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The Courts

Submission + - Sony Exec Admits RIAA Lawsuits Are A Money Pit (arstechnica.com)

Submitted by
Billosaur
Billosaur writes: "Interesting testimony came out of the first RIAA lawsuit to go to trial in Duluth, Minnesota (Capitol Records v. Jammie Thomas). Under cross-examination yesterday, Jennifer Pariser, the head of litigation for Sony BMG, admitted that the RIAA's lawsuit campaign is a gigantic net loss for the music industry. The admission occurred during questioning regarding the damages Sony BMG was seeking against the defendant; as with all these suits, the RIAA is seeking punitive damages only, but Pariser could not in fact come up with a figure as to how much was actually being lost to downloading in this case or any other. Further, she did not know how many people were alleged to have downloaded music from the defendant. She was rather vague on the number of lawsuits that had actually been filed, but did admit that the record comapnies have spent millions on them and have recouped very little."
Movies

Submission + - Indiana Jones Gets Robbed!!

Submitted by
HotChk101
HotChk101 writes: "Over 2000 production stills, plenty of sensitive paperwork including a complete production budget breakdown, possibly the script from Indiana Jones 4 and multiple computers were stolen from Steven Spielberg's Universal Studio office. The thief started contacting multiple entertainment websites including TMZ.com and offering the stolen goods for a sum of $2000.00. There are a lot more details and you can read the full story by clicking here! Read the full story to find out what happened to the thief!!!"
Security

Submission + - PEBKAC Still Plagues PC Security (arstechnica.com)

Submitted by
Billosaur
Billosaur writes: "ARS Technica is reporting on a study release by McAfee and the National Cyber Security Alliance (as part of the beginning of National Cyber Security Awareness Month) that suggests when it comes to PC security, the problem between the keyboard and the chair is even worse. PEBKAC has always been a problem, but the study highlights just how prevalent it has become. 87 percent of the users contacted said they used anti-virus software, while 70 percent use anti-spyware software. Fewer (64 percent) reported having their firewalls turned on, and only 27 percent use software designed to stop phishing attempts. Researchers were allowed to scan the computers of a subset of the users, and while 70 percent claimed to be using anti-spyware software, only 55 percent of the machines of those users scanned showed evidence of the software."
The Courts

Submission + - RIAA's First Trial Starts Today in Duluth

Submitted by
NewYorkCountryLawyer
NewYorkCountryLawyer writes: "The RIAA's first trial starts today, in Duluth, Minnesota, in Virgin v. Thomas. The case is being widely covered by, among others, Associated Press, Wired, and Ars Technica. Since a number of people have indicated they will be going to the courthouse and watching the trial, I am hoping for citizen coverage as well. If any of you get to the trial and can report back, drop a comment here as well. The day before the trial the Judge excluded 784 pages of documents the record companies needed to prove they actually own the copyrights to 14 of the recordings in question, because they had failed to turn over the documents when they were supposed to, instead waiting until 2 weeks before the date of trial."
Businesses

Submission + - The Twilight Hours of SCO (groklaw.net)

Submitted by
eldavojohn
eldavojohn writes: "Groklaw is pointing out the initial monthly operating report of SCO which, as the article notes, look a lot like death throes. A couple of points to note:
  • A list of accounts including a Zion's Grand Cayman Island account which holds $600,000.00 (I needn't remind you that the Cayman Islands banks are not regulated by any government or agency).
  • A list of scheduled lawyer retainers totaling $660k.
  • Insurance for errors and omissions & also some for the poor executives.
  • And also an order from a judge that they are authorized to continue their "business practices."
On top of that, their stock is at a staggering $0.16. Moving money offshore, buying insurance & no sign of actual business transactions — quite the monthly operating report!"
Communications

Submission + - Disney Mobile Coming To An End (news.com)

Submitted by
Billosaur
Billosaur writes: "Not everything the Mouse touches turns to gold. CNet is reporting that Disney plans to end Disney Mobile phone service on December 31st. Disney got in the mobile market 18 months ago, offering phone service that would deliver services and applications designed around the family. Among those, was the ability of parents to track their children and limit their ability to use the phone. Disney did not own its own network, working with Sprint/Nextel to offer it services. The applications may live on and become available through another provider."
The Internet

Submission + - Facebook Is Used As a Mug Book to Catch Suspect (cnn.com)

Submitted by
Billosaur
Billosaur writes: "CNN is reporting on the case of a Georgetown student, the victim of an attack near the university campus, who used Facebook to id his attacker. The unnamed victim was attacked by a person yelling homophobic epithets, and suffered cuts and bruises to the face and a broken thumb. He went on Facebook to see if he could identify his attacker, and upon finding someone who resembled the attacker, turned the information over to the police. Eventually the police created a photo lineup of possible suspects, and the victim was able to pick his alleged attacker, Phillip Anderton Cooney, from it. Cooney was arrested and has been charged with a bias/hate crime, increasing the potential penalty if convicted."
The Internet

Submission + - The .name Domain: Haven for Cyber-criminals (wired.com)

Submitted by
Billosaur
Billosaur writes: "In the war on cyber-crime, the bad guys have a new ally: the registrar running the .name domain. According to a Wired report, Global Name Registry (GNR), the registrar contracted by ICANN to run the .name domain, is charging money to do Whois lookups, frustrating security researchers who are attempting to trace zombie networks back to their source. ICANN normally requires registrars to make Whois data publicly available, but GNR's contract allows the to create tiered data, so that a public search reveals very little data and to find out who actually owns a .name domain requires a fee. Security researchers are balking at the fees, claiming it hampers their efforts if they have to pay to get at what should be publicly available data."
The Courts

Submission + - NY State AG Taking Heat for Secret Porn Plan (wired.com)

Submitted by
Billosaur
Billosaur writes: "Wired is reporting that defense lawyers have become a bit wary of NY Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's plan to engage MediaDefender to help track down child-porn and its users on the internet. They are worried that the partnership could lead to favoritism in the AG's office later on if MediaDefender were to violate NY state law in the future. There is also concern that such a contract would lead to the incentive to "get results," leading to a host of legal problems. There is also the question of privacy, given the recent hack of MediaDefender's email system that led to the agreement coming to light. "Generally it is not looked upon favorably when a prosecutor engages a private company to collect evidence in a case or to ... partner with in a criminal case," says San Francisco public defender Jeff Adachi."
Data Storage

Submission + - Germany Says Copying of DVDs, CDs Is Verboten (variety.com)

Submitted by
Billosaur
Billosaur writes: "In what can only be seen as the opening salvo in an attempt to control what users can do with content, the German parliament has approved a controversial copyright law which will make it illegal to make copies of CDs and DVDs, even for personal use. The Bundesrat, the upper part of the German parliament, approved the legislation over the objections of consumer protection groups. The law, set to take effect in 2008, covers CDs, DVDs, recordings from IPTV, and TV recordings."
It's funny. Laugh.

Submission + - MIT Student Arrested for "Bomb Art"

Submitted by Damocles the Elder
Damocles the Elder writes: Apparently Boston remains a place where you shouldn't show off your computer parts. According to a pair of local news outlets, an MIT student was arrested for wearing what's being called "fake bomb art" in a Boston airport. FTA:

Star Simpson, 19, had a computer circuit board and wiring in plain view over a black hooded sweat shirt she was wearing, said State Police Maj. Scott Pare, the commanding officer at the airport. "She said that it was a piece of art and she wanted to stand out on career day," Pare said at a news conference. Simpson was "extremely lucky she followed the instructions or deadly force would have been used...[s]he's lucky to be in a cell as opposed to the morgue."
Space

Submission + - Do You Need a Permit to Land on the Moon? (slate.com) 4

Submitted by
Billosaur
Billosaur writes: "With the recent announcement of Google's X-prize for a successful private landing of a robot on the Moon, someone has asked the Explainer at Slate.com if permission is required to land something on the Moon? Turns out that while there is no authority that regulates landing objects on another world, getting there does require the permission of the national government from where the launch takes place. This is in accordance with the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, signed by 91 nations, which regulates the uses of outer space by the nations of Earth. Specifically, Article VI enjoins: "The activities of non-governmental entities in outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies, shall require authorization and continuing supervision by the appropriate State Party to the Treaty." Start your paperwork!"

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