The current events in Iran have spurred digital rights advocates to renew calls for Congress to investigate deep packet inspection technology. This morning, groups including the Open Internet Coalition, Free Press, Public Knowledge and the ACLU wrote to Congress to ask for hearings about how U.S. companies are using deep packet inspection, or “virtual wiretap”…
Google monopoly means packet snooping
Richard Bennett, a Silicon Valley network architect and technical consultant, offers some commentary in The Register today about what he characterizes as a “fit of temporary sanity” in Washington over regulating online behavioral advertising. From his commentary: The new consensus dictates that the key issues are the protection of archived information from abuse, consumer notification…
SCOTUS won’t hear Rx data-mining case
The wire services are reporting that the Supreme Court has denied certiorari in an appeal filed by IMS Health and Verispan. The companies were appealing a New Hampshire law that protects physicians’ prescription-writing data from data-mining companies that ana collect, analyze and sell that information to boost drug sales. The companies argued that the law…
Warrantless wiretaps fly under Canada’s radar
Surveillance issues are becoming more of a hot topic in Canada these days. Today, CBC News reports there have been at least 267 cases between 2000 and 2008 where major police forces across the country used warrantless wiretaps. Apart from the story, it’s interesting to read the comments on the story as the posters are…