April 2014 – Duane Morris TechLaw

April 24, 2014May 20, 2016 by Eric J. Sinrod

Cyber Insurance Becoming a Necessity for Online Businesses

This blog for years has highlighted the potential risks and liabilities presented by communications and activities on the Internet. The Internet provides the possibility of privacy violations, security breaches, intellectual property disputes, defamation, hack attacks, and even cyber warfare, among other threats.

So what should companies do to be as safe as possible as they conduct business over the Internet?

In addition to implementing security and protective measures, companies more and more are turning to cyber insurance policies in an effort to protect their exposure to Internet risks.

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April 16, 2014May 20, 2016 by Eric J. Sinrod

UN Homicide Report Shows the World Is Not a Safe Place

Recently, this blog has touched on how warfare between nations in the digital era includes cyberattacks. And now, just as we already are feeling less than safe, the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime (the UNODC) has released some homicide statistics that can make us feel even more vulnerable.

According to the UNODC study, as many as 437,000 people were murdered around the world in 2012 alone. Here’s what else the study found:

Of all of the world’s homicide victims, almost 80 percent were men; 95 percent of the perpetrators were also men.

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April 9, 2014May 20, 2016 by Eric J. Sinrod

Is Cyberwar Happening Right Now in Ukraine?

This blog recently discussed whether international mechanisms exist to award damages caused by potential cyberwars. And now it appears that a cyberwar actually is taking place with respect to Ukraine.

Press accounts have been rampant in terms of the turmoil over Crimea, Russia, and Ukraine. And while there have been possible threats of physical force, there also have been reports of disruption of mobile communications as a result of distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks.

The Christian Science Monitor reports that 42 cyberattacks hit Ukrainian government websites during Crimea’s vote to secede from Ukraine and join Russia. On top of that, there reportedly has been defacement of some Ukrainian state-run news websites and social media outlets, with pro-Russian propaganda replacing their original content.

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April 2, 2014May 20, 2016 by Eric J. Sinrod

WTO Nixes China’s Restrictions on Rare Earth Exports

In early 2012, the United States sought a World Trade Organization (WTO) consultation regarding China’s restrictions on the export of tungsten and molybdenum — forms of “rare earths.” These rare earths are raw materials that are used in the production of some electronics products. Subsequently, the European Union, Japan and Canada requested to join the consultation. China then accepted the request for a WTO consultation.

In support of the restrictions, China argued that they are related to the conservation of exhaustible natural resources. China also asserted that they are needed to reduce mining pollution.

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