Privacy

We have swapped weeks 3 and 4 of class, so Monday will be all about PRIVACY and will be taught by Carly.

During class we will be talking about a wide range of issues concerning privacy and the internet. To prepare, you can review the following:

Australian law

Office of the Privacy Commissioner - (Includes links to Privacy Act and Privacy Principles)

Australian Broadcasting Corporation v Lenah Game Meat Pty Ltd (2002) 208 CLR 199

Regulation

Internet Industry Association - (see Code of Conduct)

International Rights

Article 17 of International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights

Privacy Policies

See for example:

Disney Privacy Policy

Amazon Privacy Policy

Are they sufficient?

Cookies

Cookie Central

Workplace email / internet privacy

Workplace policies

Google

Articles regarding Buzz (already posted on blog)
Google Earth

Bullying

Online privacy

Use in litigation
Shopping

Solutions?

TrustE

Apple Sues Maker of Google's Android Phone

See NY Times article

"In the lawsuit, filed with the office of the United States International Trade Commission and the United States District Court in Delaware, Apple said that HTC phones running Android violated 20 of its patents, including those relating to the iPhone’s ability to recognize the touch of multiple fingers on its screen at once."

Throwing the Book at Facebook

See this article in the Business Spectator.

"Companies and individuals are increasingly beginning to query why they should simply wear slanderous online comments that they wouldn't hesitate to take legal action against if it appeared on the printed page. From the heady early days when the internet was seen as a beast too wild to be tamed by the law, there is growing debate as to whether and how the web should be regulated.

In the past few weeks, we have seen a series of legal issues arise in relation to comments on the internet – particularly on Facebook.

In one case, $30,000 in damages was rewarded in response to defamatory comments by a man using various pseudonyms on a stock market forum. We have also seen an Indonesian man currently face jail time for insulting his music mentor on Facebook. ..."

Important - Class Location

From now, class will be held in S308.

Avatars

From The Australian:

Is putting real-life law into an avatar's hands viable?

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/australian-it/is-putting-real-life-law-into-an-avatars-hands-viable/story-e6frgakx-1225835812440

Class tonight

I just found out that we are now in S308

iCyte page

This is the iCyte service that I mentioned in class.
Here is a project that I have created using iCyte.

Websites

This is the course website:

cyberspac.com

Peter Black, who co-taught this subject last year, has this blog. http://freedomtodiffer.com/ He has become a famous Twit.

Google falls foul of privacy once again

From JL:

See Brisbane Times article

It is interesting to note that once again Google has reached for the freedom of speech lever as the apparent universal panacea absolving itself of any and all responsibility for breaches of privacy.

I for one would have though that, as an American company, Google would have been well-versed in the notion that freedom of speech is only 'free' to the extent that it does not impose on, contravene or breach another person's legal rights.

If tertiary institutions have the capability of analysing work submitted by students for plagiarism through the use of algorithm programs, then surely the technical boffins at Google can devise some process whereby material submitted for posting to the web can be assessed.

In this particular case, it is difficult to embrace the Google's Code of Conduct "Don't do evil" as being anything other than a marketing slogan. For mine, aiding and abetting the doing of evil equates to the same thing. If Google is serious about corporate social responsibility, then I suggest it not just talk about it, but in the words of another multinational "Just do it!"

Net Fraud

Net fraud accused back online

From: The Courier-Mail

February 21, 2010

A TEENAGE Brisbane student accused of using the internet to defraud Queensland's biggest bank of $2 million has today had his ban on using the internet lifted.

Brisbane Magistrate Noel Nunan this morning varied bail conditions for Philip Heggie, 18, so he could use the internet to continue his university studies.

Heggie, a University of Queensland business student, made a brief appearance in the Brisbane Magistrate's Court to answer charges of fraud, attempted fraud and uttering a forged document.

Click here to read the full article on the website

--- A class member asks the following regarding the above story:

Given the level of sophistication required to perpetrate these alleged activities, has the Court (in its most recent decision concerning bail conditions) paid sufficient heed to the possibility of the accused undertaking similar acts? How meaningful are either of the different sets of bail conditions prescribed by the court, given that cyber crimes can be undertaken anonymously?

Google Counter-sues regarding AdWords

This recent article is worth reading, as it relates to Google, trademark issues and also jurisdiction issues:

Google Countersues Haircutter Company That Brought On AdWords Lawsuit

http://techcrunch.com/2010/02/20/google-flowbee/

Are these sites legitimate, or not?

www.ecyberspac.com

www.hastingsstreethotel.com

www.noosa-apartment.com

What is the purpose of these websites?

The Law of Google 2010 (updated)

These are my notes for class for 1 March 2010. The class is "The law of Google". Have a look at these websites (and if you have a Google account, log in to that account first):

1. The breadth of Google.

Search
www.google.com
www.google.com.au
www.google.co.uk
www.google.ca
www.google.de
www.google.com.br
www.google.com.bd
www.igoogle.com
News
Images
Blogs
Maps
Videos
Books
Scholarly Papers
Finance
Custom Search, example: Leading Australian Law Firms
Syndicated Search and example and example
Directory
Products
Google Base

Google Squared

Alerts

Search tricks and tips
Internal search
Site Search
Site Map

Other Google Stuff
Toolbar and SideWiki
Google Accounts
Web History
Gmail

Google Wave (plus video here)
Photos: Picasa and Picasa Web
Chrome Browser
Blogger
Groups
Reader
Notebook
Calendar
Docs
Talk
YouTube

Buzz

Android

More information: Wikipedia
How Google Works
Google Sitemap

2. AdWords and AdSense: Google Advertising

A. Do these searches on Google, Australian Googleand UK Google and compare results:

Noosa
Hilton
Q1
cheap accomodation queensland
flowers paddington
the tallest building in brisbane is
DSL-G604T
Sony
Harvey World Travel
Harvey World Travel Insurance

Have a look at the two Google search interfaces on this page (http://www.cyberspac.com/Cyber_Law_and_Policy/Search.html) and do the same searches on both and compare the results.

B. AdSense

Look at the Google Ads on these websites:

NY Times
Van Gogh Gallery
Brisbane Apartments and Reviews
Cyberlaw and Policy and example article
This Blog (look top right --->

More information on Adsense

C. Google Trends and Google Analytics
Also, Google Insights for Search

D. AdWords

create Ad
select Keywords, budget and display location
people then click on your Ad.

Terms: pay-per-click (PPC); cost-per-click (CPC); cost-per-impression (CPM); click through rate (CTR)

KeyWord Tool and Tool

More information: Google Learning Centre

E. Other types of Google advertising
Maps

Local Maps

Local Directory

You Tube

F. Problems & Issues

(a) Pay Per Click Websites

Look at these websites:

(What is legitimate? See RealSpanking and Jackassand UStream)

(b) Click Fraud
What percentage of click are fraudulent? See this story and here too.
Clickfraud is old news: Crack-down

(c) Trade Mark Issues
Google Procedure
ACCC Lawsuit: See here and here and here andhere(Google filed its defence on 17 November 2008.)
RescueCom Lawsuit
French Lawsuit
Geico Lawsuit and settlement

More information
Google Business Solutions

3. Legal issues and lawsuits

Book Search Lawsuit and here
Caching & Copyright: see here and here and here

Have a look at other Google posts on this blog: Click Here

google search tricks

First Class 2010

Welcome to LWN117 Cyber Law and Policy in Semester 1, 2010 at QUT.

This unit is offered in internal mode, commencing Monday 22 February 2010 at 6pm.

The Venue is: GP:B506

Google, Privacy and Buzz

Google moved quickly to contain a firestorm of criticism over Buzz, its new social network, taking the unusual step of announcing changes to the product over the weekend to address privacy problems.

Late Saturday, Todd Jackson, product manager for Gmail and Google Buzz, wrote in a blog post that Google had decided to alter one of the most vehemently criticized features in Buzz: the ready-made circle of friends that Buzz gives new users based on their most frequent e-mail and chat contacts. Now, instead of automatically connecting people, Buzz merely suggests to new users a group of people that they may want to follow or want to be followed by. ....

NY Times blog

Critics Say Google Invades Privacy With New Service

SAN FRANCISCO — When Google introduced Buzz — its answer to Facebook and Twitter — it hoped to get the service off to a fast start. New users of Buzz, which was added to Gmail on Tuesday, found themselves with a ready-made network of friends automatically selected by the company based on the people that each user communicated with most frequently through Google’s e-mail and chat services.

Enlarge This Image

Google's decision to use e-mail and chat as the basis of a social network was unfair and deceptive, some critics claimed.

With Buzz, Google Plunges Into Social Networking(February 10, 2010)

Times Topics: Google Inc.

Readers' Comments

Share your thoughts.

But what Google viewed as an obvious shortcut stirred up a beehive of angry critics. Many users bristled at what they considered an invasion of privacy, and they faulted the company for failing to ask permission before sharing a person’s Buzz contacts with a broad audience. For the last three days, Google has faced a firestorm of criticism on blogs and Web sites, and it has already been forced to alter some features of the service.

NY Times story

Copyright in Directories

This recent judgment also includes interesting comments regarding computer generated works.

Telstra Corporation Limited v Phone Directories Company Pty Ltd [2010] FCA 44 (8 February 2010)

http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/cases/cth/FCA/2010/44.html

"Even if the authors of the Works could be identified with sufficient clarity and certainty (and they cannot), the people suggested to be the authors of the Works did not exercise “independent intellectual effort” and / or “sufficient effort of a literary nature”. A majority of the creation process of the WPD and the YPD was heavily automated. Human intervention was regulated and controlled according to either the various computer systems in place including the Rules (see Part V Sections B and C above). Further, the contribution of the people suggested to be authors of the Works was anterior to the work taking its material form. Very few people had any part to play in the final presentation of the Works or the particular form of expression of the information. Those people, again, could not have been said to have exercised “independent intellectual effort” and / or “sufficient effort of a literary nature”: see [20(3)] above."

iiNet copyright case

The iiNet copyright case was decided this week. It concerns the copyright liability of an Internet service provider (ISP) for the conduct of its customers.

Background: www.iinet.net.au/copyrightcase

Case note.

Judgment.

Challenges for Google

From The New York Times:

In Europe, Challenges for Google

On issues like privacy, copyright protection and the dominance of its search engine, Google is increasingly clashing with lawmakers and regulators.

http://s.nyt.com/u/ejr

Internet Freedom

Hilary Clinton's speech yesterday on Internet freedom attracked an interesting reaction from China.

See http://www.america.gov/internet-freedom.html

Speech and video

News coverage of Chinese reaction:

NY Times

Financial Times

Legal Blogs

ABA's list of 100 great legal blogs

Examples

Internet Law - Law & Disorder and Technology & Marketing
IP Watchdog
Copyright Campaigns
Patents

Updated Internet Law Website

I have updated the class Internet Law website.

It is now located at www.cyberspac.com

There is a list of useful Internet law links here.

Also, as an experiment, have a look at:
www.ecyberspac.com

Sports Website

A new sports website, run from Brisbane, looks interesting:
www.sportsvolcano.com

New Australian IP Blog

IP Blog - http://blogs.mallesons.com/ipwhiteboard

Google Steals The Web?

The Google sideWiki product is kicking up a storm.

http://talkbiz.com/blog/google-steals-the-web/

http://www.google.com/sidewiki/entry/foley.sj/id/1ksJhFGMBYdq_whDm7Ihcc4wz14

Photos and Piracy

"Internet accessibility of images amassed by governmental organizations, commercial entities and individuals is the basis of novel privacy violation claims. However, Internet distribution of images of both individuals and private places collected from public places remains lawful."

Pictures From Public Places Not Private

French parliament delays vote on Internet law

"A law backed by French President Nicolas Sarkozy to tackle Internet piracy suffered a new setback on Tuesday after legislators postponed a vote on the bill until September."

Source: Reuters

Cyberlaw

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Internet Jurisdiction

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