Political News from Wired News - What to Do with DNA Data?.

Current laws regarding DNA databases may not be sufficient to protect people's privacy, according to some members of a US government panel.

The FBI's DNA advisory panel during a meeting Tuesday questioned whether sufficient safeguards exist to prevent the unauthorized access and release of DNA samples all 50 states collect from crime scenes and some criminals.

Only three states, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Virginia, currently prohibit the unauthorized release of that genetic material [...] New York City mayor Rudolph Giuliani has requested that the state legislature require DNA samples from every newborn baby.

ACLU Press Release: 11-18-99 -- Groups Initiate Court Challenge to FBI Wiretap Standards; Say FCC Decision Threatens Communications Privacy.

The American Civil Liberties Union and the Electronic Privacy Information Center today asked a federal appeals court to block new rules that would enable the FBI to dictate the design of the nation's communication infrastructure.

The challenged rules would enable the Bureau to track the physical locations of cellular phone users and monitor Internet traffic. In a petition submitted today to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, the groups said that the rules -- contained in a Federal Communications Commission decision issued in August -- could result in a significant increase in government interception of digital communications.

ZDNet: News: Breaking News In Brief - ACLU sues over wiretap rules. Link may change when final article comes out

ZDNet: News: Industry takes new look at crypto regs. Has bureaucracy played its ugly hand? Companies say the regulation-writing process has muddied the new crypto rules.

ZDNet: News: What's your buddy's e-mail worth?. One e-commerce startup is offering a $5 discount for every e-mail address you provide. I wonder if they let the holder of the new E-mail address know who got the bounty for selling them out?? If they do, I wonder how long they will stay your buddy?

TheStandard.com: The Code Is the Law . by Lawrence Lessig

Three years ago, Congress passed the Communications Decency Act, trying to prevent "indecent" material from reaching kids. The Net went wild in opposition. About a year ago, Congress passed a second attempt to regulate indecency on the Net. No one seemed to notice.

Boston Globe Online / Business / Who'll rule cyberspace?. But even if you disagree with his politics, there are still a lot of stories and history that make this book an easy recommendation. ''Code and Other Laws of Cyberspace'' does a fabulous job pulling together the most important issues facing the Internet, from wiretapping and intellectual property protection to the battle between Microsoft and Linux. Just remember that this is Boston.com's comments not mine. I havn't read the book.

New York Times - free registration required Need for Computer Experts Makes Recruiters Frantic.

"Tech Web" (CMP) - Digital Wiretap Law Draws Court Challenge.

Privacy and telecommunications groups are challenging a digital wiretapping law in federal court.

The Electronic Privacy Information Center (Epic) and the American Civil Liberties Union asked a federal appeals court on Thursday to block new rules that give the Federal Bureau of Investigation the power to shape the design of telecommunications networks to ensure that they can be tapped.

"Tech Web" (CMP) - DSL Gets FCC Boost. The major local phone carriers will have to share their lines with rival high-speed Internet access providers, the Federal Communications Commission said Thursday.

Slashdot | Articles | Giving Project Gutenberg Recognition.

OpenSSH. The OpenBSD project produces a FREE version of the SSH suite of network connectivity tools that increasing numbers of people on the Internet are coming to rely on. We call this SSH suite by the name OpenSSH.

Slashdot | Articles | OpenSSH Project Now at openssh.com.

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