA is a part of a service contract that defines the technical and legal aspects of the service offered. The recent findings of the Trusted Cloud Europe survey show SLA standards are very much required by cloud users.

These guidelines will help professional cloud users ensure essential elements are included in plain language in contracts they make with cloud providers. Relevant items include:

• The availability and reliability of the cloud service,
• The quality of support services they will receive from their cloud provider
• Security levels
• How to better manage the data they keep in the cloud.

European Commission Vice-President @NeelieKroesEU said: "This is the first time cloud suppliers have agreed on common guidelines for service level agreements. I think small businesses in particular will benefit from having these guidelines at hand when searching for cloud services.”

read more at European Commission

US Judge: Warrantless Bulk Surveillance Is Legal

A federal judge has affirmed the legality of the U.S. government's bulk collection of phone and email data from foreign nationals living outside the country — including their contact with U.S. citizens — in denying a man's motion to dismiss his terrorism conviction.

It was the first legal challenge to the government's bulk data-collection program of non-U.S. citizens living overseas after revelations about massive, warrantless surveillance were made public by former National Security Agency employee Edward Snowden.

The program also sweeps up information about U.S. citizens who have contact with overseas suspects. This type of surveillance played a key role in this case.

 Lawyers for Mohamed Mohamud, a U.S. citizen who lived in Oregon, tried to show the program violated his constitutional rights and was more broadly unconstitutional. U.S. District Judge Garr King on Tuesday denied that effort.

The ruling also upheld Mohamud's conviction on terrorism charges. In his decision, King rejected the argument from Mohamud's attorneys that prosecutors failed to notify Mohamud of information derived under the U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act until he was already convicted.

 read full article at ABC News

"Factsheet EU-US Negotiations on Data Protection" (the sequel of an epic story...)

...
What are the outstanding challenges?
A critical outstanding issue which remains is the right of effective judicial redress that should be granted by the U.S. to EU citizens not resident in the U.S. (i.e. ensuring that EU citizens not resident in the U.S. enjoy the same rights as those enjoyed by U.S. nationals in the EU today).

 This is significant for two reasons: first ensuring equal treatment, meaning that EU citizens who don’t live in the U.S. can obtain the same treatment in terms of judicial redress (meaning they can go to court) as U.S citizens, and secondly ensuring the enforceability of the rights set out in the EU-U.S. agreement. This is an issue which is at the core of the negotiating mandate the Council gave to the Commission.

 A satisfactory solution is yet to be found on this point. The U.S. recognises how critical this issue is for the EU, and has committed to identifying ways of addressing it, such as through legislative action in Congress. While this commitment from the U.S. side is welcome, a workable legislative solution is yet to be proposed by the U.S.

read full report at European Commission 

 

TTIP is a land of opportunity for small businesses

TTIP represents a land of opportunity for businesses. Opening up markets on both sides of the Atlantic will create a wealth of business opportunities, and EU negotiators should adopt a small business perspective, too, writes David Caro.

 David Caro is president of the European Small Business Alliance and EU and International Affairs Policy Chairman for the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB).

 The Trans Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) could well be the biggest and most important trade agreement in history. It is almost a year since the negotiations started, and from the very beginning both sides agreed that this trade deal should include small businesses. This inclusion comes in the form of a specific Small Business Chapter. The European Small Business Alliance (ESBA), and our members believe this represents a unique chance for small firms to shape, and benefit from this deal.

read full article at EurActive

Antitrust: Commission finds that Motorola Mobility infringed EU competition rules by misusing standard essential patents

The European Commission today adopted a decision which finds that Motorola Mobility's (Motorola) seeking and enforcement of an injunction against Apple before a German court on the basis of a smartphone standard essential patent (SEP) constitutes an abuse of a dominant position prohibited by EU antitrust rules in view of the particular circumstances in which the injunction was used (see also MEMO/14/322). The Commission has ordered Motorola to eliminate the negative effects resulting from it. The Commission has also taken a commitment decision in a separate investigation concerning Samsung (see IP/14/490).

 Commission Vice President in charge of competition policy Joaquín Almunia said: "The so-called smartphone patent wars should not occur at the expense of consumers. This is why all industry players must comply with the competition rules. Our decision on Motorola, together with today's decision to accept Samsung's commitments, provides legal clarity on the circumstances in which injunctions to enforce standard essential patents can be anti-competitive. This will also contribute to ensuring the proper functioning of standard-setting in Europe. While patent holders should be fairly remunerated for the use of their intellectual property, implementers of such standards should also get access to standardised technology on fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory terms. It is by preserving this balance that consumers will continue to have access to a wide choice of interoperable products".

 SEPs are patents essential to implement a specific industry standard. It is not possible to manufacture products that comply with a certain standard without accessing these patents. This may give companies owning SEPs significant market power. As a result, standards bodies generally require their members to commit to license SEPs on fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory (so-called "FRAND") terms. This commitment is designed to ensure effective access to a standard for all market players and to prevent "hold-up" by a single SEP holder. Such access on FRAND terms allows a wide choice of interoperable products for consumers while ensuring that SEP holders are adequately remunerated for their intellectual property.

read full article at European Commission

Antitrust: Commission welcomes General Court judgment upholding its decision against Intel

The European Commission welcomes today's judgment by the General Court (case T-286/09) which fully upholds the Commission's 2009 Decision which found that Intel had abused its dominant position and which imposed on Intel a fine of €1.06 billion (see IP/09/745). The judgment is significant because it confirms that the Commission was fully justified in pursuing the anticompetitive conduct in question in a major worldwide market. The Commission will continue to vigorously pursue abuses of dominant market positions, which restrict competition in the Single Market to the detriment of consumers.

On 13 May 2009, the Commission adopted a decision prohibiting Intel's anticompetitive conduct under Article 7 of the EU's Antitrust Regulation (Regulation 1/2003). The decision concluded that Intel had, in breach of Article 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (ex Article 82 of the EC Treaty), engaged in two types of abuse of its dominant position in the x86 CPU market – i.e. essentially, the market for computer chips. These were:

(1) granting rebates to 4 PC and server manufacturers (Dell, HP, NEC, Lenovo) conditional on them obtaining all or almost all of their supplies from Intel, and payments to one downstream computer retailer (Media Markt) conditional on it only selling PCs with Intel CPUs ("conditional rebates"); and

(2) granting direct payments to 3 computer manufacturers (HP, Acer and Lenovo) to halt, delay or limit the launch of specific products incorporating chips from Intel’s only rival, AMD (so-called “naked restrictions”).

read full article at Europen Commission

Antitrust: Commission adopts revised safe harbour rules for minor agreements ("De Minimis Notice")

The European Commission has issued revised rules (its so-called "De Minimis Notice") for assessing when minor agreements between companies are not caught by the general prohibition of anticompetitive practices under EU competition law. The Notice facilitates the assessment of compliance with EU antitrust rules for companies, especially SMEs. At the same time it allows the Commission to concentrate its resources on agreements with a higher risk of distorting competition in the Single Market. See also MEMO/14/440.

Article 101 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) prohibits agreements that are aimed at or result in appreciable restrictions of competition. The revised De Minimis Notice, in line with its predecessor (see IP/02/13), defines what the Commission considers not to be an appreciable restriction of competition by reference to market share thresholds. It creates a "safe harbour" for companies whose market shares do not exceed 10% for agreements between competitors or 15% for agreements between non-competitors. These are unchanged from the previous Notice.

The main change in the revised Notice is that it clarifies that agreements aimed at restricting competition (so-called restrictions "by object", because they have an anti-competitive object) cannot be considered minor and always constitute an appreciable restriction of competition, in violation of Article 101(1) TFEU. These agreements can never benefit from this safe harbour. This was confirmed by the Court of Justice of the European Union in the Expedia judgment (case C-226/11), following a question referred to it by a French court.

read full article at European Commission

Luigi Gambardella (ETNO): “Innovation and investments need significant changes to the regulatory environment”

Also on my behalf, a warm welcome to the third ETNO-MLex Regulatory summit. Last time we spoke, at the April workshop on the Italian EU Presidency, it was before the European elections.

As Daniel just reminded us, these days Europe is discussing its new leadership, but policymakers and stakeholders have also effectively started shaping the debate on the policy and regulatory landscape in which we will work for the coming five years.

ETNO has been the strong and reliable voice of the telecoms industry in Brussels for over 20 years.

Our companies are Europe’s digital spine: they have been and they will be the enabler of a smarter, more competitive and prosperous Continent.

Then, in the context of today’s regulatory conference, let me tell you upfront what our advocacy objective is in this field: ETNO and its members want to promote innovation and investments in network infrastructures. And we believe that this cannot be achieved without significant changes to the regulatory environment.

read full article at Broadband4Europe

Philips, Infineon, Samsung face EU antitrust fines

EU regulators are poised to fine Philips, Samsung Electronics Co Ltd and Infineon Technologies AG in the coming weeks for fixing prices of chips used in mobile SIM cards, two people familiar with the case said on Tuesday.

The case started with dawn raids on the companies by the European Commission in October 2008.

The European Union watchdog charged them last year with taking part in a cartel.

The chips are also used in passports, bank cards, identity cards and television systems.

"The companies may be fined in late July or possibly September," said one of the sources, who declined to be named as the EU decision is not yet public.

Officials with the commission, Philips and Infineon declined to comment. Samsung officials were not immediately available for comment. Philips said last year that the EU charges covered the period 2003 to 2004 and involved its semiconductor business which it has since sold.


 read full article at Reuters

Quirky to Create a Smart-Home Products Company

The repurposed red brick warehouse in Manhattan’s Chelsea neighborhood is a bustling hub of modern industrial activity. Skilled young workers are hunched over pristine machine tools and 3-D printers that churn out prototype products.

 This is the home of Quirky, a start-up that now fields 4,000 new product ideas a week, picks three winners and then takes over all aspects of production, from making blueprints to marketing the goods through big-box retailers like Home Depot and retail websites, including Amazon.

 Most of Quirky’s top-selling products have been inventive, stand-alone devices — like a power strip that pivots so a plug never blocks an adjacent socket, and a plastic stem that inserts into a lemon or lime and becomes a push-button citrus spritzer.

 read full article at The Wahington Post

"Study: 7 in 10 concerned about security of Internet-of-Things" (after all this adverse publicity...)

The Internet-of-Things is a thing. If you haven’t heard about it yet, get ready because we’re in the early stages of an explosion of technology that will connect, monitor, and in some cases share almost every aspect of our lives. Fortinet conducted a survey of consumers to find out what people think about the security and privacy concerns of the Internet-of-Things.

The survey, titled “Internet of Things: Connected Home,” was produced in partnership with GMI, a division of Lightspeed Research. More than 1,800 consumers between the ages of 20 and 50 who claim to be tech savvy participated in the survey, which was administered in 11 countries around the world, including the United States, Australia, China, Germany, India, and the United Kingdom.

The majority of those surveyed believe that a connected home—a home in which household appliances and home electronics are seamlessly connected to the Internet—is “extremely likely” to be a reality in the next five years. The actual number was 61 percent in the United States, and an overwhelming 84 percent in China.

Four out of 10 people indicated they’d be willing to pay more for a home that was optimized to take advantage of IoT technologies (nearly half if you include the “maybe” group). Half of those surveyed also said they’d be willing to pay more for better Internet service capable of smoothly handling an
IoT connected home environment. Fewer than 20 percent of respondents from the United States stated they would absolutely not pay more for Internet service to accommodate IoT.


by Tony Bradley
read full article at PcWorld

Code Spaces Demise Exposes Cloud Security Failings (ooops)

Popular code hosting service Code Spaces has been forced to close after an attacker managed to access its Amazon Web Services EC2 control panel and delete most of its customers’ data.

A note on what remains of the Code Spaces site explained that the events leading up to its demise began with a “well orchestrated” distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack on Tuesday.

 

The still-unidentified assailant was then discovered to have gained access to the firm’s EC2 control panel and left a series of messages with a contact Hotmail address.

 

“Reaching out to the address started a chain of events that revolved around the person trying to extort a large fee in order to resolve the DDOS,” Code Spaces said.

 

At this point the firm tried to wrestle control of the panel back by changing its passwords...

read full article at Infosecurity

German DPAs publish guidelines for mobile apps (not in plain english ...)

The German Data Protection Authorities have published guidance for mobile apps due to app developers’ and application providers’ perceived lack of privacy knowledge, as demonstrated by their product and services.

The guidelines comment on the legal and technical framework, in particular the German Telecommunications Act, but also the Federal Data Protection Act.

"With the help of this guide, it should now be possible for all app developers and app providers to create apps in compliance with the data protection regulations," said Thomas Kranig, President of the Bavarian Data Protection Commission for the Private Sector, which took the initiative to draw up the guidelines.

The DPAs say that app developers should apply Privacy by Design and Privacy by Default when developing new products. They state that the DPAs regard individuals’ IP addresses as personal data.  The guidance applies to online apps for smartphones and tablets.



 source: PrivacyLaws

Margin Squeeze as Abuse of Dominant Position on Networks

Annotation on the Judgment of the General Court (Eighth Chamber) of 29 March 2012 in case T-336/07, Telefónica SA, Telefónica de Espana vs European Commission.

Application dismissed by the General Court on substantial grounds, especially regarding alleging errors of law in the application of Article 82 EC (abusive conduct) and an alleging ultra vires application of Article 82 EC. 

read full article at http://www.tassis.com/publications.html

"The case that might cripple Facebook" (and save safe harbor?)

An Irish judge has rendered a preliminary judgment that may have sweeping consequences for U.S. e-commerce firms. The judgment involves a case by a European privacy activist against Facebook. Businesses like Facebook, Google and Microsoft use an arrangement called Safe Harbor (which I’ve written about at length) to export personal data from Europe to the U.S. They also base their operations in Ireland for tax reasons, and because they see Irish privacy officials as more flexible than their mainland European counterparts. The activist claimed that the Safe Harbor arrangement didn’t protect his personal data, because Snowden’s revelations about NSA surveillance shows that the U.S. don’t protect the privacy of foreigners. The judge seems inclined to think that he’s right.

What does the ruling actually involve? So far, nothing binding. The judge hasn’t ruled directly on the major arguments of the privacy activist, because he believes they involve European Union law rather than Irish law. What he has done is to refer the key questions to the European Court of Justice (ECJ), which serves as a kind of Supreme Court on questions of how to interpret European law. This is how everyday judicial politics goes in the European Union — the ECJ’s role is to resolve exactly this kind of query. However, the judge has presented the case to the ECJ in a way that seems designed to get the higher court to rule that the Safe Harbor is incompatible with European human rights standards, and hence invalid.

read full article at WahingtonPost

"Is There Value in the Right To Be Anonymous Commenters?" (define value...)

There’s been a lot of talk about the so-called right to be forgotten lately, but the Virginia Supreme Court this week agreed to look at another type of online user right: the right to anonymous commenting.

Hadeed Carpet Cleaning is suing Yelp to unmask seven commenters who allegedly left highly critical comments about the cleaning company, including that they charge twice as much as advertised. It’s not just that they can’t take criticism - the company does not believe the commenters were actual customers. But Yelp has argued that businesses should not have to unmask identities without evidence of libel and that Hadeed’s suspicion is not enough to demonstrate defamation.

An early court decision backed Hadeed and it will be interesting to see what the supreme court rules, but, defamation and libel aside, this brings up an interesting example of how online anonymity can be abused.

We’ve featured a few posts on this blog discussing online anonymity (and pseudonymity, for that matter) and how it is often wrongfully used to perpetuate racist, sexist and other derogatory commentary. On the other hand, in what some call the Age of Surveillance, anonymity provides us all with a modicum of privacy. Plus, as Judith Donath has pointed out, tying identity to everything online can have a chilling effect on the freedom of expression. Philosophical, political and social commentary could be stifled.

And now the Hadeed case brings with it another interesting angle to the online anonymity debate.

What if said anonymous commenters are, say, Hadeed’s competition? Or past associates with an axe to grind? Or simply trolls?


by  Jedidiah Bracy, CIPP/US, CIPP/E
read full article at IAPP 

Spectrum “lifeblood of the mobile industry”. Interview with Luigi Gambardella (ETNO)

On the 3-5 June the GSR (Global Symposium for Regulators)  was held in Bahrain. The event gathered together regulators, policy makers, industry leaders and ICT stakeholders with the purpose of providing a neutral platform of discussion, where different point of views on the major ICT issues could be debated.

Under the main theme of “ Capitalising on the potential of Digital World” participants were able to discuss the benefits of ICT and the need of improvement of a smart and effective regulation in many fields.

read full article at Broadband4Europe

What Workplace Privacy Will Look Like In 10 Years

New laws like Europe's "right to be forgotten" in Google search are just the latest examples of how quickly perceptions and practices about personal privacy in the workplace are changing.

Ralph's pajamas gently vibrate him awake. While he is still in bed, he gestures into the air, bringing up a computer interface woven into his pajamas. With a swipe of his hand, he opens his personal space and checks his biometric dashboard to find out how many steps he needs to walk today to reach his weight loss goal and whether his cholesterol has dropped.

After a quick shower, he gets dressed, accessorizing with his smart computing vest, which automatically starts his ultra-dark roast coffee brewing the moment he puts it on. A father of three, he gestures to open his private family view, which is showing live video feeds of his kids waking up. 

Interrupted by an alert from his car about traffic delays, he grabs a cup of coffee and heads for the garage, where he slides into his car office, closes his personal spaces with a gesture, and opens his business calendar to prepare for work.

Futuristic? Not so much.

This view of increasingly blurred "personal" and "work" places, spaces, and time will shortly be upon us. This reality will continue to challenge our notion of personal privacy, especially in the workplace.

read full article at DarkReading

Hedge-Fund Hack Part of Bigger Siege: Cyber-Experts (a totally new perspective of the economic wars...)

The attack on a U.S. hedge fund’s network, which a cybersecurity contractor said last week disrupted the firm’s high-speed trading and stole its data, is but one among many.

That is the assessment of more than a half-dozen computer security experts, who in recent interviews characterized the hedge-fund industry as the target of multiple attacks, many successful. Over the past two years, computer networks at dozens of banks, hedge funds, law firms and other Wall Street companies have been infiltrated by hackers mainly from Eastern European countries, these people said.


read full article at Bloomberg

U.S. Supreme Court rulings may make life harder for patent trolls (at last...)

The U.S. Supreme Court overturned two lower court patent decisions, one related to heart rate monitors and the other to management of Web images, in rulings that could make it harder for so-called patent trolls to win infringement cases.

The Supreme Court also ruled in favor of Limelight Networks Inc over claims by Akamai Technologies Inc that it infringed patented technology for managing Web images and video. The decision overturned an appeals court decision that had made it easier to prove that a company is liable based on the induced infringement theory.





read full article at Reuters 

 

Microsoft fixes flaw in its security software (another one?)

Microsoft on Tuesday warned customers that its malware detection engine, used in a wide range of its products including Security Essentials and Windows Defender, could be disabled if an attacker sent a malformed file as an email attachment. Along with the security alert, Microsoft issued an update to patch the vulnerability.

A successful attack would leave a Microsoft-guarded PC wide open to subsequent exploits, the company warned.

read full article at Infoworld

EUCJ C-243/12 P (industrial bags cartel)

The EUCJ ruled on an appeal by FLS Plast against a GC ruling that had upheld a Commission decision of November 2005 fining several companies for participating in a cartel in the market for industrial bags. The EUCJ dismissed the appeal and upheld the Commission's findings.

 

Appeal brought against the judgment of the General Court (Fourth Chamber) of 6 March 2012 in Case T 64/06 FLS Plast v Commission, by which the General Court annulled in part Commission Decision C(2005) 4634 of 30 November 2005, relating to a proceeding under Article 81 EC (Case COMP/F/38.354 – industrial bags), concerning a price-fixing and sales-quota cartel on a geographical basis, the division of orders from major customers, organisation of concerted tenders for certain calls for tender and the implementation of information exchange mechanisms on sales volumes in the industrial plastic bag market – Rules relating to the imputability of anti competitive practices of a subsidiary to its parent company – Duration and severity of the infringement – Attenuating circumstances – Cooperation during the administrative procedure – Principles of legitimate expectations, equal treatment and proportionality – Excessive duration of the contentious proceeding. 

see the decision at Curia

Study on monetising privacy. An economic model for pricing personal information

Do some individuals value their privacy enough to pay a mark-up to an online service provider who protects their information better? How is this related to personalisation of services? This study analyses the monetisation of privacy. ‘Monetizing privacy’ refers to a consumer’s decision of disclosure or non-disclosure of personal data in relation to a purchase transaction. The main goal of this report is to enable a better understanding of the interaction of personalisation, privacy concerns and competition between online service providers. Consumers benefit from personalisation of products on the one hand, but might be locked in to services on the other. Moreover, personalisation also bears a privacy risk, i.e. that data may be compromised once disclosed to a service provider. Privacy is a human right; thinking about the economics of privacy does not change this basic fact.

The authors of this report consider an economic analysis of privacy as complementary to the legal analysis as it improves our understanding of human decision-making with respect to personal data. 


see the full report at Enisa

Little privacy in the age of big data

In the era of big data, the battle for privacy has already been fought and lost – personal data is routinely collected and traded in the new economy and there are few effective controls over how it is used or secured. Data researchers and analysts now say that it’s time for legislation to reclaim some of that privacy and ensure that any data that is collected remains secure.

 “We have become the product,” says Rob Livingstone, a fellow of the University of Technology and the head of a business advisory firm.

 “We are being productised and sold to anyone,” he said. “We’re being monetised in essence. We are being mobilised as products with inducement of the services of we use such as Facebook and Twitter.”

 However, Livingstone says the dilemma facing regulators is how they can regulate the collection, storage and trading of personal data on the on the internet, when all of these activities, and the corporations themselves, operate across multiple continents and jurisdictions.


read full article at The Guardian

“Unlawful’” Gambling Law Poses “New Danger” for Consumers

A new law that establishes the Gambling Commission as the industry’s regulator across the globe not only threatens the safety of consumers online but is unlawful, claims the Gibraltar Betting and Gaming Association (GBGA).

Currently, British consumers gamble online with a limited number of licensed operators based in a handful of recognised jurisdictions. Under the proposed new regime the UK is opening the UK market and consumers to operators based anywhere in the world and some of whom will not obtain a licence. The regime will effectively require the Gambling Commission to police the online sector on a worldwide basis. Peter Howitt, Chief Executive of the GBGA argues that this new law, combined with planned tax changes, will drive consumers to the unregulated or poorly regulated market, and so ensure that a significant proportion of UK consumers will be unprotected when they play and bet with foreign operators:

“This is bad for UK consumers, bad for the regulated industry, bad for Gibraltar and is in breach of European law, but fantastic news for operators who choose to avoid proper regulation..."

read full article at GBGA

EU hopes 5G partnership with South Korea will drag it back into mobile lead (!)

The European Union is forming a joint research partnership with South Korea to focus on ultrafast “5G” mobile broadband technology.

 South Korea is one of the most advanced countries in mobile technology usage and infrastructure, with one of the fastest mobile broadband networks currently available, and home to Samsung, the world’s biggest smartphone manufacturer.

 "5G will become the new lifeblood of the digital economy and digital society once it is established," the EU commissioner for telecoms Neelie Kroes said in a statement on Monday.

 The EU estimates that a 5G internet connection will allow users to a high-definition movie in six seconds, versus up to six minutes with current 4G technology – which has only just begun to achieve substantial adoption in Europe. Current 4G technology can already achieve download speeds of 150 megabits per second, with future versions able to achieve 1 gigabit per second; 5G would offer substantially more, though no standard has been set.

read full article at The Guardian

Democrats unveil legislation forcing the FCC to ban Internet fast lanes

Democratic lawmakers will unveil a piece of bicameral legislation Tuesday that would force the Federal Communications Commission to ban fast lanes on the Internet.

The proposal, put forward by Senate Judiciary Committee chair Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) and Rep. Doris Matsui (D-Calif.), requires the FCC to use whatever authority it sees fit to make sure that Internet providers don't speed up certain types of content (like Netflix videos) at the expense of others (like e-mail). It wouldn't give the commission new powers, but the bill — known as the Online Competition and Consumer Choice Act — would give the FCC crucial political cover to prohibit what consumer advocates say would harm startup companies and Internet services by requiring them to pay extra fees to ISPs.

"Americans are speaking loud and clear," said Leahy, who is holding a hearing on net neutrality in Vermont this summer. "They want an Internet that is a platform for free expression and innovation, where the best ideas and services can reach consumers based on merit rather than based on a financial relationship with a broadband provider."

read full article at the Wahington Post

Changes coming to cyber-incident reporting

CHANGES COMING TO CYBER-INCIDENT REPORTING – The system for reporting cybersecurity incidents on federal networks will soon be getting an update from US-CERT, with new White House guidance enabling the changes expected before Oct.1. The plan is to replace outdated categories of incidents with reporting based on common methods of attack as well as the severity of their impact on agency functionality; on agency-held information; and on agency recovery efforts.

The changes would come after months of US-CERT following up on a 2012 NIST special publication, rewriting proposals based on comments. Work is expected to conclude on configuration of the new system this month, with OMB to sign off before the start of the next fiscal year. David Perera with the scoop: http://politico.pro/1vyVYxr

read full article at Politico

Forget privacy: We should be glad that advertisers can see all our data (the unbiased opinion of an ... advertiser!)

The federal government is scared. It’s scared to let advertisers like me see too much information about you. It’s scared for your privacy. It has, government officials say, your best interests at heart.

Don’t believe it.

“Big data” enables marketing companies to deliver more relevant advertising to individuals. As CEO of one of the largest data-driven marketing companies, I can provide some clarification about what marketing data is, how it’s used, and the role it plays in commerce, competition, and consumer choice.

First, here’s what marketing data is not. The data that marketers use has nothing to do with NSA “spying.” And it doesn’t run afoul of information that’s already regulated, like your credit score. 

 Rather, it falls into three main “buckets” of information: data from public sources, such as property records; self-reported data (like information shared by consumers in surveys and contest entries); and what I’ll call “inferred” data.

By Bryan Kennedy
read full article at Washington Post http://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2014/06/17/forget-privacy-we-should-be-glad-that-advertisers-can-see-all-our-data/

Irish judge denies request to investigate Facebook's NSA ties

A High Court judge in Ireland has ruled that Facebook should not be investigated for alleged activities related to the sharing of user data with the US National Security Agency (NSA).

 High Court Justice Gerard Hogan ruled Wednesday that Facebook won't need to face an investigation into its alleged activities, following a ruling made by Ireland's data protection commissioner who said the same. The commissioner argued that while Facebook users have the right to know what's happening with their data, there's no reason to hold an investigation into whether any of it was shared with the NSA.

 Facebook is among several companies, including Apple, Microsoft, and Skype, that have been charged by a group in Europe known as "Europe-v-Facebook (EVF)" with allegedly working with the NSA to provide data on their European users.

by Don Reisinger
read full article at Cnet http://www.cnet.com/news/irish-judge-denies-request-to-investigate-facebooks-nsa-relationship/ 

Bloomberg Law: McGeveran on LinkedIn Privacy Lawsuit (Audio)

William McGeveran, a professor at the University of Minnesota Law School, discusses a federal judge’s order that LinkedIn face a lawsuit that it violated customers’ privacy rights by accessing their external email accounts and downloading their contacts’ addresses for marketing purposes. He talks with June Grasso and Mark Mills on Bloomberg Radio’s “Bloomberg Law.”

read full article at Bloomberg http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-06-16/bloomberg-law-mcgeveran-on-linkedin-privacy-lawsuit-audio-.html

Canadian Court Rules Google Must Erase Search Results Worldwide (do it like the EU...)

Google is planning to appeal a ruling by the British Columbia Supreme Court ordering the search engine giant to erase certain results from internet searches around the world.

Because the ruling applies to all of Google’s search results worldwide, and not just search results in Canada, legal experts say the decision could have major international ramifications.

Some say it potentially opens the door to courts in any country claiming the right to control what internet users see around the world.

 In ruling on Equustek Solutions v. Jack last week, the Supreme Court of British Columbia ordered Google to remove links to the website of a company that had been found to have stolen trade secrets from a competitor.

 read full article at Huffington Post http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2014/06/18/british-columbia-court-google_n_5508756.html

Amazon’s Fire Phone might be the biggest privacy invasion ever (it can always get bigger, no?)

...
By storing all the photos you’ll ever take, along with GPS location data, ambient audio, and more metadata than you can shake a stick at in Amazon Web Services, Amazon will get unprecedented insight into who you are, what you own, where you go, what you do, who’s important in your life, what you like, and, probably, what you might be most likely to buy.

Babies in your pictures? Sell that dame diapers. Lots of old-school hot rods? See if you can sell Billy Bob some NASCAR shwag, or maybe beef jerky. Outdoorsy, are you, with your pictures of remote mountaintops and idyllic forest meadows? Clearly you need hiking boots and granola. Looking at a business card? Perhaps things she likes will be things you’ll like, too.



read full article at Venturebeat http://venturebeat.com/2014/06/19/amazon-fire-phone-might-be-the-biggest-privacy-invasion-ever-and-no-ones-noticed/

The Hidden Agenda of Amazon’s New Phone (discovering mobile services competition...)

There was a time, not long ago, when Amazon was for shopping, Google was for searching and advertising, Apple was for sleekly designed gadgets with even sleeker user interfaces, and Facebook was for keeping in touch with friends. But the bigger these businesses get, the more pressure they face to grow even larger, and the more they covet each other’s customers. Being the best at what they do is no longer good enough. Now, these giants want to be the best at what the other guys are doing too. They’re all turning into each other. Google is becoming Facebook–and vice versa. Apple is becoming Google–and vice versa. And, naturally, Amazon is following suit.

Yes, with the Fire Phone, Amazon is making an aggressive move into Apple and Google’s territory in the smartphone market. On stage, Bezos directly compared the quality of the Fire Phone camera to the iPhone 5S and the Samsung Galaxy S5. He showed off the fact that the Fire Phone is better for outdoor viewing than the alternatives, and he explained that it makes reading on the phone easier, something that Amazon has an understandable interest in with its trove of digital books, because users need only tilt the phone to scroll through the pages.

But perhaps more importantly, Amazon is entering a competition for Google’s ad dollars. The bulk of Google’s business is still advertising. Even as it works on so-called “moonshot” projects like driverless cars and Google Glass, Google lives by the promise that it has the best service for tracking potential customers and showing them an ad. But Amazon just released a feature on its smartphone called Firefly, which, if truly successful, could bypass Google altogether.



by  Issie Lapowsky
read full article at Wired http://www.wired.com/2014/06/fire-phone/

Irish judge asks EU court to clarify data rules after Facebook allegations

Ireland's High Court on Wednesday asked the European Court of Justice (ECJ) to clarify European Union data protection rules in light of allegations that Facebook shared data from EU users with the U.S. National Security Agency.

High Court Justice Gerard Hogan rejected a request by a campaign group for an investigation into Facebook's alleged sharing of data, but he said the issue raised questions about EU policy and he would ask the ECJ to look at the matter.

"The critical issue which arises is whether the proper interpretation of the 1995 [EU data protection] directive and the 2000 Commission decision [on the Safe Harbour principles] should be re-evaluated in the light of the subsequent entry into force of article 8 of the charter" on the right to the protection of personal data, Hogan said. (Reporting by Conor Humphries; Editing by Pravin Char)



 read full article at The Irish Times http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/06/18/facebook-privacy-ecj-idUSL6N0OZ0EN20140618

Bill requiring warrants for email searches hits magic number in House (a step closer to EU...)

A bill to prevent law enforcement officials without warrants from accessing private email accounts is now backed by the majority of the House.

The Email Privacy Act from Reps. Kevin Yoder (R-Kans.) and Jared Polis (D-Colo.) gained its 218th cosponsor late on Tuesday, giving the sponsors hope that the bill could move this year.

“Having a majority of house members supporting our bill shows House leadership that the bill would pass … if it was put on the house floor,” Yoder said in an interview with The Hill.

That is “a critical component” of making the case to leadership to bring the bill to the floor, he continued.

The proposal would update the Electronic Communications Privacy Act, which allows law enforcement agencies to access electronic communications that have been stored for 180 days without a warrant.

Critics of the law often note that this 1986 law means emails don’t receive the same Fourth Amendment protections as physical letters stored in filing cabinets, which require a warrant to access.

Yoder said his bill addresses “such a clear issue that has such a simple fix.” 


The sponsors have been talking with House leadership and House Judiciary Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) about moving the bill forward, according to Yoder.

“Everyone is very supportive.”


By Kate Tummarello
read full article at The Hill http://thehill.com/policy/technology/209730-house-email-privacy-bill-hits-magic-number 

Sixth Circuit Holds Website Cannot Be Liable for Postings, Reversing Lower Court

In an important decision issued today, the Sixth Circuit held that the operators of www.TheDirty.com could not be held liable for postings by third parties on the website. The decision reversed the decision of the Eastern District of Kentucky, which had allowed the plaintiff's claims to proceed, despite the website's arguments that the claims were barred by the Communications Decency Act (CDA).

The District Court held that the website operators were not entitled to immunity under the CDA because they had intentionally encouraged illegal or actionable third-party postings and added comments ratifying or adopting the posts. Accordingly, it allowed the case to proceed to a jury – twice – ultimately resulting in a verdict in favor of Jones for $38,000 in compensatory damages and $300,000 in punitive damages. This decision was widely seen as a departure from most CDA precedent which recognizes broad federal immunity to protect website operators for displaying content created by third-parties.

The Sixth Circuit held that the District Court had erred in finding that the website operators were the "creators" or "developers" of the content at issue and also erred in adopting an "encouragement test of immunity under the CDA."

by Holland & Knight LLP
read full article at JD Supra http://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/sixth-circuit-holds-website-cannot-be-li-04120/?utm_source=LU_Emails

When ordering on-line, pre-ticked boxes for additional services, such as for priority boarding, are no longer allowed in the EU (and other useful info...)

The Directive on Consumer Rights (2011/83/EC) replaces, as of 13 June 2014, Directive 97/7/EC on the protection of consumers in respect of distance contracts and Directive 85/577/EEC  to protect consumer in respect of contracts negotiated away from business premises. Directive 1999/44/EC on certain aspects of the sale of consumer goods and associated guarantees as well as Directive 93/13/EEC  on unfair terms in consumer contracts remains in force. 


read more at http://ec.europa.eu/justice/consumer-marketing/rights-contracts/directive/ 

"Reding says that US Safe Harbor changes nearly agreed" (maybe this time will be more efficient...)

 Following suggestions made by the EU Commission last summer, the EU and the US are about to agree on how the Safe Harbor framework will be revised.

Viviane Reding, EU Vice President and Commissioner for Justice, said on 6 June: “I think that 95% of what could be agreed - has been. There are the last sticking 5%, which are not yet agreed, which concern the judicial redress. For example, when Americans come to Europe and they think the authorities have not handled their case correctly, they can go to a European court. However an EU citizen cannot do the same in the US and go to an American court. There is no reciprocity; we do not have the basis for judicial redress. You cannot make an agreement if you do not have judicial redress. The US has recognised the importance of this request on several occasions - but they need to have a law."

Reding will meet Eric Holder, US Attorney General, on 25 June to discuss this point. She indicated that once this question has been solved, all the 13 points made by the EU Commission last year will have been addressed in a positive way.


read full article at http://www.privacylaws.com/Int_enews_june14_3 

"Google struggles to avoid European privacy rules" (no kidding!)

Google is wriggling desperately to escape new European privacy rules which could force it to take some responsibility for what information it republishes in response to a given search - in particular a search of someone's name.

The European Parliament passed a new draft data protection bill in March, one that the EU's press office proudly proclaimed was "irreversible". But it might not be, if Google gets its way. The bill is still open to amendments - and there's one amendment in particular that the Californian advertising giant would urgently like to add.

read full article at The Register http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/06/17/for_mon_how_google_plans_to_torpedo_your_privacy_rights/

"Is privacy loss worth 8% Ajusto car insurance saving?" (is anything worth it anyway?)

For the past two months a small device in my car, the size of a credit card, has been tracking my every movement.

It knows how far I drive every day, the time of day I’m driving, how quickly I accelerate to get on to the highway and which highway that was. The wireless GPS monitor goes with the Desjardins Insurance Ajusto program which was launched in Ontario last May.

I’ve been testing the device to see how much I might save by exchanging some privacy in return for a discount based on my driving habits. So far, I’m looking at about $150 a year and I’m not sure whether the tradeoff is worth it.

I’m not alone in that. Desjardins has added 50,000 new customers in the past year and only four in ten are opting for Ajusto, despite an incentive of 10 per cent off in the first year just for trying it.

 Ajusto is the first of a new tier of car insurance products coming your way. Companies are using wireless technology to monitor how you drive and sell you products based on that. In exchange for personal information, you’ll get a better deal.

By Adam Mayers 
 read full article at The Star http://www.thestar.com/business/personal_finance/insurance/2014/06/15/is_privacy_loss_worth_8_car_insurance_saving_from_ajusto.html

"EMC PRIVACY INDEX - A World of Paradoxes" (indeed...)

A World of Paradoxes: The EMC Privacy Index examines privacy perceptions of consumers around the world and creates a ranking of nations.


The 2014 EMC Privacy Index surveyed 15,000 respondents in 15 countries to produce a ranking of nations based on consumer perceptions and attitudes about data privacy, and willingness to trade privacy for greater convenience and benefits online.

see the results here http://www.emc.com/campaign/privacy-index/global.htm

"People demand better privacy but don't take basic steps to protect themselves"... obviously it is not our task!

The majority of internet users think they have less privacy now than a year ago and most expect their privacy is going to be even harder to maintain in future, according to a recent study by EMC.

Despite the Snowden revelations and the best efforts of the NSA, the survey respondents were far more willing to deal with governments than social media sites:

• 50% would yield privacy to government institutions.
• 47% say yes to doctors, health insurers and other medical institutions.
• 38% would yield a little privacy to banks and other financial institutions.
• 33% are willing to trust employers and their systems.
• 29% are prepared to trust their privacy to on-line stores.
• 27% would trade privacy for social media, email or SMS. 

by Lee Munson 
read full article at Nakedsecurity http://nakedsecurity.sophos.com/2014/06/16/people-demand-better-privacy-but-dont-take-basic-steps-to-protect-themselves/?utm_source=Naked%20Security%20-%20Feed&utm_medium=feed&utm_content=rss2&utm_campaign=Feed&utm_reader=feedly 

"Former Microsoft Employee Involved In Windows 8 Leaks Given 3-Month Sentence"

After pleading guilty, former Microsoft employee Alex Kibkalo will pay a $100 fine and serve three months in prison for stealing trade secrets.

His case picked up wide notice not due to the nature of the crime — trade leaks happen every day — but instead in terms of how he was caught. Kibkalo leaked code to a French blogger, and Microsoft took a look into that account for evidence regarding the source of the leak.


read full article at Techcrunch  http://techcrunch.com/2014/06/12/former-microsoft-employee-involved-in-windows-8-leaks-given-3-month-sentence/

Last stand or most smart? "Microsoft fights a U.S. warrant for the future of the cloud"

Microsoft is challenging a federal search warrant that targets private email communications located in the company's facility in Dublin, Ireland. Microsoft took this action to a higher court after a judge quashed the company's opposition to the warrant in April.

It's an important case that could determine the direction of the cloud for years. That's why Apple, AT&T, Cisco Systems, and Verizon have all filed briefs in support of Microsoft. Google and Amazon Web Services are likely keeping a close watch on this case too.

By David Linthicum
read full article at Infoworld http://www.infoworld.com/d/cloud-computing/last-stand-microsoft-fights-us-warrant-the-future-of-the-cloud-244348?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

A useful guide for e-marketeers ... "1st Greek Mobile Barometer"

Greece is one of the biggest markets for mobile services and smartphones.

19 things you wanted to know about mobile & Smartphone usage in Greece but where too afraid to ask.

see the details of the survey at http://www.slideshare.net/Tempo-OMD

Cookies hard to chew... "Netherlands: CBP’s First Cookie Law Investigation: YD Violates Privacy Rules And Telecommunication Rules"

The online advertising agency YD Display Advertising Benelux (YD) violates Dutch privacy and telecommunication rules by using personal data for the behavioural targeting of internet users without their consent. This is the conclusion of the Dutch Data Protection Authority (College Bescherming Persoonsgegevens, CBP) after it investigated YD's processing of personal data. The CBP found that YD places tracking cookies with visitors to their websites to show personalised advertisements. Although the cookie rules came into force in the Netherlands in early June 2012, they had not yet been enforced. This is the first time that the CBP has conducted an investigation into the placement of cookies. Companies (that have not yet done so) are advised to review their use of cookies and, where required, ask for the visitor's prior consent.

Under the Dutch Telecommunications Act (Telecommunicatiewet), cookies that are placed on, or read from, a website visitor's computer require informed prior opt-in consent before being placed. The principle of informed prior consent does not apply to functional cookies, e.g. cookies that are used solely for facilitating the technical communication over a network or that are strictly necessary for providing a service requested by the website visitor. Cookies that are not exempt are, for example, social media plug-in cookies, third party advertising cookies and tracking cookies. If the placement of cookies also involves the processing of personal data, the Data Protection Act (Wet bescherming persoonsgegevens) additionally applies. Under the Data Protection Act, a legal basis for the processing of personal data is required, which is often found in the unambiguous consent of the visitor.

by Lokke Moerel, Wanne Pemmelaar and Alex van der Wolk read full article at Mondaq http://www.mondaq.com/x/315872/Data+Protection+Privacy/CBPs+First+Cookie+Law+Investigation+YD+Violates+Privacy+Rules+And+Telecommunication+Rules

Data protection world cup... "EU - Brazil: working together towards a gold standard in privacy protection"

... 

5/ Concluding remarks

The EU and Brazil are strategic partners. We are fighting for the same principles, for the same values. For the Internet to remain free and open, with the individual at its heart.

Other parts of the world are currently going in the opposite direction. In the US, differentiated treatment is being negotiated by telecoms companies, without any safety net for individuals in US law. President Obama has announced that metadata collected under Section 215 (of the Patriot Act) will be stored by telecom companies, at the same moment as the Court of Justice invalidated Europe's scheme.

The 2014 World Cup starts tomorrow in Brazil. May the best team win! At any rate I believe that in data protection the EU-Brazil team can be the winner.

There is a community of values between the EU and Brazil. The EU and Brazil should work together to ensure that data should not be processed simply because algorithms are refined. Safeguards should apply and citizens should have rights. To ensure that the rights we have created off-line also apply online. To help build an Internet that is open and innovative.

read full press release at http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_SPEECH-14-454_en.htm 

1984... "We're ALL Winston Smith now - and our common enemy is the Big Brother State"

Young people willingly give up their privacy on Google and Facebook because they have not read George Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four unlike previous generations, a leading academic has warned. Noel Sharkey, professor of artificial intelligence and robotics at Sheffield University, said that large corporations were hovering up private information and modern generations did not realize it was wrong. He said that older people who had grown up reading George Orwell’s 1984 about ‘Big Brother technology and ‘ authoritarianism’, were in a better position to resist the creeping erosion of privacy.

... That is why the software and governance of vehicle automation must remain distributed. It can be commercial as long as every individual can benefit economically. Google would have to ask you, and certainly pay you, after every trip to be able to make any use at all of the data that emerges.

To pay is to offer something of value in exchange for whatever. It does not necessarily mean handing over a roll of greenbacks, which is what Lanier means here. In this case the thing that Google is proffering in return for our information is that ride in the driverless car. If we don't think the deal is worth it then we'll walk to our destination, or hop, or hail a taxi via Uber. The ride is the thing of value that is being offered in exchange, so Google is already paying.

Common to both of these stories is the mistake that private sector information-gathering is the same as (and thus as dangerous as) mandatory state collection of the same data. They're simply not the same thing at all. The state has, within its jurisdiction, a monopoly. That's rather what a state means, in fact: and a monopoly means that one cannot opt out. Given that the state can force people to bend to its will, what we allow a state to do to us should be very different from what we might allow private actors to do.

Google takes too much information? Use DuckDuckGo. Facebook too much? MySpace is still around, isn't it? We have choices here and each of us can make our own. Unlike Nineteen Eighty-Four, the entire point of which was to detail what happens when the state won't allow us any choices at all.

read full article at The Register http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/06/11/privacy_invasion_by_the_state_is_far_worse_than_by_private_firms_worstall_weds/

"European Firms Turn Privacy Into Sales Pitch" (privacy is the winner of the cloud competition)

The company’s product, which was introduced late last year, allows people to access their photos, documents and video files from anywhere in the world, much like services from the American companies Dropbox and Google, among others.

But unlike its United States rivals, F-Secure says it never shares an individual’s data with other companies or governments. And, his company says, all of the information is stored in secure servers in Finland, which has some of the toughest privacy laws in the world.

read full article at The NY Times http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/06/11/european-firms-turn-privacy-into-sales-pitch/?_php=true&_type=blogs&_php=true&_type=blogs&_php=true&_type=blogs&_r=2&

"Microsoft's updated privacy policy makes it clear it's not selling ads against your words" (or how competition over cloud services benefits data protection!)

Microsoft said Wednesday that by the end of July it will implement an updated, simplified privacy and services policy that makes clear the company will not snoop on your email or Skype calls to sell you advertising.

The updated privacy policy is already available to examine on Microsoft’s site, where the company breaks down what information it does collect from users, and for what purpose. Microsoft said that it had worked to simplify the agreement, while trying to call out the important details that Microsoft’s users care about. The related Microsoft Services Agreement applies to all of Microsoft’s services, from Outlook.com to Office to OneDrive.


read full article at PC World http://www.pcworld.com/article/2362130/microsofts-updated-privacy-policy-makes-it-clear-its-not-selling-ads-against-your-words.html

"Don’t Fall for the Encryption Fallacy" (or rather avoid making it bigger than it is!)

Yet another intrusion with data theft, yet another chorus of yells for "encryption.” I refer to the eBay intrusion from last week with the subsequent hysteria over their not encrypting certain personal information at rest. "It is inexcusable for a company the size of eBay with the amount of data it holds to not encrypt all personal information held,” said Trend Micro’s Rik Ferguson.

It has become quite fashionable these days to say, "If only the information had been encrypted.”

... The point I'm trying to make is that without a solid security and privacy program in place to start with, encryption at rest is like applying duct tape to a broken bone. Encryption has its uses, and it can be effective as a security and privacy control, a safe harbor control and as a compliance measure. But if you're not careful about realizing its limitations and communicating them to your executives, you're the one that will be in hot water when an incident occurs.

By Aurobindo Sundaram, CIPP/US
read full article at IAPP https://www.privacyassociation.org/privacy_perspectives/post/dont_fall_for_the_encrytion_fallacy

Do it the EFF's way... "In Harm's Way: The Dangers of a World Without Net Neutrality"

... If the FCC embraces rules that allow wealthy incumbent companies to reach users at faster speeds, the services we see in the future could be the same companies that are popular today.  But what about the service we don’t know about yet?  Will they be able to gain a foothold?  Many startups and investors suggest the answer is no.

In other words, when ISPs have the ability to pick Internet “winners,” we all lose. And the scary part is that the harms might not be easy to locate, because we won’t even know what we’re missing.

The Internet is one of the greatest things humanity has ever created, and who knows what we’ll be able to do with it next.  Let’s make sure there will always be plenty of room for the unexpected, by making certain no new business or service has to make a special deal to be able to meaningfully connect to users.

read full article at EFF https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2014/06/harms-way-dangers-world-without-net-neutrality

Why we need net neutrality and "Five myths about net neutrality"

1. The Internet has never been regulated — no need to start now.

2. If new net neutrality rules aren’t adopted, the Internet will quickly fall apart.
3. Net neutrality rules will limit the growth of broadband Internet.
4. Net neutrality is a battle between corporate giants.
5. Either the Internet’s neutral or it’s not.

by  Nancy Scola 
read full article at The Washington Post http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/five-myths-about-net-neutrality/2014/06/12/ff58ad7c-ec06-11e3-93d2-edd4be1f5d9e_story.html

Finally ... "EU: Justice and Home Affairs Council agree on 'restrictive' data transfer rules"

The EU Justice and Home Affairs Council ('the Council') reached agreement - on 6 June 2014 - on the rules governing international data transfers under the proposed draft EU Data Protection Regulation ('the Regulation'). In addition, Council ministers agreed that the Regulation would also apply to non-European companies that conduct their business within the EU.

 "Understandably, Binding Corporate Rules (BCR) seems to be policy makers' and regulators' favourite approach, as it provides real and practical protection with minimum ongoing oversight," Eduardo Ustaran, Partner at Hogan Lovells, told DataGuidance. "It is clear that all three institutions - Commission, Parliament and Council - are sufficiently aligned on retaining a restrictive regime for international data transfers […] The principle of unsafe data flows being banned by default is set to continue under the new framework. This is at odds with data globalisation but the European rationale of not exporting data without exporting an equivalent level of protection seems to have prevailed. In practical terms, this means that substantial efforts will continue to be devoted to putting in place mechanisms like contractual terms, Safe Harbor and BCR."

read full article at Data Guidance http://www.dataguidance.com/dataguidance_privacy_this_week.asp?id=2446

Cloud services saved ... "Can US warrants reach into servers located overseas? Microsoft says no"

In a case that could have big implications for privacy rights and U.S. tech companies, Microsoft is challenging the federal government’s ability to use search warrants to obtain customer emails hosted on a server in Ireland.

According to Microsoft, the decision by a magistrate judge in December to wrongfully extends U.S. law enforcement power overseas. The software giant says the magistrate’s ruling is like granting a search warrant “allowing federal agents to break down the doors of Microsoft’s Dublin facilities.”

... Microsoft’s challenge over the Dublin emails comes one month after the company won an unrelated court victory when it defeated the FBI’s attempt to use a gag order to prevent Microsoft from disclosing an investigation to an Office 365 customer.

By Jeff John Roberts
read full article at Gigaom http://gigaom.com/2014/06/11/can-us-warrants-reach-into-servers-located-overseas-microsoft-says-no/?utm_content=buffer4cf8f&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer

Warrantless cellphone location tracking is illegal, US circuit court rules

A US Appellate Court has ruled that police must obtain a warrant before collecting cellphone location data, finding that acquiring records of what cell towers a phone connected to and when it was connected to them constitutes a Fourth Amendment search. This ruling, from the 11th Circuit, is in opposition to a ruling made nearly a year ago by a separate appellate court. While this ruling won't overturn that one because of their separate jurisdictions, it adds critical precedent to a privacy question that's still far from decided across the country. 

 In its reasoning, the court notes that while the Fourth Amendment has traditionally been applied to property rights, it's gradually expanded to protect much more, including communications. "In the 20th century, a second view gradually developed," the court writes, "that is, that the Fourth Amendment guarantee protects the privacy rights of the people without respect to whether the alleged 'search' constituted a trespass against property rights."

... The American Civil Liberties Union was involved in arguing that the Fourth Amendment protected cell site location data and says that the court agreed in full with its arguments. "The court’s opinion is a resounding defense of the Fourth Amendment’s continuing vitality in the digital age," ACLU attorney Nathan Freed Wessler says in a statement. "The court soundly repudiates the government’s argument that by merely using a cell phone, people somehow surrender their privacy rights."

by (greek origin?)  Jacob Kastrenakes
read full article at The Verge http://www.theverge.com/2014/6/11/5801238/warrantless-cellphone-location-tracking-illegal-us-court-rules

EU competition remedies threaten consolidation benefits – Moody’s

By imposing tough conditions on network mergers, the European Union (EU) is in danger of heating up price competition rather than reducing it through sector consolidation.
Moody’s makes the warning in a report seen by the Financial Times.

The ratings agency pointed to stringent ‘competition remedies’ required in Ireland before the EU was willing to wave through the merger of O2 and Three, the respective subsidiaries of Telefonica and Hutchison Whampoa.

Vodafone, which has operations in Ireland, was up in arms about the merger conditions, as was regulator ComReg. They both fear increased competition.

Under the remedies laid down by Brussels, up to 30 per cent of the merged O2/3’s network capacity must be sold to two MVNOs. There’s also an option that one of them becomes a fully-fledged network operator at a later stage.

... The competition remedies have yet to be decided in Germany, but Ivan Palacios, telecoms analyst at Moody’s, is sceptical that operators will see much of a consolidation dividend.

 “What is clear from Ireland is that the competition authority wants to maintain a competitive environment,” he said, quoted by the Financial Times. “There has not been the market repair that we thought might come with market consolidation.”


by Ken Wieland
read full article at Mobile World Live http://www.mobileworldlive.com/eu-competition-remedies-threaten-consolidation-benefits-moodys

Federal Court Rules on One of the Major Outstanding Constitutional Privacy Questions of Our Time

In a tremendous step forward for our right to privacy under the Fourth Amendment, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals has held in United States v. Quartavious Davis that police need a warrant to obtain historical cell phone location information from a cell service provider. The ACLU filed an amicus brief in the case, along with the ACLU of Florida, Electronic Frontier Foundation, Center for Democracy & Technology, and National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. In April, I argued the cell phone tracking issue before a three-judge panel of the court.

This ruling is the first time a federal appeals court has held that the Fourth Amendment requires a warrant when police seek cell phone location records from carriers. As the court concluded: “In short, we hold that cell site location information is within the subscriber’s reasonable expectation of privacy. The obtaining of that data without a warrant is a Fourth Amendment violation.”


... The court’s unequivocal opinion should also provide guidance to lawmakers grappling with electronic privacy issues. Across the country, states have been considering legislation to require a probable cause warrant before law enforcement tracks location in criminal investigations. The biggest sticking point this legislative session has been whether those bills should cover historical and real-time location information, or just real-time tracking. There are a number of sound public policy reasons why legislatures should adopt comprehensive bills, and the Eleventh Circuit’s decision provides a persuasive explanation of why the Fourth Amendment requires that outcome. Legislators now have the opportunity to lead by enacting privacy protections for their constituents—even before abuses reach their courthouses.


read full article at ACLU https://www.aclu.org/blog/technology-and-liberty-national-security/federal-court-rules-one-major-outstanding

Google’s right to be forgotten – industrial scale misinformation?

When the European Court ruled on the Google Spain case, the press leaped on the decision as an example of the “right to be forgotten”. The Guardian explained that Google would “have to delete links to two pages on La Vanguardia’s website” and that “[l]egal experts said the ruling could give the go-ahead to deletion requests of material”. Similarly, the BBC explained that “the European Union Court of Justice said links to ‘irrelevant’ and outdated data should be erased on request.” This shocking story spread around the world at an impressive speed, the only problem was that the story, while shocking was also not true.

In reality, as the Court explained in its press release [PDF] and no less than fifteen times in its ruling, that it was restricting itself only to instances where searches were being done on the basis of the complainant’s name. At no stage is deletion of content suggested by the Court. The Court ruled that Google should rectify situations where searching for an individual’s name produces results that are “inadequate, irrelevant or no longer relevant, or excessive”. The Court pointed to Google’s assertion that removing pages from its index would be disproportionate and neither implicitly nor explicitly contradicted this view.

By Joe McNamee
read full article at EDRI http://edri.org/forgotten/

You do something for me... "Paul Weller and wife Hannah launch child privacy campaign"

Weller and his wife have now called for a change in the law to ensure that all children's images must have their faces pixelated if parental consent has not been granted.

Hannah told Sky News: "Any parent would agree that it's not right that a grown man can follow their children around the streets, take photographs and then put them on the internet.

"It should be a criminal offence for everybody, not just for the children of the rich and famous."


read full article at Digital Spy http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/media/news/a577286/paul-weller-and-wife-hannah-launch-child-privacy-campaign.html

Intel loses court challenge against $1.4 billion EU fine

U.S. chipmaker Intel lost on Thursday its challenge against a record 1.06 billion euro ($1.44 billion) European Union fine handed down five years ago, as Europe's second highest court said regulators did not act too harshly.

The European Commission in its 2009 decision said Intel tried to thwart rival Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) by giving rebates to PC makers Dell, Hewlett-Packard Co, NEC and Lenovo for buying most of their computer chips from Intel.



"This might well lead to a supplementary incentive for a company under investigation for an alleged abuse of dominance to settle with the Commission or to offer commitments in order to motivate the Commission to end its investigation."

Samsung recently settled EU charges while Google has also clinched a deal with the Commission.

The case is T-286/09, Intel vs Commission.



read full article at Reuters http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/06/12/us-intel-court-eu-idUSKBN0EN0M120140612

EU says firms like Google and Facebook must meet privacy rules

Companies based outside the European Union must meet Europe's data protection rules, ministers agreed on Friday, although governments remain divided over how to enforce them on companies operating across the bloc.

The agreement to force Internet companies such as Google (GOOGL.O) and Facebook (FB.O) to abide by EU-wide rules is a first step in a wider reform package to tighten privacy laws - an issue that has gained prominence following revelations of U.S. spying in Europe.

Vodafone's (VOD.L) disclosure on Friday of the extent of telephone call surveillance in European countries showed the practice is not limited to the United States. The world's second-largest mobile phone company, Vodafone is headquartered in the United Kingdom.


A "one-stop-shop" arrangement would allow companies to deal exclusively with the data protection authority in the country where it has its main establishment. But governments are concerned about a foreign data protection authority making binding decisions that they would then have to enforce. 


By Julia Fioretti
read full article at Reuters http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/06/06/us-eu-dataprotection-idUSKBN0EH1ER20140606