Internet Governance – International Calls for Multinational Control of the Internet Grow

As a UN Information Summit in Tunis, Tunisia draws near, criticism of U.S. government oversight of ICANN has been growing. Many critics have been pointing out decisions made by the U.S. government, such as Federal concerns over the .xxx domain name, that show U.S. political interference with ICANN. The purpose of these criticisms is to counter U.S. government statements that an international governing structure would be highly politicized, and hamper the continued development of the Internet. It is crucial that Internet companies begin to get involved in this process. I believe it is highly unlikely that the U.S. will retain control over the governing structure of the Internet for more than an additional 5-6 years. Early involvement by U.S. companies in this debate will ensure that your concerns will be heard. Perspectives: China Daily International Herald Tribune The Age (Australia)

FCC Seeks Comment on Broadband Regulation

The FCC has released a “notice of proposed rulemaking” soliciting comments on the need for any non-economic regulatory requirements it should impose on broadband Internet providers to protect consumers. These solicitations are a great, low/no cost, opportunity for Internet companies to affect FCC policy. Docket Notice

CALEA – Providers of VoIP Must Comply with CALEA

The Federal Communications Commission recently released a final rule requiring CALEA compliance for all VoIP providers. Compliance must be accomplished May 18, 2007. CALEA – or the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act – is a long standing Act that requires providers of telephone service to make their networks accessible to law enforcement for surveillance activities. While CALEA is quite complex, at base telecom providers must design their networks in such a way so that it is not extremely difficult for law enforcement to attach monitoring devices to the network. This new rule is important for companies who must either comply with CALEA on their “home grown” VoIP services, or ensure that outsourced providers are complaint. Federal Register Notice

Patriot Act – Appeal of Gag Order Rejected

Justice Ginsberg, who hears emergency appeals from the Second Circuit, has rejected an appeal from a library organization who sought to disclose the receipt of a National Security Letter it had received from the FBI. National Security Letters, are secret subpoenas issued by the FBI under the Patriot Act. These letters may not be disclosed by the recipient, even to the recipient’s attorney. The library association sought to disclose the existence of the letter to Congress so that Congress could factor these letters, and the information they sought, into their consideration of the reauthorization of the Patriot Act. Justice Ginsberg refused to rule on the appeal holding that the Second Circuit was considering the matter in timely manner. This issue is important since it reinforces the need to have a subpoena / request of information policy in place prior to receipt of requests like this, since you may not be able to ask your attorney for advice upon receipt of such a letter. News.com “police blotter” article

Subpoenas - Comcast Sued for Disclosing Inaccurate Address in Response to Child Pornography Subpoena

In response to a subpoena from the Wichita police, Comcast disclosed the names and addresses of Brian and Sarah Doom as associated with the IP address set out in the subpoena. The police raided the Doom's house and questioned them for several hours before confiscating their computer. The mistake was discovered several days later and Comcast apologized for the mistake. The Dooms have sued Comcast in both Kansas, where the raid took place, and Georgia, where Comcast is headquartered. The suit alleges invasion of privacy, breach of contract, defamation of character and "outrageous conduct." This case, in conjunction with other cases in the states of Washington and California underscore the need for Internet providers to develop procedures to review and respond to law enforcement requests accurately. This is particularly true for providers who use dynamic IP addresses - since often the IP address in a subpoena has been recycled between an investigation and the time a subpoena is issued. Wichita Eagle Article

Content – Bill Introduced in House to make Changes to Section 2257

Representative Mike Pense has introduced H.R. 3726 entitled the “Child Pornography Protection Act of 2005.” While it is difficult to determine what this resolution may look like at the end of the day – it proposes to make substantial changes to Section 2257. Section 2257 is the law that requires producers of adult entertainment to keep records related to the ages of the actors in their productions. This resolution seems to attempt to broaden the applicability of Section 2257 from the original producers of the content, to distributors and downstream users of the content. As discussed before, a similar change in Section 2257 proposed by the Department of Justice, has be strongly opposed by many Internet companies, since they have difficulty controlling the content of their users. Indeed, unlike the proposed DOJ changes, H.R. 3726 does not have an exception for web hosts and ISPs. Text of H.R. 3726