Doctors uneasy about online complaints attempt to stifle criticism

Writing critical reviews of doctors and dentists online could make you the target of a defamation lawsuit as medical professionals try to stifle negative comments. Some doctors are asking patients to sign gag orders to prevent online comments while the sites are publishing the names of doctors using gag order forms and providing patients with [...]

Twitter censorship plan provokes outrage

To cries of protest, Twitter announced last week that it will take a country’s laws and culture into account in conducting country-specific censorship. Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, who is also the second largest shareholder in News Corp., recently invested $300 million in Twitter. -db From the Courthouse News Service, January 27, 2012, by Adam [...]

Appeal in the works in Twitter/WikiLeaks case

The American Civil Liberties Union and the Electronic Frontier Foundation are set to file an appeal concerning the U.S. government’s attempts to obtain Twitter records in their investigation of WikiLeaks. The ACLU and EFF are seeking to prevent the government from sealing records of their efforts to obtain private information of Internet users without a [...]

D.C. appellate court rules for whistelblower’s anonymity

The District of Columbia Court of Appeals ruled that a software trade association did not have to disclose the name of an anonymous tipster. Solers, a software company, had sued the trade association to determine the identity of the tipster who they claimed made a false accusation that the company used unlicensed software. -db From [...]

Belarus blocks citizens’ access to foreign websites

The Republic of Belarus has passed a law making it illegal for Belarus citizens to use foreign websites for commercial or personal business. The law also threatens owners of Internet cafes with shutdown if any customers in the cafes violate the new law. -db From a commentary in The Next Web, January 2, 2012 by [...]

Ruled not a journalist, Oregon blogger loses $2.5 million defamation suit in federal court

A blogger who wrote critical articles about an investment firm lost a $2.5 million defamation suit to the firm after an U.S. District Court judge ruled that she was not a journalist so not under the protection of the Oregon media shield law. She could not therefore withhold the identity of a source needed to [...]

CNET provides guide to effects on public of Stop Online Piracy Act

A guide published by CNET describes the effects on the public of the Stop Online Piracy Act should it pass Congress and signed into law. The law would affect Internet free speech, security and innovation. -db From a commentary for CNET, November 21, 2011, by Declan McCullagh. Full story  

Federal judge rules critic of international spiritual organization can remain anonymous

A federal district judge in San Jose ruled that a blogger does not have to reveal his identity to the Art of Living Foundation that promotes spirituality lessons of Ravi Shankar. The blogger had published criticisms of the foundation along with one of  their manuals, an act that the foundation said infringed its copyright. The [...]

Opnion: The Stop Online Piracy Act would would adversely affect journalists

If passed in its present form, the Stop Online Piracy Act would subject articles to censorship in blocking articles from appearing on sites accused of piracy, writes Jessica Ray for 10,000 Words. Even if one site contained content deemed illegal, the entire site could be blocked. Internet innovation and creativity would also take a hit. [...]

If passed Online Piracy Act likely to face court challenges

Legislation backed by the entertainment industry to protect copyrights by stopping online piracy , the Stop Online Piracy Act, has support in Congress. But powerful interests including Google are poised to challenge the law if passed. -db From a commentary for the First Amendment Center, November 17, 2011, by David L. Hudson Jr. Full story [...]

Chinese protesters use comic subterfuge to evade government censors

With the Chinese government employing more than 50,000 censors to monitor the Internet for politically deviant opinion, bloggers are using humor and satire to get their message across before the censors close in. There is always a strong element of fear and uncertainty for the bloggers as they never know where the line is between [...]

Google marks pronounced rise in government requests for online data

Government world-wide are increasingly asking Google for information, causing the company to suggest that new laws are needed to govern Internet data. In the last six months, the U.S. government has made 5,950 requests for information with Google complying with 93 percent of the requests, and when asked to remove items, it complied 63 percent [...]

European court upholds right to sue Internet publishers in each country

Internet publishers may face a deluge of lawsuits in Europe after the European Court of Justice ruled that individuals can sue for invasion of privacy in each country where the offensive information can be accessed. “Publishers, though, should not be subject to stricter laws than would apply if the court action was taking place in [...]

Free speech: Mexican citizens murdered for using Internet to speak out against drug violence

Mexican drug cartels are murdering journalists and bloggers using the Internet and social media to protest the cartels’ drug-related violence. The Electronic Freedom Foundation makes some suggestions for Mexican citizens who want to continue the protests, “EFF recommends that bloggers who are concerned about their security and safety should post under a pseudonym, use Tor [...]

Opinion: Indiscriminate web filters damage free inquiry

Web filtering in which key words can trigger a cutoff of sites hurts education by uncritically banning students from vital Internet sources, writes Ken Paulson in a commentary for the First Amendment Center. Paulson says that names of terrorist groups or words such as breasts or buttocks can trigger censorship and the First Amendment Center [...]

National poll: Newspapers still providing critical local coverage

A study by Pew Research revealed that Americans still rely on newspapers for local coverage of crime, community events, housing, jobs, schools and government. They turn to TV for weather, breaking news and traffic and the Internet for restaurants, night life and local businesses. -db From a commentary for The Poynter Institute, September 26, 2011, [...]

China: Microbloggers defy censorship in relaying facts of high-speed train crash

Chinese censors are failing to contain the flood of online messages about the wreck of a high-speed train outside Wenzhou that killed 40 people and injured 191. Messages total 26 million. Citizens began the posts right after the accident and in many instances foiled the manipulations of government officials. In Wenzhou, officials ordered lawyers not to [...]

Legislator seeks to set privacy rules for Facebook

A state senator from San Leandro has introduced legislation that would require Facebook and other social networking sites to let new users establish privacy settings at the same time they register. State Sen. Ellen Corbett, a Democrat, argues that users shouldn’t have to give up their private information by default. Opponents object to government imposition [...]

Exiles use Internet to promote Syrian revolt

Anti-government activists living in the Middle East, Europe and the U.S. are taking a leading role in using the Internet to defy the autocratic Syrian government in providing news of the uprising to the world. Writing in The New York Times, Anthony Shadid described the work of one man, “Gaunt and with bloodshot blue-green eyes, [...]

WikiLeaks, Internet among Nobel Peace Prize nominees

WikiLeaks and the Internet are among this year’s 241 nominees for the Nobel Peace Prize. A Norwegian member of parliament  nominated WikiLeaks saying, “It would be a crime to ban or oppose the right to publish such information. It should instead be protected, regardless of what we might think of the contents of some (or [...]

Effect of social media underestimated in creating social change

In the Toronto Star, Don Tapscott argues that the social media is an important tool for fostering democracy in that citizens can alert millions of people about injustices and social ills, and in the case of Tunesia and Egypt, weak ties between people on Facebook can lead to the stronger ties necessary to bring change. [...]

Supreme Court justices lean toward limiting free speech for personal, hurtful attacks

Two U.S. Supreme Court justices, both strong advocates for the First Amendment, said during a hearing of a case about protests at a Marine’s funeral that they thought people could be sued for outrageous personal attacks leading to speculation that the Court will establish a new limit to free speech. -db The Los Angeles Times [...]

Obama administration planning to spy on Internet and e-mail

To monitor terrorists and criminals who are increasingly using the Internet and social media to conduct business, the Obama administration wants to require technical changes to facilitate wiretaps of those venues. -db Daily Mail September 27, 2010 By Daily Mail Reporter Broad new regulations being drafted by the Obama administration would make it easier for [...]

China starts asking new cellphone users for ID

The Chinese government started to implement a long-discussed measure that requires cellphone subscribers to register their identities when setting up an account, prompting concerns over privacy in the world’s largest mobile market. The Wall Street Journal September 1, 2010 By Loretta Chao BEIJING—The measure went into effect Wednesday, with customer service representatives at mobile operators [...]

Google ignites debate about privacy

Internet giant Google has sparked a fiery privacy debate this week by claiming future teenagers will need to change their names when they reach adulthood to escape embarrassing online pasts. The Courier Mail August 20, 2010 By Jennifer Dudley-Nicholson In a warning experts have labelled hypocritical, Google CEO Eric Schmidt said the company knew “roughly [...]

Domestic spying: Uncle Sam developing ability to reach wide and deep on Internet

Through its Freedom of Information Act lawsuit, the Electronic Frontier Foundation has revealed that the FBI and CIA are aggressively perfecting their ability to probe social networks and the Internet for intelligence data much of which is outside the law enforcement context. -db Electronic Frontier Foundation Commentary August 16, 2010 By Tim Wayne In the [...]

Google CEO: Online Anonymity Is Dangerous

Google CEO Eric Schmidt has said anonymity on the Internet is dangerous, according to a report in the Huffington Post. August 11, 2010 By International Business Times In an interview with CNBC conducted at the Techonomy conference earlier this month, Schmidt offered an additional look at his views on online privacy and  anonymity, says the [...]

Privacy: Geotagging Highlights Safety, Risks Of Mobile Technology

Location-based social networks using geotagging technology are a cool way of letting friends and family keep track of you—and as a law enforcement tool, they  can protect public safety. But when we share, do we really know who’s watching? August 9, 2010 By Lisa Riordan Seville In the world of social networking, Carri Bugbee is [...]

Privacy Groups Call for Microsoft Investigation

Privacy groups have asked Congress to investigate Microsoft in the wake of a Wall Street Journal investigation of Web tracking and targeting. News Broadcasting and Cable August 6, 2010 By John Eggerton Led by the Center for Digital Democracy, a half-dozen consumer watchdog groups sent letters to the heads of the relevant Senate and House [...]

Franken: Net neutrality is foremost free speech issue of our time

Commentary from Sen. Al Franken, elected to the Senate as a member of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party from Minnesota. CNN Opinion August 5, 2010 CNN Editor’s note: He was sworn in July 2009 after a statewide hand recount. Before he joined the Senate, he spent 37 years as a comedy writer, author and radio talk show [...]

Facebook brings privacy settings to mobile web

Facebook, which has taken a public relations beating in the past over privacy issues, has enhanced the mobile version of its site to include access to privacy settings. ZDNet News/Internet August 4, 2010 By Sam Diaz This move follows an overhaul to the settings that the company rolled out in May, largely in response to [...]

Judge gives online commenters First Amendment protection

A judge’s ruling in a pre-trial motion involving a Gaston County murder case affirms that First Amendment protection extends to those who make anonymous comments about stories on news websites. The Star July 29, 2010 By Kevin Ellis Attorneys for Michael Mead had sought to force The Gaston Gazette to reveal information that could have [...]

U.S. braces for blowback over leaked Afghan war documents

Intelligence officials, past and present, are raising concerns that the Wikileaks.org revelations could endanger U.S. counterterror networks in the Afghan region and damage information-sharing with U.S. allies. July 27, 2010 By The Associated Press WASHINGTON — People in Afghanistan or Pakistan who have worked with American intelligence agents or the military against the Taliban or al-Qaida [...]

Google introduces Google Apps for Government

At a press event at its headquarters this morning, Google announced Google Apps for Government-a new version of its Google Apps productivity suite that’s been certified by the US government as meeting its security requirements. PC World July 27, 2010 By Harry McCracken The new version is a variant of Google Apps Premier edition, and includes [...]

Circuit won’t reopen intercepted email case

The 4th Circuit declined to reopen the case of a former colonel in the North Carolina Army National Guard, who accused his colleagues of intercepting, reading and forwarding his emails while he was deployed in Iraq. Courthouse news July 23, 2010 By Annie Youderian The federal appeals court in Richmond, Va., held that Col. Frederick [...]

States want a closer look at Google’s street view data gathering

All Things Digital July 21, 2010 By John Murrell A multistate inquiry into what Google says was the inadvertent gathering of Wi-Fi data by its Street View cars now has 37 attorneys general on board and some specific questions. Connecticut AG Richard Blumenthal, who is spearheading the effort, sent a letter to the company todayasking who inserted [...]

New federal online identity plan raises privacy and free speech concerns

The White House recently released a draft of a troubling plan titled  ”National Strategy for Trusted Identities Cyberspace” (NSTIC). Commentary/ Electronic Frontier Foundation July 21, 2010 By  Lee Tien and Seth Schoen The White House recently released a draft of a troubling plan titled “National Strategy for Trusted Identities in Cyberspace” (NSTIC). In previous iterations, the [...]

Shutdown of blogging site sparks dispute

A free blogging site, Blogetery.com, went dark less than two weeks ago, and its disappearance is stirring controversy about the obligations of Internet services and threats to free speech on the Web. New York Times July 21, 2010 By Steve Lohr Visitors to Blogetery, which says it housed 73,000 blogs, now find a page that [...]

Ninth circuit weighs in on internet anonymity, consumer griping at risk

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a decision last Monday in Inre:Anonymous Online Speakers, a case that could be influential for future courts decisions on whether to order the identification of anonymous or pseudonymous Internet speakers. Citizen Media Law Project July 20, 2010 By Citizen Media Law Project Staff The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals [...]

Groups try to block law written to shield children on Internet

Days after the state toughened up a law aimed at protecting children from offensive material online, advocacy groups moved to strike it down, saying the new law is too broad and cannot be enforced. The Boston Globe July 15, 2010 By John M. Guilfoil The American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts and a coalition of [...]

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