U.S. ‘Hacker’ Crackdown Sparks Debate Over Computer Fraud Law
In June 2010, Andrew Auernheimer, a well-known Internet security expert, discovered a gaping hole in AT&T’s website that exposed 114,000 email addresses belonging to the wireless giant’s Apple iPad customers. After a colleague downloaded the data, Auernheimer passed the information to a journalist at the wesbite Gawker. The episode was a major embarrassment for AT&T because the list included thousands of high-profile individuals, including New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and then-White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel. AT&T quickly patched the hole. The FBI promptly launched an investigation, and last November, Auernheimer was convicted of two felony counts under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), a 1980s-era law originally designed to punish and deter intrusions into government and financial industry computer systems. His colleague, Daniel Spitler, pleaded guilty last year. On Monday, Auernheimer, 27, was sentenced to 41 months in prison and ordered to pay $73,000 ...
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Yahoo, Apple Discuss Deeper iPhone Partnership
Yahoo and Apple have been discussing how more Yahoo services can play a prominent role on Apple's iPhone and iPad.
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Google’s Android Target of New Antitrust Complaint
BRUSSELS — A group of companies led by Microsoft have called on European authorities to launch an antitrust investigation into Google‘s dominance of mobile Internet usage on smartphones. The “FairSearch” initiative of 17 companies — which includes Microsoft, Nokia, and Oracle — claims Google is acting unfairly by giving away its Android operating system to mobile device companies on the condition that the U.S. online giant’s own software applications like YouTube and Google Maps are installed and prominently displayed. “Google is using its Android mobile operating system as a Trojan horse to deceive partners, monopolize the mobile marketplace, and control consumer data,” said Thomas Vinje, the group’s Brussels-based lawyer. (MORE: Was Instagram Really Worth $1 Billion?) Android operating systems are installed on about 70 percent of new smartphones, according to analyst estimates, handing Google the largest market share worldwide, followed by Apple‘s iOS platform. Systems ...
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FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski Stepping Down After Contentious Term
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski will announce on Friday that he is stepping down, according to multiple reports. Genachowski, who became chairman in 2009, has presided over an agency that has grappled with contentious issues like U.S. broadband policy, cable and telecom industry competition, and media consolidation. In seeking to strike a centrist balance, Genachowski managed to alienate both public interest groups that have pushed for a more activist FCC on issues like media ownership and Internet openness, as well as industry giants, particularly AT&T, which had proposed buying T-Mobile before the FCC objected. Verizon Wireless is currently suing the FCC in federal court over the agency’s “network neutrality” rules.In seeking to strike a centrist balance, Genachowski managed to alienate both public interest groups that have pushed for a more activist FCC on issues like media ownership and Internet openness, as well as industry giants, particularly ...
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FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski Stepping Down After Contentious Term: Reports
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski will announce on Friday that he is stepping down, according to multiple reports. Genachowski, who became chairman in 2009, has presided over an agency that has grappled with contentious issues like U.S. broadband policy, cable and telecom industry competition, and media consolidation. In seeking to strike a centrist balance, Genachowski managed to displease both public interest groups that have pushed for a more activist FCC on issues like media ownership and Internet openness, as well as industry giants, particularly AT&T, which had proposed buying T-Mobile before the FCC objected. Genachowski’s announcement, which was expected, comes just days after another FCC commissioner, Robert McDowell, announced his plan to leave the agency. Their departures create two vacancies on the commission, which will be filled by candidates nominated by President Obama. The job of FCC chairman is particularly important, because the position ...
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