Researchers at Microsoft are working on new types of passwords that will be easier for people to remember but harder for hackers to crack.

The key--images, which tend to make more of an impression on people than strings of text characters.

LA Times - Bush Touts 'Smart' Border for the U.S. and Mexico.

The joint initiative with Mexico seeks to develop a "biometric" ID system--using such identifying characteristics as fingerprints or retina scans--for frequent travelers from both countries that would let them use commuter lanes at high-volume border crossings.

Business Insurance - HHS revises medical privacy rules.

The Health and Human Services Department's proposed revisions to a controversial medical records privacy rule are drawing generally favorable comments from health insurers.

The HHS Thursday announced its proposed changes to the rule, which was promulgated in late 2000. The rule currently requires hospitals, health insurers and other covered entities to receive written permission from patients before releasing certain medical information.

Among other revisions, the new HHS proposal would change consent requirements that it believes could have hindered access to care. The proposed changes would ensure parental access to children's medical records. The proposed changes, however, do not roll back the April 14, 2003, compliance deadline for most covered entities.

EFF - CAFE: Campaign for Audiovisual Free Expression.

The Campaign for Audiovisual Free Expression (CAFE) exists to empower the creative community in the digital age by protecting the public's access to and use of audiovisual technologies.

EFF Action ALERT: Oppose CBDTPA & Digital Media Mandates.

Imagine a world where all digital media technology is either mandatory or forbidden -- Senator Fritz Hollings and a cabal of Hollywood entertainment interests are cooking up a set of laws aimed at conjuring this apocalyptic world into existence.

Today, Senator Hollings introduced the alarming Consumer Broadband and Digital Television Promotion Act (CBDTPA), which will give Hollywood plutocrats the power to stall new digital media technologies for a year, negotiating a phony "consensus" at lawyer-point with technologists. This "consensus" will receive the force of law, prescribing which user-hostile features are mandatory and which innovative features are forbidden. CBDTPA is derived from the draft SSSCA (Security Systems & Standards Certification Act), the subject of our last alert.

Both the House and the Senate have called for comments on the future of digital music, an issue that is deeply entwined with technology mandates.