ACTA

Apparently this has been going on for quite some time. Several countries are readying to possibly ratify the Anti-Counterfeit Trade Act worldwide next month in Mexico.

ACTA affects not just counterfeiting, it makes things international law that were mentioned in the DMCA (and some things that weren’t). One of the pieces that I do not agree with (among others) is the Anti-Circumvention section which makes it illegal to bypass region code lockouts of DVDs (among other things). This means it would now be illegal for me to legally buy a DVD from Japan or Russia and then make it playable in the US either by ripping the video or via some other method.

Please go to the following site for more information:

Michael Geist’s site

Comcast Buys NBC?

I was met with the news that Comcast bought NBC when I arrived home from school. It always amazes me how the halls of education can be shielded from the “important facts of the day” but I digress.

If this merger would be allowed to happen it would result in fewer choices, higher prices, and less access.

I implore you to check out FreePress’s webpage in regards to this matter.

Free Press link.

Bill Clinton Rules The Day

Today was the first time I heard that Bill Clinton was going to North Korea to meet with Kim Jong-Il. The accompanying picture was priceless. I hadn’t had time to even think about WHY he is there when I found that the two reporters who accidentally wandered into North Korea and sentenced to years of hard labor are being released as part of a special pardon that Bill Clinton, no doubt, had a hand in.

Apparently it was Al Gore’s idea for Clinton to go to North Korea. So I guess while only Nixon could go to China, only Clinton can go to North Korea.

Cheers to you, Mr. President.

LiberateLaura Twitter feed

Google: Taking over the world one app at a time

Google is everywhere. You search with them, you write with them, you send email with them, you make phone calls with them, you can look at satellite images of your house with them, you can even browse with them, among other things. But now, Google wants the last piece of computer real estate: Your operating system.

Google announced their Google Chrome OS today. It’s set to be a lightweight operating system for those who do most of their computer “in the cloud.” It is expected to ship with netbooks next year. And really, for a netbook, it sounds like the perfect operating system.

Fortunately it will be open source. As some of you probably know, I tend to be a bit leery about Google’s offerings (though I love Gmail). I’ll be waiting for the Steel or Tinfoil Hat version to come out before I use it.

Pirate Bay Pirates to be paid for their uploads

I’m still not sure I get this.

The BBC just reported that Global Gaming Factory has a plan to take Pirate Bay legit.

It involves paying content owners AND the people who upload things to the Pirate Bay. I’m not sure exactly how they’re going to do this yet, but they say their plan will help reduce Internet overload by 90%

BBC Article.

Pirate Video

No, this post has nothing to do with that Johnny Depp film from a few years ago.

The Pirate Bay, fresh from having lost their case against the MPAA and friends, and having lost their appeal on the grounds of the original judge being biased, have unleashed their latest plans: Pirate Video.

Pirate Video is to be a YouTube for pirates. Except, they’ll ignore take down notices that copyrights holders tend to send to people infringing on their stuff.

BBC link.

The Pirate Bay: Guilty

In a move that surprises no one, the Pirate Bay was found guilty of helping to distribute copyrighted content. They are to spend a year in jail and pay over three million dollars in fines.

The four members of the Pirate Bay have already logged an appeal.

Personally, I don’t know how to feel about this. On one hand, it’s a win, but on the other hand, I feel that this is a lose. A win for TPB would have set an unreal precedent into the world of downloading.

As of now, TPB is still active. While I’ve not tried to download anything (material isn’t hosted by TPB, all they do is track material), the site works for the time being.

Pirate Bay says the verdict is still a win, even though they lost

Guardian Article

Link to the CC licensed half mast image

Wolverine Unleashed

According to the BBC, the forthcoming 20th Century Fox film, Wolverine, was posted online for download a full month before the film’s anticipated release date.

It is believed to have been downloaded 100,000 times. The file is now removed and the FBI has been contacted to help with the investigation.

The copy of the film that was uploaded was marked in such a way that whoever had access to that copy of the film will be found and penalized.

Wolverine

Copyright Filtering

From Public Knowledge:

Hollywood’s lobbyists are running all over the Hill to sneak in a copyright filtering provision into the stimulus package. The amendment allow ISPs to “deter” child pornography and copyright infringement through network management techniques. The amendment is very, very controversial for a couple of reasons:

1. First, infringement can’t be found through “network management” techniques. There are legal uses for copyrighted works even without permission of the owner.

2. Second, it would require Internet companies to examine every bit of information everyone puts on the Web in order to find those allegedly infringing works, without a hint of probable cause. That would be a massive invasion of privacy, done at the request of one industry, violating the rights of everyone who is online.

(my words now below)

If this were to go through, it would be a grave miscarriage of justice. I understand that illegally downloading and sharing music and movies isn’t good for the economy, but treating everyone like a criminal and blindly going through everyone’s data is not the answer.

The Public Knowledge website has more information on who to fax and email to have this clause removed.

Public Knowledge Site.

Googling Security

Googling Security book cover

I had heard in the past that Google “knew” things about me, about everyone who ever typed “www.google.com” into their web browser. I didn’t care, I just wanted information.

Later, Google added new features, Google Earth, Gmail, Picassa, Google Video (and YouTube, which Google bought), among myriad other things.

Now, with your IP address (and email address) Google can figure out who you talk to, where you live, who you know, where you like to go… just by your history on Google’s products.

One of the points Mr. Conti makes is that Google keeps a backup of your Gmail email… even if you delete it.

I don’t believe Greg Conti is paranoid, sometimes “they” really are after you. With Google, you’re never more than a mouse click away from being found by someone.

Google doesn’t know whether or not you want that person to find you.

I remember a few years ago finding an email in my Gmail inbox from someone who was researching some topic (the topic isn’t important) and, like most other people, Googled it. One of the top results for his search was a post I had made on a website years ago asking the same question he was seeking an answer to.

In the pursuit of knowledge, he emailed me asking if I ever found the answer, and if so, to tell him.

While I enjoyed this use of Google, the thought came to me that this tool could be used for evil ends as well.

This possibility is what Mr. Conti’s book is about.

By using Google Maps, you make a mark on the Internet that you want to go from point A to B. Most point A’s are a person’s own home. Further, emailng a link to other people for that map has problems of its own. When a second party goes to the link you’ve created, it logs their IP address too. So one could easily guess that you and the person you sent the link to would be at the location mapped soon, if not in a few days.

Another map example is that “sensitive” sites in Google Earth are often blocked out or pixelated where you can’t see what it is, which, of course, draws more attention to the location.

Google is a company founded by humans, used by humans. As such, through error or malice, information can be leaked, and will most likely happen sooner, if not later.

In the end, I loved this book, even though it scared me in some respects. In this digital world, some of us need to be scared into thinking “big brother is watching.”

Googling Security