CueCat profiling potential described Privacy from Companies9/26/2000; 9:26:38 AM 'Freebie bar-code scanner CueCat, which enables users to swipe bar codes in print media and have their browser immediately directed to related information on the Web, uses software which transmits all the information that maker Digital:Convergence would need to record every bar code that every user scans, and which could be used to profile users, an advisory by the Privacy Foundation explains.

A Watchdog With Some Bite Privacy from Companies9/26/2000; 9:16:19 AM 'Based at the University of Denver, the Privacy Foundation joins a dozen or so other watchdogs – including the Electronic Privacy Information Center, the Center for Democracy and Technology and the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse – guarding consumer privacy. But as an independent foundation, it should have more clout than industry groups such as TRUSTe and the Network Advertising Initiative, which police their own members.

Defanging Carnivore Surveillance and Privacy from Government 9/25/2000; 8:36:04 PM This is an excellent interview with the author of Altivore, explaining the reasoning more clearly then the other coverage I've seen. Makes a lot of sense to me. Re: Security firm tests FBI limits with e-mail surveillance tool on Sept. 20, 2000.

Little bit o' Javascript helps site scanning Fun Stuff!9/25/2000; 8:13:14 PM For those who scan the same basic set of sites daily it can be easy to miss one or two in a day. So I added in a bit of Javascript on my sources page that will pop open a window easily for each source in the list. It's easy to add sources with Manila (though there's nothing Manila-specific about the script).

Secrets & Lies: Digital security in a networked world Misc. 9/24/2000; 1:07:40 PM 'The following is an edited excerpt from "Secrets and Lies: Digital Security in a Networked World" by Bruce Schneier.' This is a good chance to read some very good material without buying the book. Please do read this.

How do you make online privacy policies stick? Privacy from Companies9/24/2000; 1:00:18 PM 'So perhaps it's time to look at privacy policies and opt-in agreements as legal contracts or license agreements. Digital signatures have been around for years and the law is starting to recognize them. So why couldn't a company draw up a virtual contract on privacy that's binding on both sides? Every time I click on a licensing agreement, I'm warned how I might be subjected to imprisonment, fines, and fierce noogies from the Feds should I violate it.

Universities Snub Napster Ban Request Music & MP39/22/2000; 3:17:15 PM 'In a broad rebuke to attorneys representing the artists Metallica and Dr. Dre, four prominent universities rejected the request to ban Napster access on their campuses yesterday.'The Boston Globe reported yesterday that Harvard is expected to respond similarly next week.'Excellent. (This is a follow-up from a Sept. 8, 2000.)

Thousands Sign Up to Sell Votes Political Speech9/22/2000; 2:27:06 PM 'Boasting of the more than 6,000 Americans who have signed up to auction off their presidential votes to the highest bidder -- illegal activity under the laws of every state in the union -- Voteauction is now detailing its plans to begin an outreach campaign. 'Using its "Voter Empowerment Kits" and "Action Teams," the company claims in a press release that it can reach more potential customers and facilitate voter fraud without the intervention of an online middleman.

Rio's Pyrrhic victory Music & MP3 9/20/2000; 3:24:41 PM 'But 15 months after Diamond's victory, as Napster and MP3.com fight for their lives in court after suffering a string of lopsided judicial defeats, observers are wondering whether some in Silicon Valley read too much into the Diamond win. The landmark case may instead have provided, as Emusic chairman Bob Kohn puts it, "a false sense of security" among pioneering online music players -- thus setting up the current litigants for a big fall.

What iRights Isn't Personal Commentary9/20/2000; 3:02:27 PM In the original incarnation of the last article about Apple licensing Amazon's one-click patent (which was never publicly posted), I started to get into my posting policy for this site, which has developed over the last 8 months I've been running this site. I decided to pull it out seperately.I see iRights' primary purpose as covering issues, not news. While a lot of news makes it onto the site, I always try to make sure it relates to the issues.