Germany’s highest court overturned a law passed by the European Union requiring phone and e-mail providers to retain e-mail, landline, and mobile phone records for six months.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13578_3-10462117-38.html?tag=nl.e703
This is a developing area of the law in the U.S. also. People caught up in lawsuits can be in for a rude awakening when their e-mails, texts, Internet postings, and social networking pages are offered into evidence. Some of these data can be difficult to secure, however, because providers often delete it after a short period of time. Courts and legislators are wrestling with the privacy issues raised by these new methods of communications. The best policy is not to transmit anything unless you would be comfortable reading it on a billboard on the way to work.
Microsoft VP says infected PC’s should be quarantined
Microsoft VP Scott Charney suggested at the 2010 RSA Conference that infected PC’s should be quarantined – blocked from accessing the Internet. He suggests that this might be accomplished by relying on ISP’s to do it, by paying for security measures using tax money, by government regulations, or by unspecified “market forces.”
This raises some serious concerns if it is done involuntarily. Do you trust Microsoft to install a procedure that automatically isolates your computer from the Internet if it detects an infection? If Microsoft doesn’t do it, should Congress pass a law allowing your computer to be isolated? How would you lift the quarantine if your computer is not really infected?
You also have to ask yourself, who will make money from this process? Do you really want to try to access the Internet and see a window that says, “We have detected a virus on your computer. Pursuant to the United States Code and the user agreement which you approved when you installed your web browser, your computer will not be allowed to access the Internet until the virus has been removed. We will remove the virus from your computer immediately if you install our software for a low, low price of $____. Click “Accept” to purchase this software and access the Internet. By clicking “Accept” you are agreeing to all terms in the attached User Agreement.”