In India, accessing a blocked website potentially carries a 3 year sentence
According to a government sanctioned warning on blocked torrent sites, using the Internet to access a blocked website in India could result in a ~$4,500 USD fine as well as…
General Privacy News
NSA: “We must know everything” – a reminder
The NSA has been out of the newsflow for a while, until some unknown hacker group decided to copy their tools and offer them for sale at one million bitcoin…
UK Court: ISPs have to block *trademark* infringements in addition to copyright infringements
In a world first, a UK Appeals court has ruled that ISPs have an obligation to censor sites that infringe trademarks off the Internet, building on previous rulings that say…
Court rules that ISPs do not need to give up information on alleged pirates, copyright infringers
An American Internet Service Provider (ISP) has received validation that it does not have to give up personal details of alleged copyright infringers. The Eastern Virginia District Court has denied…
It’s been over a month since the Indian government shut down Internet access in Jammu and Kashmir
Starting on July 8th, the Indian government ordered ISPs and telecommunication companies to shut down Internet and mobile phone access in Jammu and Kashmir in response to the protests. The…
You don’t have Freedom of Speech without Privacy
Freedom of Speech is the idea that you can discuss ideas without fear of harassment. But the judicial protection is actually quite weak; it only protects you from repercussions from…
As 3D printers break through, EU expands copyright to furniture and extends term by a century
The UK has just changed its copyright-and-patent monopoly law to extend copyright to furniture and to extend the term of that copyright on furniture with about a century. This follows…
Study: people will risk getting shot to replace everyday safety with privacy
Once upon a time, a population with homogeneous culture and language was divided into two halves. One half got almost-perfect safety, full employment and living wages, while the other half…
FBI violated the Fourth Amendment while recording 214 hours of audio at a California courthouse, according to Federal Judge
According to a recent ruling by a Federal Judge in the Ninth District Courts, the FBI violated the Fourth Amendment when obtaining 214 hours of audio recordings. The offending surveillance occurred at…
How copyright is irreparably, fundamentally incompatible with privacy
Copyright and privacy cannot coexist. Society is at a crossroads where only one of these will exist in the future, and the copyright industry has been working hard to erode…