Blog

The Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act ("CISPA") is the latest example of a depressingly common situation in Washington DC -- well-meaning legislators unfamiliar with technology try to rush through a statute about a high-profile Internet issue (here, cybersecurity). Proponents of the bill say they want to faciliate information sharing between the federal government and the private sector. What they don't seem to understand is that existing laws already permit most kinds of cybersecurity information sharing. Read more » about The Unintended Consequences of CISPA

The Stanford Center for Internet and Society seeks scholars and practitioners interested in a formal affiliation with the Center for the 2012-2014 academic years. There are three categories of affiliation: Read more » about Apply Today: CIS Seeks Affiliates and Fellows

Lately, I have been puzzled by the proliferation of bank-mobile operator partnerships in the developed and emerging countries.  The mobile carriers provide the remittance or payments instructions, and the banks move the money, conduct the foreign exchange (e.g., into/out of U.S. Dollars) and deliver the cash or credit to the intended recipient.  

Are the banks really necessary in this money transfer process?  No, they are not, and have not been for years - try over a hundred years! Read more » about When Mobile Telecommunications Routes Become Banks

The clearance culture is the set of norms and practices within the entertainment industry that mandates—whether or not the law actually requires it—that every scrap of copyrighted or trademarked material be cleared with the original rights-holder. While copyrighted material often does need to be licensed (e.g. soundtrack music), the clearance culture imposes burdens well beyond the law and has become a self-perpetuating and self-serving system of self-censorship. Read more » about A Glance Inside The Clearance Culture