Here is a quick round-up of this week’s technology headlines and
related stories you may have missed:
·
China
is considering draft counterterrorism legislation that would require companies
build lawful interception capabilities into their products, often referred to
as “backdoors,” and turn over encryption keys to Chinese authorities upon
request. President Obama publically criticized the move, arguing that it would hurt
China’s economy as companies would be reluctant to remain in a market where
data can be transferred wholesale to the government. U.S. Trade Representative
Michael Froman commented that
China was using counterterrorism as a cover for protectionism. China is
brushing aside the criticism, arguing that it is simply adopting the same approach to lawful interception as the United
States and the United Kingdom. Civil liberties groups and technologists, not
ones to usually side with Beijing on anything, are piling on by pointing out the contradictions in
the U.S. position.
·
The
UN Economic, Social and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) held a two-day conference in Paris this week, where it released
a study on Internet policy issues related to its mandate, namely access to
knowledge, freedom of expression, privacy and ethics. Thestudy promotes the idea of “Internet
Universality,” whereby the Internet should promote human rights, remain open
and accessible to all, and that its development remains consistent with the
multistakeholder model. The study and accompanying conference outcome
document are
expected to feed into the WSIS+10 review process which will take place later
this year at the UN General Assembly.
·
Some cybersecurity experts
are questioning the
wisdom of Hillary Clinton’s use of a private e-mail account during her tenure as secretary of
state. It’s no secret that high-ranking government officials are prime target
for foreign intelligence organizations and using a private e-mail account to
conduct government business increases the risk of communications being
intercepted. Government e-mail accounts are protected byEINSTEIN, a
system run by the Department of Homeland Security that scans e-mails for
malware indicators, some of which are classified and supplied by the NSA,
though that doesn’t mean that government networks are clean. In November 2014,
the State Department shut down its unclassified e-mail network and
parts of its website after it detected “activities of concern” on its network
No comments:
Post a Comment