EFFector Vol. 22, No. 18 June 12, 2009 editor@eff.org A Publication of the Electronic Frontier Foundation ISSN 1062-9424 : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : In our 512th issue: * EFF HAS CHALLENGED GOVERNMENT'S "BACK DOOR WIRETAP," urging the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to hold that the government's seizure of defendant Stephen Warshak's email without a warrant violated the Fourth Amendment and federal privacy statutes, as well as the Justice Department's own surveillance manual. The government accomplished this "back door wiretap" by illegally ordering Warshak's email provider to prospectively "preserve" copies of his future emails, a misuse the Stored Communications Act, which is only supposed to be used for obtaining emails already in storage with a provider. In an amicus brief filed earlier this week, EFF argues that the government's seizure violated federal privacy laws and Warshak's Fourth Amendment expectation of privacy in his email. As a result, the illegally seized emails should have been suppressed by the district court where Warshak was tried. All told, the government acquired over 27,000 emails spanning over six months from Warshak's email provider, all without probable cause. For the full press release: http://www.eff.org/press/archives/2009/06/11 : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : EFF Updates * France Declares Three Strikes Unconstitutional The Conseil Constitutionnel has declared the most important parts of HADOPI unconstitutional and invalidated the legislation's authority to issue termination orders to ISPs. http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2009/06/three-strikes-dead-in-france * China's Spy in the Home The Chinese Ministry of Industry and IT's announcement that all PCs sold in China must include government-approved filtering software is a profoundly worrying development for online privacy and free speech in that country. http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2009/06/chinas-spy-home * Google Book Search Settlement: Foster Competition What would create an eBook marketplace with an opportunity for real competition? Escrow the scans. http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2009/06/should-google-have-s * Cookies Crumbling YouTube takes a small step to increase privacy of Whitehouse.gov visitors by essentially ignoring account cookies for videos viewed on Whitehouse.gov. http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2009/06/cookies-crumbling * EFF Comments on Child Safe Viewing Act Recently, EFF filed comments with the FCC in connection with the Child Safe Viewing Act of 2007, which requires the FCC to conduct a study of V-chip-like blocking technologies that might apply to more than just television viewing such as Internet access. http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2009/06/eff-comments-child-s * The Child Safe Viewing Act and Another DMCA Victim TVGuardian and companies like it are unexpected victims of DRM and the DMCA, but the conflict between copyright law and companies that try to edit or block "offensive" language or images in movies is nothing new. http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2009/06/child-safe-viewing-a * Hollywood Drives Us into the "Analog Sunset" The AACS licensing authority has released the "Final Adopter Agreement" it plans to enforce against consumer electronics companies that make BluRay players (and any other AACS devices that come along) http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2009/06/hollywood-drives-us- : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : miniLinks ~ Zotero Suit Dismissed The legal battle between the proprietary EndNote academic citation software and the open-source Zotero software has ended. http://chronicle.com/wiredcampus/article/3810/judge-dismisses-software-licensing-case-against-george-mason-u ~ Swedish Pirate Party Gains Seat in EU Parliament The Pirate Party received a reported 7.1% of the votes in Swedish elections, giving the party representation at the European Parliament. http://torrentfreak.com/pirate-party-wins-and-enters-the-european-parliament-090607/ ~ RIP: A Remix Manifesto Showing and Panel in NYC This buzz-worthy documentary about remix and participatory creativity is making its debut in New York City on Friday, June 19. http://www.opensourcecinema.org/remixnyc : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : Announcements * IT Equipment for EFF Offices We are looking for donations of the following new hard drives to support EFF's office operations. As thanks for your donation, we can offer a free membership and, of course, some cool swag. Requested Items: - 2 x 2TB external USB hard drives, preferably Western Digital. Or a larger number of smaller drives with the same interface. - PATA IDE hard drives, 20GB or larger Please contact stu@eff.org if you can help! * EFF at RoboGames in San Francisco See EFF this weekend at the 2009 International RoboGames at Ft. Mason's Festival Pavilion in San Francisco! Stop by and say hello! Booth Hours: Friday, June 12: 12 PM - 6 PM Saturday, June 13: 2 PM - 6 PM Sunday, June 14: 12 PM - 6 PM For more information: http://robogames.net * Help EFF Go to DEFCON! EFF is looking for donations of airline tickets and hotel points for the DEFCON hacking conference, as well as other conferences and speaking engagements. If you have enough airline miles for a free ticket and would like to send an EFF staffer to a conference, let us know, and we will help you with the process of making the reservation. Please note that at this time we are unable to combine miles from multiple individuals. We are also looking for hotel rewards points to help reduce our overall travel costs. As a thanks for your donation, we can offer a free membership and a mention in EFFector (if you'd like). Please contact aaron@eff.org if you can help! * Nominate a Pioneer for EFF's 2009 Pioneer Awards! EFF established the Pioneer Awards to recognize leaders on the electronic frontier who are extending freedom and innovation in the realm of information technology. This is your opportunity to nominate a deserving individual or group to receive a Pioneer Award for 2009. The International Pioneer Awards nominations are open both to individuals and organizations from any country. Nominations are reviewed by a panel of judges chosen for their knowledge of the technical, legal, and social issues associated with information technology. How to Nominate Someone for a 2009 Pioneer Award: You may send as many nominations as you wish, but please use one email per nomination. Please submit your entries via email to pioneer@eff.org. We will accept nominations until July 15, 2009. Simply tell us: 1. The name of the nominee, 2. The phone number, email address or website by which the nominee can be reached, and, most importantly, 3. Why you feel the nominee deserves the award. Nominee Criteria: There are no specific categories for the EFF Pioneer Awards, but the following guidelines apply: 1. The nominees must have contributed substantially to the health, growth, accessibility, or freedom of computer-based communications. 2. To be valid, all nominations must contain your reason, however brief, for nominating the individual or organization and a means of contacting the nominee. In addition, while anonymous nominations will be accepted, ideally we'd like to contact the nominating parties in case we need further information. 3. The contribution may be technical, social, economic, or cultural. 4. Nominations may be of individuals, systems, or organizations in the private or public sectors. 5. Nominations are open to all (other than current members of EFF's staff and operating board or this year's award judges), and you may nominate more than one recipient. You may also nominate yourself or your organization. 6. Persons or representatives of organizations receiving an EFF Pioneer Award will be invited to attend the ceremony at EFF's expense. More on the EFF Pioneer Awards: http://www.eff.org/awards/pioneer/ * Intern Opportunity! EFF is looking for a summer intern to help in our development and media departments. This is an unpaid, full-time position. Projects will include: -Working on our annual report and contacting major donors and foundations (40% of time); -Assisting with membership fulfillment and bulk mailing (40% of time); and -Identifying and organizing press clippings (20% of time). Excellent writing and editing skills, strong organizational abilities, and the capacity to take instruction and run with it is a must. Interest in development and/or public relations as a career is a plus, as is knowledge and familiarity with EFF's issues. To apply, please send a cover letter, resume, and writing sample to: alyssa@eff.org * Volunteer at EFF! EFF is looking for volunteers to assist with operations in our membership department. If you're quick, organized, detail-oriented, and looking for a hands-on way to support EFF, contact us today! Duties include: * Membership fulfillment * Organizing premiums * Print mailing * Event assistance Learn about fundraising operations in the nonprofit world while supporting your favorite organization in a tangible way! Interest in grassroots fundraising is a plus, as is knowledge and familiarity with EFF's issues. Send a letter of interest to aaron@eff.org : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : . : Administrivia EFFector is published by: The Electronic Frontier Foundation http://www.eff.org/about Editor: Sara Bassett, Membership Services Assistant sara@eff.org Membership & donation queries: membership@eff.org To support EFF: http://links.eff.org/emaildonate General EFF, legal, policy, or online resources queries: information@eff.org Back issues of EFFector are available at: http://www.eff.org/effector/ To change your email address: http://action.eff.org/addresschange Reproduction of this publication in electronic media is encouraged. This newsletter is printed on 100% recycled electrons. EFF appreciates your support and respects your privacy. http://www.eff.org/policy
