Buys Inc. Attorneys
ICT Law Blog
 
 
Monday, October 31, 2005
 
  Telkom, DOTCO slang it out
A war of words has erupted over Internet service provider (ISP) DOTCO's legal action against Telkom. Last week, DOTCO said it had been awarded a temporary interdict against Telkom implementing its new ADSL per usage billing structure until 5 December.

Microsoft sues super-spammers
Microsoft is suing 13 groups of "super-spammers" who used virus-infected computers to send out millions of spam messages, the tech website ZDNet.com reported on Friday. The report said that the targets of the lawsuit have not yet been named as Microsoft seeks court orders to uncover their identity, which they concealed using numerous online aliases.

Domain names battle threatens Net
In the golden haze surrounding the mystic city of Tunisia, a small group of elite merchants of the information age will once again try to figure out the future of the Internet in November. They will fight out their agendas and try hard to make sense out of the ongoing cyber warfare.

New TV services set to benefit viewers
...The Independent on Saturday recently reported the arrival of a new exciting television era for South Africa. Icasa approved the opening up of the airwaves to new subscription channels, offering the best TV programmes from across the world.

Media briefing by the Honourable Minister of Trade and Industry Mandisi Mpahlwa: Economic, Investment and Employment Cluster’s Programme of Action (Cy
This media briefing provides an update on Government’s Programme of Action (POA) in Cycle 4, as reported to the Cabinet Committee on 19 October 2005. As President Thabo Mbeki explained in his State of the Nation Address this year, the aim of the POA is “to achieve higher rates of economic growth and development, improve the quality of life of all our people, and consolidate our social cohesion”.

Preparations for Y2K had unexpected benefits for US
Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said on Thursday that all the preparations that went into making sure the computer systems in the US would keep running when 1999 turned to 2000 helped the nation's financial systems weather the 2001 terrorist attacks.

Friday, October 28, 2005
 
  Concern that bill may not allow providers to build networks
In its current form, the Convergence Bill specifies that network operators will be issued with a network infrastructure licence and a service licence.

Interdict brought by Dotco: Telkom sets the record straight
Telkom has issued a statement about the recent court action regarding its new ADSL billing system. We have decided to provide this statement in full.

Spyware 'rampant' in UK computers
The UK has one of the highest rates of computers infected with secret programs that can track what people do with their machines, research shows.

US internet use rises as do fears
More Americans go online from home than ever before, official figures show.

BT offers TV 'on demand' service
BT has announced plans to offer a set-top box that will allow viewers to watch their TV shows on demand.

Google leaks classified ad service
Google Inc. has unintentionally provided a sneak peek at what appears to be a looming expansion into classified advertising -- a free service that might antagonize some of the Internet search engine's biggest customers, including online auctioneer eBay Inc.

Lawsuit claims iPod Nano scratches easily
Apple Computer Inc. faced a lawsuit that alleged the company knew its Nano portable music player was defective but still decided to press on with the product's release last month.

Place bets by SMS
TAB, the betting division of Phumelela Gaming and Leisure, has introduced a GPRS betting application that will allow punters to place bets either via enabled cellphones or pocket PCs from any location with GSM cell coverage.

DOTCO wins temporary interdict
Cape Town Internet service provider (ISP) DOTCO has been awarded a temporary interdict against Telkom implementing its new ADSL per usage billing structure until 5 December.

United Kingdom: New court rules on disclosure – are your electronic documents in order?
As from today, new guidance on the exchange of electronic documents in the disclosure process forms part of the Civil Procedure Rules. The guidance will impact on the way parties deal with electronic documents in litigation. It may also have wider implications on a party's document management and retention systems....

Understanding U.S. Electronic Discovery and "Best Practices" Therefore
Discovery requests for electronic discovery can be a nightmare. Whether in a regulatory investigation or in a patent infringement lawsuit, those seeking information typically request years of e-mails and assume that such electronic discovery is available at the push of a button. Of course, it rarely is....

Outsourcing Contract Management
In a typical outsourcing engagement, a customer will spend months of effort and substantial expense putting together and negotiating a comprehensive service agreement, often including hundreds or even thousands of pages of detailed schedules and exhibits....

Spyware can Constitute Illegal Trespass on Home Computers
A federal trial court in Chicago has ruled recently that the ancient legal doctrine of trespass to chattels (meaning trespass to personal property) applies to the interference caused to home computers by spyware. Information technology has advanced at warp speed with the law struggling to keep up, and this is an example of a court needing to use historical legal theories to grapple with new and previously unforeseen contexts in Cyberspace.

Tanzania: Admissibility Of Electronic Evidence
The Tanzanian law of Evidence Act, No 6 of 1067 (Act) does not have provisions recognizing electronic documents as admissible evidence whether primary or secondary (see sections 64, 65 and 79 of the Act). Yet Tanzanian companies take orders, conclude contracts, send invoices and generally conduct business electronically without additional documentation to support the business transacted electronically.

Janet Jackson nude video hits Internet
No one can blame this on a wardrobe malfunction. A video clip that purportedly shows pop singer Janet Jackson sunbathing in the nude was circulating on the Internet on Thursday.

Internet Anonymity Wins a Round, But the Fight Is Far From Over
Internet subscribers' right to anonymity has been taking it on the chin lately. Courts in the U.S. and in the Netherlands and the South Korean legislature have taken actions that would undermine subscribers' ability to remain anonymous. But a recent state Supreme Court decision in Delaware cuts the other way, finding that a subscriber's constitutional right to engage in anonymous speech requires that courts apply a relatively high standard in determining whether to order the disclosure of the subscriber's identity in a defamation case. In John Doe No. 1 v. Cahill, the Delaware Supreme Court held that courts should require the plaintiff to satisfy the summary judgment standard before requiring disclosure of an anonymous defendant's
identity. While this case involved political speech about a public figure, the First Amendment basis for the decision could affect the way courts consider suits by corporations against Internet posters of critical comments. It might also have persuasive effect outside the defamation context, such as in "John Doe" suits by the music industry against file swappers, or even in cases involving law enforcement orders for subscriber information. ISPs, who usually find themselves in the middle of these battles, will want to pay close attention to how this issue plays out.

Expert: BitTorrent Conviction Unlikely to Be Copied in US
BitTorrent works by splitting files into bits of information that are randomly distributed to peers on the network. When a user requests the file, the software searches for the best connections and pieces it back together. Doing this eliminates the bandwidth bottlenecks that occur in other P2P networks.

Regulations Set, But Questions Remain About ePassport
A pilot program encompassing federal employees who have Official or Diplomatic passports and travel on government business is scheduled to begin in December. The State Department's regulations also require that any foreigners who don't need visas to enter the United States must instead have RFID passports.

Google to Archive TV Actor Interviews
The archive allows TV history to be "told through the eyes of the creative geniuses -- in front of and behind the cameras -- who shaped and continue to shape television into the most powerful medium in the world," foundation Chairman Steve Mosko said in a statement.

U.S. cybersecurity test shelved until 2006
A national exercise designed to test the government's readiness to handle cyberemergencies won't happen until February, a Department of Homeland Security spokesman confirmed Wednesday. The department, which is headed toward a cybersecurity makeover of sorts, originally planned to run the mock attack-and-response game--known as Cyberstorm--in November.

Baidu.com adds copyright disclaimer
The Web portal Baidu.com has added a disclaimer to its popular search engine for MP3 music sites following lawsuits accusing the company of helping visitors illegally obtain copyright music.

Judge: Microsoft's music player gaffe is 'concern'
A federal judge scolded Microsoft on Wednesday for devising a marketing plan that would have forced portable-music player makers to package only Windows Media Player with their products.

Study finds less trusting Internet users
As identity theft has grown, so has fear of being victimized through high-tech means. A new study finds some computer users are cutting back on time spent surfing the Internet. Some have also stopped buying altogether on the Web.

Supreme Court won't hear RIM suit
The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday declined to consider an emergency appeal by Research In Motion to review a long-running patent suit that could shut down RIM's BlackBerry service in the United States.

Web 'replaces training camps'
A new proposed anti-terror law in the US, presented on Wednesday, aims to clamp down on terrorist activity carried out via the internet as the al-Qaeda network develops increasingly dangerous online activities.

VANS left in the cold
There is lack of clarity on where value-added network services (VANS) fit within the Electronic Communications Bill (formerly the Convergence Bill) and the mobile number portability (MNP) regulations, delegates heard this morning at a telecoms seminar in Melrose, Johannesburg.

Convergence Bill approved
The Independent Communications Authority of SA (ICASA) amendment Bill and the Convergence Bill were approved by the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Communications last night, paving the way for a full debate on the legislation on 3 November.

SA firms lag on security spending
South African companies have fallen behind the international IT security spending curve and have to play catch up with the latest efficiencies, says a local expert.

ISPA challenges Telkom's ADSL cap
As Internet service provider DOTCO goes to the high court to stop Telkom from going ahead with its per usage ADSL billing from 1 November, the Internet Service Provider Association of SA (ISPA) plans to challenge Telkom over the introduction of an ADSL hard cap.

DOTCO wants to stop Telkom
Cape Town-based Internet service provider (ISP) DOTCO has filed an urgent application in the High Court to stop Telkom from going ahead with its per usage ADSL billing, which is due to come into effect from 1 November.

ICT leader challenges industry
Professor Basie von Solms has challenged the ICT industry and government to boost the quality and quantity of research facilities in the country.

Three things staff want most from employers
The three things that staff want most from their employers are a competitive benefit and salary package, opportunities for career progression, and support for flexible working and work/life balance.

Wednesday, October 26, 2005
 
  Web-based software challenges Windows
A quiet revolution is transforming life on the Internet: New, agile software now lets people quickly check flight options, see stock prices fluctuate and better manage their online photos and e-mail.

Court battle over Internet calls
A new federal regulation making it easier for law enforcement to tap Internet phone calls is being challenged in court.

P2P Outfit in False Ad Pinch
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) won a temporary court order earlier this week to rein in the advertising practices of an Internet operation claiming "file-sharing is 100 percent legal."

Microsoft Touts Smarter, Thinner Office
Microsoft (Quote, Chart) believes business intelligence should be added to a suite that employees use to collaborate and manage their workflow -- Office.

Secret tracking codes in laser printers cracked
The pages that are printed by your colour laser printer may include tiny dots, almost invisible to the naked eye. The dots form a code that can be read by the US Secret Service, ostensibly to track down counterfeiters. Now, for the first time, the code has been cracked.

How to check your customer is over 18 and still alive
By adding less than two seconds to an e-commerce process, website operators can now check the age, identity and vital status of customers against the UK Electoral Roll, BT directory enquiries, a credit reference database and a mortality database.

"Palpable nonsense" backfires for owner of Citigroup.co.uk
A former intellectual property lawyer who grabbed citigroup.co.uk on the very day in 1998 when it was announced that two financial giants were merging to form Citigroup Inc. has been ordered to transfer the domain name and could face substantial damages.

Cybercrime Being Fought in New Ways
The software looks at past incidents of aggravated assault by location, time and date," said Bill Haffey, SPSS technical director for public sector business. "It adds other factors such as weather, and events -- whether there'd been a basketball game, a concert or some other gathering. Then it makes predictions."

Appeals court keeps Interior Department online
An appeals court has granted the Interior Department a reprieve after a lower court ordered it to sever the Internet connection of any computer that could hold data relating to American Indian trust accounts.

Craigslist targets Oodle for `scraping' its listings
Craigslist, long considered a paragon of community-friendly, almost anti-corporate business philosophy, has asked San Mateo Web company Oodle to quit picking up its listings.

465,000 Georgians at risk for ID theft
State officials on Friday began notifying 465,000 Georgians that they might be at risk of identity theft because of a government security breach detected in April.

Dutch say suspects hacked 1.5M computers
Three suspects in a Dutch crime ring hacked 1.5 million computers worldwide, setting up a "zombie network" that secretly stole credit card and other personal data, prosecutors said Thursday.

From flying saucers to open sourcers
As Lloyd's gears up to indemnify against potential open source intellectual-property infringement, it's time to consider how big the risk really is

Disaster recovery options for legal firm file servers
No matter if your organisation is a single lawyer working without staff, or a multinational firm with hundreds of employees, law firms of any size and type often run into the same issues when it comes to file servers.

Document management: What can it do for you?
As well as keeping firms the right side of compliance legislation, document management systems can help in other ways

Sorting out your compliance storage headaches
If you haven't heard of Sarbanes-Oxley, HIPAA, FERPA, or Gramm-Leach-Bliley, you've either just recently re-entered the workforce after a very long vacation in Siberia, or you have been so busy with that new-fangled ERP system that you haven't had the chance to read anything for, oh, the past three years. Either way, it's time to get up to speed on what these regulations mean for you and your storage systems. Sarbanes-Oxley, for example, imposes significant storage requirements and includes rigorous retention and retrieval regulation, which you must meet in order to be in compliance with the act. I will briefly discuss some of the retention and retrieval requirements in this article.

UK police crack down on billion-pound Internet scams
Police on Thursday unveiled plans to crack down on consumer scams like Internet auction frauds and bogus prize draws, which are estimated to cost Britons up to £1bn a year.

Microsoft vs Google returns to court
Microsoft and Google are heading back to court on Friday in ongoing dispute over Kai-Fu Lee, a former Microsoft executive who quit in July to work for Google.

Kai-Fu Lee trial to remain in Washington, for now
A federal judge in San Jose, California has issued a tentative ruling that would put on hold Google's effort to move the battle over Kai-Fu Lee to California.

JBoss denies running a trademark monopoly
JBoss has been accused of using its trademark to create a monopoly, but the company insists it is merely protecting its brand.

Tuesday, October 25, 2005
 
  JBoss denies running a trademark monopoly
JBoss has been accused of using its trademark to create a monopoly, but the company insists it is merely protecting its brand.

New Microsoft Office suite to move goalposts
Microsoft plans to add to its Office business software suite technology for easily culling data from large corporate databases, and that could squeeze smaller, specialised competitors.

Secret codes in printers can allow tracking
Tiny dots produced by some laser printers are a secret code that can allow the government to track down counterfeiters, a new study concludes, raising the hackles of privacy advocates.The Electronic Frontier Foundation said its researchers recently broke the code behind the tiny tracking dots and said the United States (US) Secret Service confirmed that the tracking is part of a deal struck with selected colour laser printer manufacturers to identify counterfeiters.

Blurring lines: Video games and movies
When the producers of the coming movie "Halo" sought a location for shooting, they headed to the director Peter Jackson's studio in New Zealand.

HP cracks down on cartridge refill industry
Hewlett-Packard on Thursday accused a national cartridge reseller of refilling used printer cartridges with ink that relies on a formula for an HP-patented ink brand.
In its letter to Cartridge World, HP asked the company to stop using inks with the same chemical composition that's found in its patented brand of Vivera inks. HP holds 9,000 patents related to imaging and printing, 4,000 of them for consumable supplies such as ink and cartridges.

A new battlefield: Ownership of ideas
In another era, a nation's most valuable assets were its natural resources - coal, say, or amber waves of grain. But in the information economy of the 21st century, the most priceless resource is often an idea, along with the right to profit from it.

UPDATE 2-Intermix settles NY Attorney Gen'l suit
NEW YORK, Oct 20 (Reuters) - Internet media company Intermix Media Inc.'s former chief executive, Brad Greenspan, will pay $750,000 in penalties for his role in the company's bundling of hidden spyware that delivered pop-up advertising, the New York Attorney General's office said on Thursday.
The company, which had previously stopped distributing such software, had earlier agreed to pay $7.5 million to settle false advertising and deceptive business practice charges stemming from the software.

Net pirates will face stiffer punishment
The U.S. Sentencing Commission on Wednesday approved an emergency set of rules that would boost prison sentences by roughly 40 percent for people convicted of peer-to-peer infringement of copyright works "being prepared for commercial distribution."
The changes also say judges may "estimate" the number of files shared for purposes of determining the appropriate fine and sentence.

Bush administration opposes U.N. Net control
In a sign that traditionally obscure discussions about Internet control have taken on new prominence, President Bush broached the topic in a meeting this week with European Commission President José Barroso.
The high-level meeting, which took place at the White House on Tuesday, comes as the United States is facing a revolt among third-world nations that are
demanding reduced American influence over key aspects of the Internet.

File-sharing hub busted
A man who ran an internet file-sharing hub where computer users could swap movie, music and software files was sentenced on Thursday to three years probation and ordered to use the computer only for personal use.
Jed Frederick Kobles, 34, pleaded guilty in August to conspiracy to commit grand theft. He is the first person in California to be convicted for illegal file sharing, prosecutors said.

Investors bombard Telkom chair
The people elected as the chairperson of some companies must sometimes wonder at their wisdom in accepting the position.
The chairperson presides over meetings and basically calls the shots on how the gathering is run. The chairperson is the highest-ranking person on a company's board of directors.

US business travel takes off online
Technology has become a large part of many business travellers' experience, according to results of a recent Accenture survey.
The Web-based biannual survey, which queried 530 US business travellers who travelled more than 300 miles in the last six months, was fielded in August.

ICASA hearings begin in Parliament
Proposed changes to the mechanism of appointing Independent Communication Authority of SA (ICASA) councillors was a bone of contention in Parliament today.
In the first day of public hearings before the parliamentary portfolio committee of communications on the ICASA amendment Bill, representatives from ICASA, the SA Post Office, Internet Solutions and the Freedom of Expression Institute expressed concerns that the appointment of ICASA councillors would be taken out of Parliament's hands and given to a committee appointed by the minister of communications.

Judicial race row continues to raise concern
The Cape Bar Council joined others in the legal fraternity on Thursday in expressing concern about the lack of resolution in the latest race row to hit the Cape High Court.Cape Bar Council Chairperson Ashton Schippers confirmed on Thursday night that the council had referred the racism allegations to the chief justice for "consideration and appropriate action".

Private companies own human gene patents
Nearly a fifth of all human genes have been patented - the majority by private biotechnology companies, according to a survey of patent records published today.
The extent to which companies claim ownership of human genes has raised alarm among researchers and led to warnings that by asserting commercial rights over crucial genes, companies risk stifling research into diseases such as breast cancer, diabetes and obesity.

Chief Judge wants electronic recording devices in court
UYO — THE Chief Judge of Akwa Ibom State, Justice Effiong Idiong, has advocated the immediate introduction of electronic recording devices in courts in order to achieve quick dispensation of justice.
Idiong told Vanguard in Uyo, that since Nigeria was currently embracing the computer and information technology processes, the exercise should be extended to the nation's judiciary as this would assist in speedy trials in courts across the country.

eThekwini race row: HRC called
THE Human Rights Commission has been called in to settle a dispute between eThekwini Municipality and labour unions over an allegation that a senior member in the treasury made a racist remark about black employees.The Independent Municipal and Allied Trade Union (Imatu) and SA Municipal Workers' Union (Samwu) on Thursday met with representatives from the HRC for advice before taking the municipality to the Equality Court.

Google Print Hits The Fan
Publishing heavyweights have put their weight against an 800-pound gorilla: Google.
The Association of American Publishers (AAP) said it's suing Google (
Quote, Chart) over its plans to digitally copy and distribute copyrighted works without permission of the copyright owners.

Google Wows Wall Street
Shares of Google (Quote, Chart) soared to a new all-time high late Thursday after the company's third-quarter earnings and sales crushed Wall Street estimates.
Google's pro-forma earnings of $1.51 a share trounced $1.36 estimates, and net revenues (revenues after traffic acquisition costs) doubled from the year-ago quarter to $1.05 billion, well ahead of $943 million estimates. Google ended the quarter with $7.6 billion in cash, a healthy war chest for potential acquisitions.

Open Source Props For Microsoft?
The Free Software Foundation (FSF) is normally not on the list of companies likely to say anything positive about Microsoft.
Yet that's exactly what happened yesterday, as the Free Software Foundation's European branch (FSFE) congratulated Microsoft for its new shared source licenses.

Court Halts 'Legal' File-Sharing Site
The FTC charged that the Web service advertised on Web sites, sponsored Google links and in e-mails with misleading claims like, "Best of all people are not getting sued for using our software. Yes! It is 100 percent legal" and "Download and Watch DVDs and Movies Still in Theaters."

'DVD Jon' joins another maverick
Two of the digital music world's biggest mavericks are teaming up, as MP3.com and MP3tunes founder Michael Robertson brings Norwegian hacker Jon Johansen into his latest venture.
A prediction? Feathers are likely to be ruffled somewhere in the world.

U.S. court orders music site to change its tune
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A U.S. court has ordered a Web site that bills itself as "Napster's Number One Replacement Software" to stop promising customers that they won't face copyright lawsuits when they download songs for free, the Federal Trade Commission said on Wednesday.

Google gives up on Gmail name in U.K.
Google stopped using the Gmail name in the United Kingdom on Wednesday, ending a trademark dispute for now.
The Gmail service there is now known as Googlemail.
A Google representative said that the search giant decided to change the suffix after protracted wranglings with research firm Independent International Investment Research (IIIR), which uses the name G-mail to refer to a part of its financial analytics software.

Webcast: Compliance: The Silver Lining
Complying with today's complex web of laws and regulations has been a daunting task for companies, swallowing up large amounts of personnel and technology resources. But regulatory compliance has also produced a silver lining of sorts, forcing many businesses to get their houses in order and giving them the money and justification to do so. During this on-demand Webcast from ZDNet, you'll learn how compliance can be used as a lever of change and opportunity across the enterprise.

Spectrum allocation ‘key to convergence'
Inadequate or inappropriate spectrum allocation could prove a stumbling block in SA's convergence agenda, says Marius Mostert, Telkom's technology, strategy and integration executive.

Knysna WiFi on track
The project to make the Knysna municipal area the first African town to become fully WiFi connected is on track, amid objections from Telkom and allegations of underhand tactics.

Telkom's ADSL taken to ICASA again
Cape-based Internet service provider (ISP) DOTCO has petitioned the Independent Communications Authority of SA (ICASA) to stop Telkom from implementing its new ADSL pricing structure from 1 November.

Potential licensing hurdle in Convergence Bill
The intention to license content services as outlined in the Convergence Bill is ill-conceived, says Phukubje Pierce Attorneys partner Lucien Pierce.

German publisher plans online book network
German publishers, keen to defend their copyrights as Internet search engines seek to put the world's literature online, aim to set up their own web-based database allowing readers to browse, borrow or buy books.

'Spygate' probe widens
E-mails about an alleged conspiracy to influence the succession debate drew a furious reaction from Intelligence Minister Ronnie Kasrils, who compared them to the practices of the apartheid era Stratcom.

Online-search ads find favour
America's biggest corporations appear to making strides toward online-search advertising, finally convinced of its ability to reach consumers.

Advert body dismisses 'denialist' complaint
Aid activist group the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC) got the thumbs-up from the SA Advertising Standards Authority over a Cape Town newspaper advertisement that stated antiretrovirals helped most people with HIV live longer, healthier lives.

Judges to get diversity training
South Africa's top judges have recommended in their long-awaited report on racism and sexism in their profession that all members of the judiciary undergo diversity training.

Hire black lawyers, govt told
Government departments and parastatals should adopt a policy of giving black and women lawyers experience that would equip them for the judiciary, the Heads of Courts said in their report on Friday.

'Spygate' furore
The crisis in the country's intelligence community deepened on Friday with the suspension of the director-general of the national intelligence agency (NIA), Billy Masetlha, and the widening of the investigation into the "wrongful" espionage on Saki Macozoma.

Disbarred Lawyer on DoJ's Watch
The U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ) asked a South Carolina federal court Thursday to stop a disbarred attorney from selling alleged tax-fraud schemes over the Internet.

Fastest growing tech companies of 2005
See all 100 companies on this year's ranking, plus company profiles with full list data and up-to-date stock performance information

Do You Know Where Your Servers Are?
On the 10th floor of a New Orleans high-rise, Michael Barnett, crisis manager at DirectNic, is blogging (www.mgno.com) about his co-workers’ efforts to keep the Internet service provider online through the hurricane and its aftermath. Compared with some companies in New Orleans, DirectNic was lucky -- it was on high ground that escaped flooding, had an onsite diesel generator, and maintained a fiber-optic connection to the outside world that was buried deep enough to withstand winds and flooding.

When Open-Source Isn't Open Enough
Commercial Linux vendors are opening up their development processes to rope in more volunteer programmers in an effort to widen support for their paid versions.

Video game group sues California
The association of video game retailers sued the state of California Monday to overturn a new law that would bar minors from renting or buying "violent" games.

Where are your wireless manners?
The only thing advancing quicker than wireless innovation may be the rudeness of the people using the technology, experts say.

Microsoft grapples with growing up
Microsoft Corp. promises its software will make people better workers -- more productive, more profitable, more able, as the company likes to say, to achieve their potential.

Lawmakers urge U.S. to keep control of Web
U.S. lawmakers are urging the Bush administration to resist a push from other countries to shift control of the Internet to the United Nations, arguing that such a move would stifle innovation and free expression.

Lawsuit claims iPod Nano scratches easily
Apple Computer Inc. faced a lawsuit that alleged the company knew its Nano portable music player was defective but still decided to press on with the product's release last month.

Wi-fi cities spark hotspot debate
A growing number of cities in the US are treating high-speed internet as a basic amenity for citizens, like running water or the electricity grid. But as the concept expands so does the battle with big business.

Doom game film tops US box office
A film version of hit computer game Doom has topped the US and Canada box office, according to studio estimates.

Microsoft signs as Wembley backer
Bill Gates and software giant Microsoft have signed to become first "Founding Partner" of the new Wembley stadium, in a five-year deal worth at least £5m.

Has the Google juggernaut got a roadmap?
As internet search engine Google reports record quarterly profits, BBC News investigates what the secretive internet giant's strategy could be.

Firefox: Near a Year Old And 100M Strong
The Firefox browser has surpassed 100 million downloads less than a month before it celebrates its first birthday, according to the Mozilla Foundation.

Monday, October 24, 2005
 
  Printer-Spy Caper Threatens Freedom
The next time you print a summary of your favorite James Bond film, you should consider that there might be more than one spy on the page. That's because printer manufacturers and the U.S. Secret Service have been quietly collaborating to track documents -- a worrisome revelation.

Wednesday, October 19, 2005
 
  Munich Government Delays Linux Rollout
"A couple of developments have happened since we started this process," said Florian Schiessl, a spokesman for the Linux project team. He said the debate over whether Linux includes patented software came "in the middle of our public-tender process," forcing the city of Munich to call a temporary halt to the project.

The Future of E-Mail Archiving
"E-mail archiving as an industry is growing rapidly and it is interesting to examine the underlying trends driving the growth," Nick Mehta, senior director of product development for Symantec, told TechNewsWorld.

What You Need to Know About Data Storage
"Shredding" documents isn't wrong and won't get someone in trouble if the proper rules are followed regularly. Maintaining company records follows logical rules like any other good business process. It just takes organization and implementation.

CNN SPECIAL REPORT - Cyber security
Identity theft, denial of service attacks and worms that thrive on the anonymity of the Internet are just a few of the dangers users may be exposing themselves to as they tap into the online world.

Is 'Wi-Fi on steroids' really the next big thing?
Computer users in many urban and university areas have come to expect connectivity 24/7. There's a cable modem or DSL at home, a high-speed connection in the office and Wi-Fi for the places in between, from the commute to the coffeehouse.

Legislation can't keep pace with technology
Technological innovation has always ignited a debate over how much government should be involved in its development, and it seems to be no different with broadband.

Cell phones reshaping Africa
Amina Harun, a 45-year-old farmer, used to traipse around for hours looking for a working pay phone on which to call the markets and find the best prices for her fruit.

Wi-Fi on the farm
Parked alongside his onion fields, Bob Hale can prop open a laptop and read his e-mail or, with just a keystroke, check the moisture of his crops.

Wireless technology changing work and play
Geoffrey Bowker, executive director of a research institute at Santa Clara University, remembers a time when going to academic conferences meant leaving office concerns behind, hearing provocative lectures and getting to experience a new city. He especially liked visiting art galleries.

Online Smut Peddler Takes Guilty Plea
A Washington, D.C., man is facing up to 30 years in prison after pleading guilty to federal charges of using the Internet to distribute and receive child pornography.

Google v. Microsoft Goes to Redmond
Google's (Quote, Chart) efforts to relocate the jurisdiction of a lawsuit against Microsoft (Quote, Chart) hit a snag when the judge hearing the case issued a tentative ruling to stay the request, according to a posting on the court's Web site.

ICASA awards number ranges
Some value-added network services (VANS) have received their 087 voice over Internet Protocol (VOIP) numbers from the Independent Communications Authority of SA (ICASA), but they are not sure if it solves the interconnect question.

Global intellectual property body looks South
The organisation guiding global policy on intellectual property is to pay greater attention to the interests of developing countries.

Tuesday, October 18, 2005
 
  ICASA awards number ranges
Some value-added network services (VANS) have received their 087 voice over Internet Protocol (VOIP) numbers from the Independent Communications Authority of SA (ICASA), but they are not sure if it solves the interconnect question.
According to an ICASA source, about 10 VANS were given approval late last week to use various number ranges within the 087 national dialling code.

Google, Microsoft await final stay order in California
A judge in San Jose, California, heard arguments in Google (Profile, Products, Articles) Inc.'s suit against Microsoft (Profile, Products, Articles) Corp. Friday, but did not make a final decision as to whether a tentative ruling made the previous day in the case would stick, according to lawyers from both companies.
Thursday, Judge Ronald Whyte issued a tentative ruling in a U.S. District Court in San Jose to grant Microsoft's motion to stay, or put on hold, Google's case in California.

Child porn ring run from net cafe
A Glasgow student has admitted running an international child porn ring from an city centre internet cafe. Nicholas Dockray, 31, sent images of children being abused to paedophiles in the US, UK and Europe.
Glasgow Sheriff Court heard Dockray was traced to the cafe when Croatian police arrested a known sex offender, who was a member of the porn ring.

Google satellite photos worry India leader
HYDERABAD, India - Indian President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam expressed concern Saturday about a free mapping program from Google Inc., warning it could help terrorists by providing satellite photos of potential targets.
Google Earth, an Internet site launched in June this year, allows users to access overlapping satellite photos. Although not all areas are highly detailed, some images are very high resolution, and some show sensitive locations in various countries.

Nigeria enlists Microsoft to fight spam scammers
Microsoft is planning to work with the Nigerian government to help track down and prosecute criminals involved in e-mail scams and other Internet-based fraud originating from the African country.
Microsoft will provide technical expertise, training and other security resources to Nigeria's Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), which is tasked with fighting
cybercrime in the country.

Sunday, October 16, 2005
 
  Viruses Infecting Enterprise Networks Via IM
The latest emerging IT security threat to the enterprise -- viruses conveyed by instant messaging (IM) technology -- is increasingly taking up the time of security experts, who are implementing an array of solutions to staunch the flow of malware.

DTI ready to submit codes to Cabinet
The first phase of the Department of Trade and Industry's (DTI's) Codes of Good Practice are ready to be presented by the DTI's black economic empowerment (BEE) chief-director, Polo Radebe, to Cabinet this week.

Check traffic fines online
The Johannesburg Metro Police Department (JMPD) has created a Web site to allow motorists to check if they have outstanding traffic fines. The site, part of the Joburg http://eservices.joburg.org.za/joburg/eservices/ will help motorists access information regarding outstanding warrants and summons. The site follows the creation of a mobile fine system.

Judges rally in support of Hlophe
Almost half of the judiciary in the Cape High Court have signed a statement saying they believe their judge president, John Hlophe, is the victim of a campaign by "unknown forces".

Research paper: How much do your IT investments really matter?
A new global study by Keystone Strategy suggests that how well you equip your company with information technology (IT) has become a more important factor to increasing profitability and revenue than how much you spend. Keystone Strategy is a global research organization formed by professors from the Harvard University Business School.

How well is your company using software?
The IT Scorecard was developed by Microsoft and independent research firm Keystone Strategy. It rates your IT systems in the areas of sales and marketing, finance, operations, employee productivity and collaboration, and IT infrastructure.

Microsoft Business Summit 2005
Are your people empowered with the right processes and IT solutions to compete more effectively? Just how can Microsoft help companies like yours? Find out by viewing the webcasts and other resources provided below from Microsoft Business Summit 2005, a worldwide event for midsize businesses held September 7.

Bill Gate's speeches
"This has been a great year moving towards the digital lifestyle. I'd say it's going even faster than we would have expected. "

What to expect from MS Office "12"
During the coming months we will be announcing exciting new capabilities that will be part of the next release of Microsoft Office products, currently code-named Microsoft Office "12." Visit this site often for the latest news, and register to get the beta when it's available.

Cellphone war at fever pitch
The scrap between cellphone operators is heating up. Heather Formby takes a closer look at the battlefield and the strategies involved. The ongoing war between the cellphone operators has become something of a pitched battle lately, as each of the three operators try to outdo each other in the continued fight for more market share.

Podcast - MyADSL
An interview with Dr. Tim Kelly from the ITU.

Research shows text a popular way of ending romance
Breaking up is supposed to be hard to do, but young Australian couples have found an easy solution ? send a text message and move on. Research shows young romantics are increasingly using SMS text messages to manage, and even end, their relationships.

If you can’t beat them, Telkom, join them
Remember the fiasco when Telkom tried to sue Hellkom, the satirical website that poked fun at the operator to the delight of its frustrated customers?

If you can’t beat them, Telkom, join them
Remember the fiasco when Telkom tried to sue Hellkom, the satirical website that poked fun at the operator to the delight of its frustrated customers?

BOOMING BROADBAND ADDS MORE THAN 24 MILLION
In the first six months of 2005, ano ther 24.5 million homes and businesses around the world moved to broadband, according to the latest data produced for the DSL Forum by industry analyst Point Topic.

Friday, October 14, 2005
 
  Religious Group Sues Canadian Web Site For Posting Religious Texts
A former Jehovah's Witness decided to show the world what JW's REALLY believe, so he brought together quotes from various publications that the Watchtower has released over the years.

Edonkey P2P Developer Tells Congress Of Plan For Legal Filesharing

Malicious Prosecution Suit Filed By Defendant In E-Mail Privacy Prosecution Dismissed

FCC Issues Order Requiring Broadband And VoIP To Allow For Law Enforcement Wiretaping

Two Canadian Courts Issue Rulings On Jurisdiction Over U.S. Media In Internet Defamation Cases
Two Canadian provincial courts issued rulings in cases seeking to hold U.S. media companies liable for alleged defamation in statements contained in their online publications. In Bangoura v. The Washington Post, C41379 (Ontario Ct. App. Sep. 16, 2005), the Ontario Court of Appeals ruled that an Ontario court should not exercise jurisdiction to in a defamation brought against the Washington Post, for statements made concerning the plaintiff in both the print and online editions of the publication.

Use Of Automatic Dialing System To Send Text Messages To Cellular Telephones Violates TCPA
The use of an automatic dialing system to send messages to cellular telephones in the Short Messaging Service (SMS) format constitutes a "call" that violates the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). Joffe v. Acacia Mortgage Corp., No. CA-CV 02-0701 (Ariz. Ct. App., Sep. 20, 2005). The appeals court ruled that the prohibition in the TCPA against the use of automatic dialing systems to make "any call" to a telephone number assigned to a cellular telephone service was not limited to two-way real time voice intercommunications. The court noted that its interpretation of the term "call" was consistent with other provisions of the TCPA that prohibit making a call to a cellular or residential telephone number using an artificial or prerecorded voice, a form of call that "has no potential for a real time voice intercommunication."

Sale Of Data Generated By Licensed Technology Does Not Constitute A License Or Sublicense To Third Party
A licensor's use of a licensed technology to internally generate data that is then provided to third parties does not constitute an unauthorized license or sublicense of the technology. Digital Envoy, Inc. v. Google, Inc., No. 5:04-cv-1497 (N.D. Cal. Sep. 8, 2005) The court noted that the participants in the Google AdSense program were "provided only with the results of Google's internal use of Digital's geo-targeting method" and were not granted the right to access or use Digital's proprietary data.

Novel legal issues in virtual property
In March 2005, Chinese newspapers reported that Qiu Chengwei, a 41-year-old player of the online game “Legend of Mir III,” called the police to report that a friend to whom he had loaned his Dragon Sabre (a videogame generated, enchanted virtual sword) had sold the virtual sword to another gamer for real money.

Automatic software licence checks are users' choice, says study
Most business enterprises are finding it increasinglydifficult to keep track of software licence compliance,with 72% of firms manually tracking compliance,or carrying out no tracking at all, according to a reportfrom the SIIA.

Games industry fights violent video law
The US games industry is gearing up to challenge aCalifornian law limiting children?s access to violentvideo games, after Governor Arnold Schwarzeneggersigned the new legislation into law on Friday.

Durant ends his data protection battle
Durant, who lost a landmark Court of Appeal ruling onthe meaning of "personal data" , has withdrawn hispetition to the House of Lords. This means the Houseof Lords will no longer review the Court of Appeal'snarrow interpretation of the definition.

Net power struggle nears climax
The US has got an image problem when it comes to the internet. It is seen as arrogant and determined to remain the sheriff of the world wide web, regardless of whatever the rest of the world may think.

Spammer's net name scam revealed
An internet spammer is in court following scams which allegedly netted him £1.5m over a number of years.

Web enjoys year of biggest growth
The web has grown more in 2005 than it did at the height of the dotcom boom, says a study.
In the year to October the web grew by more than 17 million sites, says monitoring firm Netcraft.

Google and Nasa in space venture
Web search firm Google has formed a partnership with US space agency Nasa in an effort to harness new technology which could boost the space programme

Yahoo on Content Collision Course?
Internet giant Yahoo's decision to create original news material may eventually change the way users look at the portal. But for now the strongest looks are coming from concerned content partners keeping a close eye on how their own content is faring on the site, say analysts.

Fear of SMS hacker attacks ‘unfounded’
COULD hackers put the cellular networks out of action by overloading their systems with massive volumes of text messages?

Are Your Secrets Safe?
Your name, your address, your Social Security number, your phone number, your driver's license, your car registration, your credit history, your birth certificate, your real estate deeds, your legal history, your fishing license, your military record, your insurance claims, your thumbprint, your DNA. That is just some of the information that data aggregator ChoicePoint might have collected on you and millions of other Americans.

Are Your Secrets Safe?
Your name, your address, your Social Security number, your phone number, your driver's license, your car registration, your credit history, your birth certificate, your real estate deeds, your legal history, your fishing license, your military record, your insurance claims, your thumbprint, your DNA. That is just some of the information that data aggregator ChoicePoint might have collected on you and millions of other Americans.

'Ethical hacker' reveals trade secrets
What comes to mind when you think of wireless Web surfing? It may not be security, or lack of it. There are nearly 30,000 public wireless "hot spots" in the United States at places such as parks and cafes, but there's more to consider than just where to log on. The convenience comes with a caveat.

A convicted hacker debunks some myths
To many, the name Kevin Mitnick is synonymous with hacking, the cinematic sort where a snot-nosed kid thumbs his nose at authority. But, Mitnick says, the characterization is a bit overdone and the legend untrue, if not libelous.

A convicted hacker debunks some myths
To many, the name Kevin Mitnick is synonymous with hacking, the cinematic sort where a snot-nosed kid thumbs his nose at authority. But, Mitnick says, the characterization is a bit overdone and the legend untrue, if not libelous.

Thursday, October 13, 2005
 
  The Art of Effective Web Searching
The search industry is evolving rapidly, and more tools for information retrieval and information sharing are being developed daily. Search engines are also learning how to personalize results based on the user's individual habits. They are incorporating more and more of the deep vertical data into their primary search interface.

The Art of Effective Web Searching
The search industry is evolving rapidly, and more tools for information retrieval and information sharing are being developed daily. Search engines are also learning how to personalize results based on the user's individual habits. They are incorporating more and more of the deep vertical data into their primary search interface.

Wednesday, October 12, 2005
 
  Telkom spoils the party
Some participants of the Department of Communications-led colloquium on high telecommunications prices accused Telkom of adopting delaying tactics.

Draft privacy protection law released
Protection of privacy and data draft legislation and discussion documents have been issued by the SA Law Reform Commission for public comment. The aim is to bring SA closer to international standards.

The Six Dumbest Ideas in Computer Security
There's lots of innovation going on in security - we're inundated with a steady stream of new stuff and it all sounds like it works just great. Every couple of months I'm invited to a new computer security conference, or I'm asked to write a foreword for a new computer security book. And, thanks to the fact that it's a topic of public concern and a "safe issue" for politicians, we can expect a flood of computer security-related legislation from lawmakers. So: computer security is definitely still a "hot topic." But why are we spending all this time and money and still having problems?

Microsoft, RealNetworks End Legal Battle
A bitter legal battle ended today when Microsoft and RealNetworks announced a $761 million settlement of Real's antitrust lawsuit against Microsoft.

Victims coughing up to online extortionists
Online bookmakers who become victims of online extortion attacks more often than not pay up, according to an IBM security researcher. Martin Overton of IBM Global Services said those at the receiving end of denial of service attacks also often fail to report assaults to police despite improved policy procedures to guard the anonymity of victims in the UK and elsewhere.

Bank of America notifying customers after laptop theft
Users of the Bank of America Corp.'s Visa Buxx prepaid debit cards are being warned that they may have had sensitive information compromised after the theft of an unencrypted laptop computer.

Phishers Plant Fake Google Toolbar
Phishers are playing off Google's brand name, a security researcher said Wednesday, by flooding IM and IRC with messages that lead to a download of a bogus Google toolbar whose sole purpose is to steal credit card information.

Get ready for eight patches, says Microsoft
As part of its monthly patching cycle, Microsoft on Tuesday plans to release eight security alerts for flaws in the Windows operating system.

Nordea closes web service after fraud attack
Nordea bank has closed its internet service "until further notice" following a sophisticated scam which lured customers into giving away their account details.

U.K. hackers jailed for global computer worm plot
Two British hackers were jailed today for helping to spread a computer worm that affected thousands of machines around the world, including some at the U.S. Department of Defense.

Dutch Police Arrest Three Men for Allegedly Hacking 100,000 Computers
The three suspected of hacking 100,000 computers around the world are also believed to have blackmailed an unnamed U.S. company by threatening it with a denial-of-service attack, where thousands of computers that have been infected are used to bombard a target with data packets.

Symantec brings Microsoft complaint to EU
Security software vendor Symantec Corp. has complained to European Commission antitrust regulators about Microsoft Corp.'s entrance into the security business, setting the stage for a possible antitrust case against the software company, the Dow Jones Newswire reported yesterday.

Microsoft Rolls Out Virtualized Licensing
Yankee Group senior analyst Laura DiDio said that, because of its image and past licensing schemes, Microsoft had to take an even more aggressive strategy in terms of adjusting and simplifying its terms and conditions, which are now more "straightforward and simple." "They had to be more progressive and actually had to give more," she said.

Massive Botnet Disrupted by Police
The authorities are also investigating the group's involvement in a blackmail attempt on an unnamed enterprise in the United States. It is common practice among online crime gangs to extort the owners of Web sites, forcing them to pay to prevent a DoS attack on their networks.

Britney Spears pulls costume bra from eBay auction
Oops! ... It happened again. Britney Spears' jewel-encrusted bra has been removed for a second time from Internet auction site eBay -- this time by the pop singer herself.

Google fixes Web site security bug
Google has fixed a security flaw on its Web site that opened the door to phishing scams, account hijacks and other attacks, security researchers said Monday.

Tuesday, October 11, 2005
 
  Forgotten patch led to government site hack
Administrators forgot to install a patch that allowed a vulnerability to be exploited by hackers, causing 20 South African government Web sites to be attacked and defaced over the past weekend, says a government official.

Virus hits PSP devices
The Trojan that could render PlayStation Portable (PSP) devices useless has been spotted in the wild.
The Trojan, Trojan.PSPBrick, was first reported late last week. It flashes critical system files and shows a message “Your PSP 2.0 is hacked, please reboot”. However, it renders the console unbootable.

UK men jailed over TK worm
Two British men have been jailed for helping to spread an Internet worm that affected thousands of PCs around the world.
Computerworld reports that the two, Jordan Bradley (22) and Andrew Harvey (23) were part of an international group called "TH34t Krew" that created the TK worm, a Trojan horse that surfaced on the Internet sometime before February 2003.
Officers from the UK's National Hi-Tech Crime Unit estimated that the worm caused millions of dollars in damage, infecting 18 000 computers around the world. The program could also take control of computers it infected.

Monday, October 10, 2005
 
  Hong Kong seeks new avenue of attack on piracy
Hong Kong - A Hong Kong recording industry body said on Thursday it is seeking tougher measures against online piracy and is exploring ways to bring offenders to court.The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) Hong Kong Group last month tried to curb online piracy by sending instant warning messages to people found sharing unauthorised music files on the Internet.Although 1 000 messages have been sent out to uploaders a day, the action has failed to stop piracy, said Ricky Fung, chief executive officer of IFPI Hong Kong Group, which represents 90 percent of recording music companies in the territory.

Web enjoys year of biggest growth
The web has grown more in 2005 than it did at the height of the dotcom boom, says a study.
In the year to October the web grew by more than 17 million sites, says monitoring firm Netcraft.
This figure exceeds the growth of 16 million sites seen in 2000 when net fever reached its most intense pitch.

SA govt sites hacked
Several South African government Web sites were defaced during the past few days and a security expert warns there is a likelihood of them being attacked again soon.
Yesterday, the
www.gov.za site and several linked sites including www.gcis.gov.za were hacked and defaced by a group called “byond crew”, which specialises in targeting open source operating systems.

Put the kettle on... by SMS
Scientists have invented a kettle that can be turned on by text message.You can turn it on without getting off the couch or on the way home from work by texting the words "switch on".

KICK THE DOOR DOWN
The director of an education group is so fed up with high telecom prices, outdated legislation and limited infrastructure, he’s developing wireless networks for poor rural communities even though he doesn’t have a licence.

Oilgate: Press freedom crisis looms
Two impending court dates related to the Mail & Guardian’s Oilgate exposé, which revealed that Imvume Management diverted R11-million in public funds to the African National Congress, are set to severely test the rights of South African journalists to protect confidential sources of information.

TVs and PCs 'take over US homes'
The average American spends more time using media such as TV and the internet than sleeping, a study has found. US researchers found that Americans spend nine hours a day watching TV, using the web or talking on a mobile.

Former White House staffer investigated
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A former Marine who worked at the White House is under investigation for allegedly misusing his top-secret clearance to steal classified information from computers, multiple U.S. government sources told CNN late Wednesday.

Australian court rules 'mod chips' legal
SYDNEY, Australia - Australia's High Court ruled unanimously Thursday that modifying Sony PlayStation consoles so that they can play cheaper overseas versions of the company's games does not violate Australian copyright laws

Nokia to inoculate phones with antivirus
Nokia has entered a pact with Symantec to help secure its mobile phones from viruses that target certain kinds of handsets. Under the agreement, announced Wednesday, Nokia plans to arm its Series 60 smart phones with the Symantec Mobile Security antivirus program. The software is designed to ward off attacks that could compromise the extensive data, such as contact databases, that people store on their smart phones, the companies said. The devices typically have many computer-like features, including e-mail and Web browsing, which have made them vulnerable to attacks.

Internet crime shifts to Russia
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Trafficking in stolen credit cards has largely shifted to Russian - language Web sites after an international crackdown sparked disarray among English-speaking scam artists, a U.S. Secret Service official said on Wednesday

Saturday, October 08, 2005
 
  Delaware Supreme Court Declines to Unmask a Blogger
The Delaware Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that if an elected official claims he has been defamed by an anonymous blogger, he cannot use a lawsuit to unmask the writer unless he has substantial evidence to prove his claim.

Kansas judge ousted for watching porn
The Kansas Supreme Court on Friday ousted a county judge for viewing Internet pornography on his office computer.

Friday, October 07, 2005
 
  EU to follow Google's lead with online library
Google's internet library project will face competitionfrom Yahoo!, but also from a less predictable rival:the European Commission announced its own plan onFriday. And it has an advantage: if copyright

Mod chips legal in Australia, says Court
Mod chips - technology that can be used to bypassthe regional and piracy protections on PlayStation 2consoles - are not illegal, the Australian High Courttoday told Sony Australia and its parent companies.

Wednesday, October 05, 2005
 
  Government opts for 'open choice'
The Department of Communications' Universal Services Agency has qualified the government's IT policy by saying the emphasis is more on "open choice" than "open source". The agency's CEO Sam Gulube was defending the choice of Microsoft as a partner for a new initiative aimed at improving technology to every South African citizen that was announced at Gallagher Estate in Midrand.

Beware of ‘phlooding' attacks
A new wireless LAN security threat has emerged involving a group of simultaneous, but geographically distributed, attacks that target a business's authentication or network log-in structure, says Concillium Technologies security specialist Craig Rosewarne.

Number portability gets green light
The long-awaited regulations regarding number portability have been promulgated and published in the Government Gazette. Communications minister Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri approved the regulations in terms of section 96 of the Telecommunications Act.

Interception Act now in effect
[Cape Town ITWeb, 4 October 2005] - Legislation dealing with the interception of communications is now in effect after being published in the Government Gazette with the date of operation set at 30 September.
The Regulation of Interception of Communications and Provision of Communications-Related Information Act, number 70 of 2002, and also known as RICA, was passed by Parliament and promulgated on 30 December 2002.

XML software patent opposition headed for court?
Microsoft refused to voluntarily surrender the patent late last month and said they would respond to the case made against them during revocation proceedings. Now anti-patent advocates are preparing to file a revocation order with South Africa's patent authorities.
"They turned down our very generous offer for them to voluntarily surrender their patents," says University of South Africa senior lecturer, Bob Jolliffe, who has lead the challenge against the patent. "They are now waiting to see what happens."

Interception Act now in effect
[Cape Town ITWeb, 4 October 2005] - Legislation dealing with the interception of communications is now in effect after being published in the Government Gazette with the date of operation set at 30 September.
The Regulation of Interception of Communications and Provision of Communications-Related Information Act, number 70 of 2002, and also known as RICA, was passed by Parliament and promulgated on 30 December 2002.

Tuesday, October 04, 2005
 
  Interception Act now in effect
Legislation dealing with the interception of communications is now in effect after being published in the Government Gazette with the date of operation set at 30 September. The Regulation of Interception of Communications and Provision of Communications-Related Information Act, number 70 of 2002, and also known as RICA, was passed by Parliament and promulgated on 30 December 2002.

Patent Office opinions service launched
The UK Patent Office launched an opinions service on Saturday, allowing businesses or individuals to ask the Office for an expert opinion on an issue of suspected patent infringement or validity.

Brits confuse dogging with blogging
Proponents of the latest Web trends were warned on Tuesday that the rest of the world may not have a clue what they are talking about.

Ruling on beheading video could stop joke emails
Subhaan Younis, 23, sentenced to 60 days for breach of the peace. Guest jailed for showing hotel worker beheading video on mobile phone. Top lawyer says ruling could be a test case for graphic office joke e-mails.

Theater piracy law snags first victim
A new federal law aimed at discouraging camcorder-equipped movie pirates has snared its first catch. Federal prosecutors said Curtis Salisbury, 19, pleaded guilty on Monday to using a camcorder to record movies in a St. Louis, Mo., theater and distributing his recording on the Internet.

Google, Nasa join forces
Internet search powerhouse Google has teamed up with the US space agency Nasa to do space age research at a sprawling new campus at a former military air base in Silicon Valley, officials announced on Wednesday.

Microsoft CEO makes free-software pledge
MICROSOFT is making an effort to get its technologies into the hands of a new segment of society by pledging free software for all 284 government-backed community technology centres.

Patent Office Deals Blow to Microsoft, Internet Explorer
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) this week dealt Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) a blow that may not be a knock-out punch, but comes pretty close to hobbling its argument that Internet Explorer (IE) does not infringe on a Web browser patent because prior art makes the patent invalid.

Digital music revenue 'triples'
Digital music sale revenue tripled in the first half of 2005 compared with 2004, figures have suggested.

US school swaps books for bytes
A school in Arizona, US, has thrown out its paper-based text books and is relying solely on laptops and digital material to teach its pupils.

Yahoo backs digital library plan
Yahoo is taking on Google with its own digital archive of books, audio and video.

New worm spoofs Google, Yahoo and MSN sites
Security experts have discovered a malicious program aimed at tricking users into clicking on phony search results on fake Google, Yahoo and MSN sites.

Trojan rides in on unpatched Office flaw
A new Trojan horse exploits an unpatched flaw in Microsoft Office and could let an attacker commandeer vulnerable computers, security experts have warned.

UN telcom agency says would be ready to run Internet
The United Nations' International Telecommunications Union (ITU) is ready to take over governance of the Internet from the United States., ITU head Yoshio Utsumi said on Friday.

Who rules cyberspace?
Who is really in charge of cyberspace? It is tempting to suggest that the answer, in what is often seen as an unruly democracy, is nobody and everybody.

Yahoo backs digital library plan
Yahoo is taking on Google with its own digital archive of books, audio and video. As part of the Open Content Alliance, Yahoo will help digitise 18,000 works of American literature plus material from national and European archives.

Whose fault is it anyway?
Problems with the iPod nano may embarrass Apple, but at least users get defective hardware replaced. Technology analyst Bill Thompson thinks it is time for software vendors to accept their liability.

Where might Google go next?
In just seven years, Google Inc. has morphed from a bare-bones online search engine into a technological octopus that seems to sprout another intriguing tentacle every other week.

Monday, October 03, 2005
 
  LAW SHOULD HELP BLOCK JUNK
Internet service providers are lobbying government for a change in the law to ensure companies are protected from electronic junk mail. Spam is more than a nuisance, it’s a financial drag on businesses, says technology lawyer Ryk Meiring.

FIXED-LINE TUG OF WAR
Cities want to offer cheaper telecoms to businesses; Telkom is suspicious A battle is looming between Telkom and municipalities over cheaper local telecom services. Many municipalities, fed up with the high cost of telecoms, plan to develop their own telecom networks in a bid to drive down prices. Local managers say they have given up on the market’s ability to provide cheaper services.

SA govt, Microsoft pact to uplift second economy
The pact between the South African government and the world's leading software and IT services group Microsoft will uplift the country's second economy, Communications Minister Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri and Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer said on Monday.

Trojan rides in on unpatched Office flaw
A new Trojan horse exploits an unpatched flaw in Microsoft Office and could let an attacker commandeer vulnerable computers, security experts have warned.

Yahoo backs digital library plan
Yahoo is taking on Google with its own digital archive of books, audio and video.
As part of the Open Content Alliance, Yahoo will help digitise 18,000 works of American literature plus material from national and European archives.
It hopes to avoid the legal action that has dogged Google's plan by adopting an opt-in policy on copyrighted works.
Google has been sued by the Authors Guild over its plan to digitise books and make them freely available.

Trojan attacks MS Office
A new Trojan horse exploits an unpatched flaw in Microsoft Office and could let an attacker commandeer vulnerable computers, security experts have warned.
CNET reports the malicious code takes advantage of a flaw in Microsoft's Jet Database Engine, a lightweight database used in the company's Office productivity software.

U.N. Management of Internet 'Unacceptable'
The U.S. is flatly opposed to any proposal that cedes control of the Internet to the United Nations (U.N.), despite a shift in support from the European Union (EU).
The comments were made in the wake of talks to create a subsidiary intergovernmental group to manage the Internet.
"We will not agree to the U.N. taking over the management of the Internet," said David Gross, the U.S. ambassador and coordinator for international communications and information policy at the U.S. Department of State, according to a news report by Associated Press . "Some countries want that. We think that's unacceptable."

Hacker hits University of Georgia employee records server
SEPTEMBER 29, 2005 (COMPUTERWORLD) - About 1,600 current and former employees of the University of Georgia are being notified that their Social Security numbers, stored on a campus server, may have been seen by a hacker operating from a foreign country.

Limewire preps 'piracy-prevention' barriers
LimeWire developers are working of code modifications that will prevent users of future versions of the popular P2P client from sharing copyrighted works. Future versions of the software may check to see if material presented for sharing is copyrighted before blocking sharing if no suitable license can be found, Slyck reports (http://www.slyck.com/news.php?story=927). Users would still have the ability to trade their own work or files they have permission to distribute via a Creative Commons license.

FTC Launches Aggressive Campaign to Educate Online Consumers
"The prevalence of reports about phishing and identity theft may scare some shoppers enough to prompt them to change their online behavior," Johnson told the E-Commerce Times. That's one reason why the industry is and should be backing efforts to educate consumers.

Record industry sues hundreds for file-sharing
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A trade group representing the U.S. music industry said on Thursday it filed lawsuits against 757 people it claims used online file-sharing networks to illegally trade in copyrighted songs.

Canada record biz seeks tougher downloading law
TORONTO (Hollywood Reporter) - Canadian record companies on Thursday urged the Canadian government to get tough on teenage music downloaders, as they expressed frustration with efforts to tighten copyright laws.

WASPA cracks down on SMS porn
The Wireless Application Service Providers Association (WASPA) is taking a firm stance to regulate SA's R50 million adult mobile content industry, but the organisation is adamant it is not engaging in censorship.

US rejects changes to net control
The US has rejected calls by European Union (EU) officials to give control of the net over to a more representative United Nations (UN) body.
Wrangling over who should essentially be the net police, managing domain names and net traffic routing fairly, has been going on for some time.

Pod Slurping: Threat or Hype?
"We're a little bit worried about it because people can put sensitive content onto these devices and move it around," Gartner Group Research Vice President Rich Mogull said. "But we're more worried about accidental loss of the devices than people using them for malicious purposes."

Saturday, October 01, 2005
 
  Most adverts for loans break the law, says OFT
Over 60% of advertisements in regional newspapers,and 68% in car magazines, failed fully to complywith new advertising regulations, according to a reviewcarried out by the Office of Fair Trading and tradingstandards services across the UK.

Font firm loses copyright claim
Monotype Imaging, formerly known as Agfa Monotype,has lost a copyright dispute over a rival's font softwarethat replicates typeface designs. It alleged breaches ofits copyrights, its trade mark rights and also theDigital Millennium Copyright Act.

Telkom may keep its power
Prices could still stay high, even with a second network operator. People open their fat Telkom phone bills with impatience every month. They are tired of paying huge telephone bills and cannot wait for a competitor to come sailing along to challenge Telkom’s monopoly and bring down prices for everyone.

Technology-shy
SA’s slide by one position in the World Economic Forum’s latest global competitiveness rankings, released earlier this week, may well be dismissed as insignificant. After all, the rankings are, to an extent, based on perceptions rather than hard data and SA’s decline, from 41 to 42 on the 177 country ranking, was minimal.

 

 

 

  BUYS LINKS

TERMS AND CONDITIONS
BUYS INCORPORATED WEBSITE
CONTACT US
SUBSCRIBE TO NEWSLETTER
SYNDICATE VIA RSS FEED
VIEW OUR LATEST EVENTS
RECENTLY SUSPENDED DOMAINS
WHO GOT HACKED IN SA TODAY


GUIDES

INTERCEPTION ACT GUIDE
TOP 5 ICT RISKS
CONVERGENCE BILL GUIDE
JUDGMENTS 1998 - 2005


ONLINE SERVICES

ORDER PAIA MANUAL
REQUEST WEBSITE AUDIT


BLOG ARCHIVES
April 2004
May 2004
June 2004
July 2004
August 2004
September 2004
October 2004
November 2004
December 2004
January 2005
February 2005
March 2005
April 2005
May 2005
June 2005
July 2005
August 2005
September 2005
October 2005
November 2005
December 2005
January 2006
February 2006
March 2006
April 2006
May 2006
June 2006
July 2006
August 2006
September 2006
October 2006
November 2006
December 2006
January 2007
February 2007
March 2007
April 2007
May 2007
June 2007
July 2007
August 2007
September 2007
October 2007
November 2007
December 2007
January 2008
February 2008
March 2008
April 2008
May 2008
June 2008
July 2008
August 2008
September 2008
October 2008
November 2008
December 2008
January 2009
February 2009
March 2009
May 2009
June 2009
July 2009
August 2009