Duane Morris TechLaw

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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March 19, 2014May 20, 2016 by Eric J. Sinrod

After Uganda’s Anti-Gay Law, Countries Suspend Aid

Uganda’s president Yoweri Museveni recently signed legislation that severely punishes homosexuality in his country. Indeed, the new law provides for potential life in jail for gay sex — a fact that the bill’s sponsor touted on his Facebook page after Museveni signed it into law, the Los Angeles Times reports.

This legal development has led to an international uproar. Now some countries — including the United States — are taking retaliatory action.

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March 12, 2014May 20, 2016 by Eric J. Sinrod

What’s Up With Facebook’s Acquisition of WhatsApp?

WhatsApp, a messaging service that is often used for international texting and other services, is about to be gobbled up by Facebook, right?

Well, that is Facebook’s plan. Indeed, Facebook intends to fork over a hefty $19 billion to acquire WhatsApp. However, that is not the end of the story.

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March 5, 2014July 18, 2016 by Eric J. Sinrod

Bill Would Shine More Light on Gov’t Activities Under FOIA

The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) was enacted decades ago to enable the citizenry the opportunity to monitor governmental affairs. As FOIA precedent has held, the public is entitled to find out and know “what the government is up to.” Indeed, upon request, the government is required to provide information about its activities unless prohibited by a narrow statutory exemption or otherwise prevented by law.

Of course, statutory aspirations and actual production of information in practice are not always in harmony. There are times when government information is not produced within the timelines set forth in FOIA. Other times, information is not produced at all; for example, when the government is perceived to give too wide an interpretation on the applicability of a statutory exemption. Moreover, different administrations have different views on how open government should be when it comes to disclosing information under FOIA.

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February 18, 2014July 18, 2016 by Eric J. Sinrod

Is Facebook a Marriage Killer?

If you are married, you may wish to pause and consider how you behave on Facebook and other social media outlets. Why? Because as much as one-third of divorce filings in 2011 included the word “Facebook” within them, according to a report by ABCNews.com. And the numbers may be even higher a few years later.

On top of that, the article states that more than 80 percent of divorce attorneys report that social networking behavior is finding its way into divorce proceedings.

Facebook and other social media posts can be used to insinuate bad parenting, depending on the behavior displayed. They also can be referred to in an effort to suggest infidelity.

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February 11, 2014July 18, 2016 by Eric J. Sinrod

Talking Turkey: Is New Internet Law a Danger to Democracy?

Here in the United States, we are accustomed to freedom of speech guaranteed by the First Amendment of our Constitution.

Indeed, this freedom has been interpreted by the courts to include the freedom to speak freely on the Internet, even anonymously. (However, if such speech causes harm, it is possible that anonymity will be unmasked so that the victim of the speech can seek legal redress).

Unfortunately, other countries are not as open in terms of safeguarding the ability of people to speak their minds — and in this case, Turkey is among them.

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February 5, 2014July 18, 2016 by Eric J. Sinrod

Hague Court Lifts Block on The Pirate Bay for 2 ISPs

A block on the website The Pirate Bay has been partially lifted by the Court of Appeal in The Hague, according to ZDNet. The Court of Appeal came to this result, reasoning that the block was disproportionate for two particular Internet Service Providers and also because it generally was not effective.

The Pirate Bay, as a search engine, can locate tiny information files known as torrents that implement content downloading on the BitTorrent peer-to-peer file-sharing system. This can enable the sharing of pirated music, movies, and software.

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January 28, 2014July 18, 2016 by Eric J. Sinrod

If Cyberwars Erupt, Will Damages Be Recoverable

Unfortunately, warfare has been part of the human experience for centuries and even millennia. Historically, wars were fought on the ground between individuals. Often, in more recent times, mass physical destruction has been caused from a distance, with bombs dropping from planes and missiles launched from remote locations.

And now, in the Internet age, wars can be waged electronically by purposely disrupting mission-critical systems of a perceived enemy state. Damages caused by such disruptions could be quite high, but there are potential international mechanisms by which such damages could be awarded.

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January 21, 2014July 18, 2016 by Eric J. Sinrod

Driver Not Culpable For Wearing Google Glass; Wait, What?

Google Glass brings the Internet right to your face. Indeed, it brings computer functionality to an eyeglass device. So now, you can frolic online literally while on the go.

Is that a good thing? Well, we already live our lives via all sorts of technology, including desktop computers, laptops, tablets, and smartphones. Do we need more? That can be debated in terms of the ramifications of living constantly in cyberspace instead of the here and now of the real world.

But what about safety? Do we want people operating motor vehicles and other types of machinery while potentially distracted by surfing the Web on eyeglass devices? Probably not in most instances. So, let’s turn to a real situation, as opposed to theoretical hypotheticals.

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