White House has issued new directive spelling out how the Federal government will coordinate its incident response activities in the event of a large-scale cyber incident. more
Articles, blogs, and meetings about the internet of the future are filled with happy, positive words like "global", "uniform", and "open". The future internet is described in ways that seem as if taken from a late 1960's Utopian sci-fi novel: the internet is seen as overcoming petty rivalries between countries, dissolving social rank, equalizing wealth, and bringing universal justice. If that future is to be believed, the only obstacle standing between us and an Arcadian world of peace and harmony is that the internet does not yet reach everyone... more
In an open letter released today, Sir Tim Berners-Lee, Professor Barbara van Schewick, and Professor Larry Lessig are urging citizens, lawmakers and regulators, to speak up. more
U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) adopts new rules to enable rapid development and deployment of next generation 5G technologies and services. more
This summer EU regulators are finalizing their guidelines for member states on legal protections for wired, wireless and mobile open Internet access service. European citizens, businesses and NGOs have one last chance to make their voices heard on the so-called "net neutrality" guidelines by writing a comment for Body of European Regulators of Electronic Communications (BEREC) by July 18. more
"Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) called on Congress to stop the Obama administration from giving away control of the Internet with congressional authorization -- a move Cruz said is likely illegal," Nicholas Ballasy reporting today in PJ Media. more
At a recent panel discussion in Berkeley, USA, the topic - The Moral Economy of Tech - was explored. The panel discussed the way hi-tech people in general view themselves and their work, and even though I am not an engineer or a developer of software and algorithms I could very much relate to that. I often mention the fact that I am proud to be a member of this industry, as it in general provides positive developments to society and the economy. more
"EU-U.S. commercial data transfer pact clears final hurdle," Julia Fioretti today reported in Reuters: "A commercial data transfer pact provisionally agreed by the EU executive and the United States in February received the green light from EU governments on Friday." more
The European Commission has launched a new public-private partnership on cybersecurity expected to trigger €1.8 billion ($2B) of investment by 2020. more
In the winter of 2014 I wrote a blogpost under the title 'Luddites of the 21st century unite?' (read here). In the post I wondered where the 21st century Luddites were. ICT, automation, artificial intelligence all threatened jobs, yet all those affected embraced smartphones and the Internet in droves. It seems I found them, but what to do? Brexit and Luddites Fast forward to early summer 2016. more
United Nations Human Rights Council today adopted resolutions condemning measures to intentionally prevent or disrupt access or dissemination of information on the Internet in violation of international human rights law. more
Reports suggest China is reviewing a controversial cybersecurity law to allow authorities to shut down the internet and block all communications online during a so-called "emerging social security events" occur. more
China is moving forward towards implementing a controversial cybersecurity law that could have significant implications for foreign businesses operating in that lucrative market, reports Katie Bo Williams in The Hill. more
Report form U.S. Department of Commerce: "Enabling Growth and Innovation in the Digital Economy" ... "The report articulates the Department of Commerce’s philosophy for digital economy policymaking and demonstrates the many ways in which the Department has pursued its policy agenda consistent with that philosophy." –Penny Pritzker, U.S. Secretary of Commerce more
In June 2016 the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) hosted a meeting of ministers to consider the state of the Digital Economy. The central message from this meeting was the message that: "Governments must act faster to help people and firms to make greater use of the Internet and remove regulatory barriers to digital innovation or else risk missing out on the potentially huge economic and social benefits of the digital economy." All well and good, and as a piece of rhetoric it seems to strike an appropriately positive note without straying far from what appears to be bland truisms of our time. more