home *** CD-ROM | disk | FTP | other *** search
-
- Computer underground Digest Sun Mar 9, 1997 Volume 9 : Issue 17
- ISSN 1004-042X
-
- Editor: Jim Thomas (cudigest@sun.soci.niu.edu)
- News Editor: Gordon Meyer (gmeyer@sun.soci.niu.edu)
- Archivist: Brendan Kehoe
- Shadow Master: Stanton McCandlish
- Shadow-Archivists: Dan Carosone / Paul Southworth
- Ralph Sims / Jyrki Kuoppala
- Ian Dickinson
- Field Agent Extraordinaire: David Smith
- Cu Digest Homepage: http://www.soci.niu.edu/~cudigest
-
- CONTENTS, #9.17 (Sun, Mar 9, 1997)
-
- File 1--Computer Security Script and Software Database
- File 2--EFF-Online 10.02-Burns introduces new Pro-CODE Crypto Bill
- File 3-- Open Internet Policy Principles
- File 4--Cu Digest Header Info (unchanged since 13 Dec, 1996)
-
- CuD ADMINISTRATIVE, EDITORIAL, AND SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION APPEARS IN
- THE CONCLUDING FILE AT THE END OF EACH ISSUE.
-
- ---------------------------------------------------------------------
-
- Date: Wed, 5 Mar 1997 11:01:26 -0600 (CST)
- From: "Scott A. Davis" <sdavis@fc.net>
- Subject: File 1--Computer Security Script and Software Database
-
- On March 13, 1997, The Banzai Institute will make available a
- Computer Security Script and Software Database. Initially, there
- will be over 600 scripts and programs available that will allow
- system admins to test the weakness of the networks and systems
- that they are responsible for. Any and all information provided
- in this database is distributed for INFORMATION AND EDUCATIONAL
- PURPOSES ONLY. You can sign up now and have your account
- activated on the same day the databse opens by visiting our home
- page!
-
-
- www.banzai-institute.org/sdavis for PGP Public Key (ALL SECURE
- MESSAGES)
-
- ------------------------------
-
- Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 22:22:00 -0800 (PST)
- From: Stanton McCandlish <mech@EFF.ORG>
- Subject: File 2--EFF-Online 10.02-Burns introduces new Pro-CODE Crypto Bill
-
- EFFector Vol. 10, No. 02 Feb. 27, 1997 editor@eff.org
- A Publication of the Electronic Frontier Foundation ISSN 1062-9424
-
- <snip>
-
- * See http://www.eff.org/hot.html or ftp.eff.org, /pub/Alerts/ for more
- information on current EFF activities and online activism alerts! *
-
- ----------------------------------------------------------------------
-
-
- Subject--Pro-CODE Bill Announced Today: Free Crypto From Cold-War Regs
- -----------------------------------------------------------------
-
- Below is a joint advisory from CDT, EFF and VTW about the re-introduction
- of Sen. Conrad Burns's "Pro-CODE" encryption export deregulation bill. EFF
- commends Burns and co-sponsors for continuing to raise this issue in
- Congress, and for their opposition to the Administration's obsolete (and
- unconstitutional) policies.
-
- Though EFF does not *endorse* this legislation (principally because it
- may perpetuate a policy of excluding the public from government
- decision-making on encryption policy), we do recognize and laud the
- bill as an improvement over the status quo in almost all respects.
- Pro-CODE would turn the current export process upside down, permitting
- export of most encryption, and requiring reportage of an encryption
- program's capabilities only *after* export. The bill also creates no new
- or redundant crime categories.
-
-
-
- PRO-CODE BILL ANNOUNCED TODAY
- BILL WOULD LIBERATE ENCRYPTION FROM ANTIQUATED COLD-WAR REGULATIONS
-
- February 27, 1997
-
- Please widely redistribute this document with this banner
- intact until March 15, 1997
-
- From the Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT),
- the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), and
- the Voters Telecommunication Watch (VTW)
-
- ________________________________________________________________________
- CONTENTS
- The Latest News
- What You Can Do Now
- Background On Pro-CODE
- What's At Stake
- For More Information / Supporting Organizations
-
- ________________________________________________________________________
- THE LATEST NEWS
-
- Today, a bi-partisan group of seventeen United States Senators, led by
- Conrad Burns (R-MT) and Patrick Leahy (D-VT), introduced the "Promotion
- of Commerce Online in the Digital Era (Pro-CODE) Act", a bill designed
- to promote privacy and security on the Internet by relaxing government
- controls on encryption technologies.
-
- Encryption technologies are the locks and keys of the Information age
- -- enabling individuals and businesses to protect sensitive information
- as it is transmitted over the Internet. Pro-CODE aims to enable this by
- removing some of the regulations that currently prevent Americans from
- using this technology.
-
- A short summary of the bill and background on the encryption policy
- debate are attached below, along with information on what you can do to
- help ensure that Congress takes action on this important issue.
-
- ________________________________________________________________________
- WHAT YOU CAN DO NOW
-
- 1. CALL THE Pro-CODE SPONSORS AND THANK THEM FOR THEIR EFFORTS
-
- Members of Congress tend to hear from their constituents only when
- they do something constituents don't like. Today however, several
- Senators have taken a stand on an issue of critical importance to
- Internet users. It's crucial that we encourage them with phone
- calls of support.
-
- If you live in any of the states listed below, please take a moment
- to give these Senators a call.
-
- Allard (R-CO) Ashcroft (R-MO) Boxer (D-CA) Brownback (R-KS)
- Burns (R-MT) Craig (R-ID) Dominici (R-NM) Dorgan (D-ND)
- Faircloth (R-NC) Grahms (R-MN) Hutchison (R-TX) Inhoffe (R-OK)
- Kempthorne (R-ID) Leahy (D-VT) Lott (R-MS) Murray (D-WA)
- Nickles (R-OK) Thomas (R-WY) Wyden (D-OR)
-
- Please take a moment to give these Senators a call.
-
- <Dial 1-202-224-3121>
- <ring ring!>
- You:Senator Mojo's office please!
- Sen:Hello, Senator Mojo's office!
-
- You:
-
- SAY I heard that the Senator introduced Pro-CODE to add more privacy
- on
-
- THIS-> the Internet. Please thank the Senator for me and I support
-
- efforts to fix antiquated encryption export laws. I live in <your
- state>.
-
- Sen: Ok, thanks!<click>
-
- 2. ADOPT YOUR LEGISLATOR
-
- If you were one of the thousands of people that have adopted their
- legislator at http://www.crypto.com/, you would have received a
- personalized letter telling you that your legislator announced his
- or her sponsorship of Pro-CODE today.
-
- These personalized letters contain all the phone numbers you need,
- and we'll send them to you any time your legislator takes any action
- that would have a significant impact on the net.
-
- The Adopt Your Legislator campaign is the most effective method of
- mobilizing grass-roots support available today. Since late last
- year, VTW and CDT have been building a network of thousands of
- Internet users who are active and engaged in the fight for privacy
- and security on the Internet.
-
- By focusing our efforts on the constituents of specific legislators
- as well as on the net as a whole, we can ensure that members of
- Congress know that they have support within their district as well
- as throughout the Internet community.
-
- You can adopt your legislator at http://www.crypto.com/adopt/
-
- ________________________________________________________________________
- BACKGROUND ON THE PRO-CODE BILL
-
- The Promotion of Commerce Online in the Digital Era (Pro-CODE) Act is
- similar to a bill introduced by Senators Burns (R-MT) and Leahy (D-VT)
- last year (then S.1726). Pro-CODE enjoyed broad bi-partisan support in
- the Senate and was the subject of 3 hearings, including 2 which were
- cybercast live on the Internet.
-
- This year's Pro-CODE bill (no bill number yet available) is designed to
- encourage the widespread availability of strong, easy-to-use encryption
- technologies to protect privacy and security on the Internet.
- Specifically, Pro-CODE would:
-
- 1. Encourage the widespread availability of strong privacy and security
- products by relaxing export controls on encryption technologies that
- are already available on the mass market or in the public domain.
- This would include popular programs like Pretty Good Privacy (PGP)
- and World Wide Web browsers like those made by Netscape and Microsoft.
-
- Current US encryption policy restricts export of encryption products
- with key-lengths of more than 40 bits. A recent study by renowned
- cryptographers including Whit Diffie (one of the fathers of modern
- cryptography), Matt Blaze, and others concluded that 40 bits is
- "woefully inadequate" to protect personal and business communications.
- Over the last eighteen months, several examples of the weakness of
- 40-bit encryption have been demonstrated by college students with
- spare personal computers.
-
- 2. Prohibit the federal government from imposing mandatory key-escrow or
- key-recovery encryption policies on the domestic market and limit the
- authority of the Secretary of Commerce to set standards for
- encryption products.
-
- 3. Require the Secretary of Commerce to allow the unrestricted export of
- other encryption technologies if products of similar strength are
- generally available outside the United States.
-
- For more information on the Pro-CODE bill, background information on
- efforts to pass encryption policy reform legislation last year, and
- other materials please visit:
-
- For more information, see the Encryption Policy Resource Page at
- http://www.crypto.com/
-
- ________________________________________________________________________
- WHAT'S AT STAKE
-
- Encryption technologies are the locks and keys of the Information age
- -- enabling individuals and businesses to protect sensitive information
- as it is transmitted over the Internet. As more and more individuals
- and businesses come online, the need for strong, reliable, easy-to-use
- encryption technologies has become a critical issue to the health and
- viability of the Net.
-
- Current US encryption policy, which limits the strength of encryption
- products US companies can sell abroad, also limits the availability of
- strong, easy-to-use encryption technologies in the United States. US
- hardware and software manufacturers who wish to sell their products on
- the global market must either conform to US encryption export limits or
- produce two separate versions of the same product, a costly and
- complicated alternative.
-
- The export controls, which the NSA and FBI argue help to keep strong
- encryption out of the hands of foreign adversaries, are having the
- opposite effect. Strong encryption is available abroad, but because of
- the export limits and the confusion created by nearly four years of
- debate over US encryption policy, strong, easy-to-use privacy and
- security technologies are not widely available off the shelf or "on the
- net" here in the US. Because of this policy problem, US companies are
- now at a competitive disadvantage in the global marketplace.
-
- All of us care about our national security, and no one wants to make it
- any easier for criminals and terrorists to commit criminal acts. But we
- must also recognize encryption technologies can also aid law
- enforcement and protect national security by limiting the threat of
- industrial espionage and foreign spying.
-
- What's at stake in this debate is nothing less than the future of
- privacy and the fate of the Internet as a secure and trusted medium for
- commerce, education, and political discourse.
-
- ________________________________________________________________________
- FOR MORE INFORMATION / SUPPORTING ORGANIZATIONS
-
- This alert was brought to you by the Center for Democracy and
- Technology, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and the Voters
- Telecommunications Watch.
-
- http://www.cdt.org http://www.eff.org http://www.vtw.org
-
- There are many excellent resources online to get up to speed on the
- crypto issue including the following WWW sites:
-
- http://www.crypto.com http://www.privacy.org
-
- Please visit them often. Press inquiries should be directed to:
-
- Jonah Seiger of CDT at jseiger@cdt.org or +1.202.637.9800
- Stanton McCandlish of EFF at mech@eff.org or +1.415.436.9333
- Shabbir J. Safdar of VTW at shabbir@vtw.org or +1.917.978.8430 (beeper).
-
- ________________________________________________________________________
- End alert
-
- --------------------------
-
-
- From--Conrad Burns <Conrad_Burns@burns.senate.gov>
- Subject--An Open Letter to the Internet Community from Senator Burns
- ---------------------------------------------------------
-
- February 27, 1997
-
- Today I am pleased to announce that I have reintroduced legislation to
- reform US encryption policy in a way that recognizes the realities of
- the global information infrastructure and the need for strong privacy
- and security protections on the Internet. The "Promotion of Commerce
- Online in the Digital Era (Pro-CODE) Act" would promote the growth of
- electronic commerce, encourage the widespread availability of strong
- privacy and security technologies for the Internet, and repeal the
- cold war-era regulations limiting the export of encryption
- technologies. The bill enjoys widespread support from both my
- Republican and Democratic colleagues and was introduced with 20
- cosponsors.
-
- As a fellow Internet user, I am excited by the vast potential of the
- Net to facilitate new forms of commerce and communication. In order
- for the Net to reach its potential as a trusted medium for personal
- communications and proprietary business transactions however,
- Internet users must have access to strong privacy and security
- technologies. Yet for years, the federal government has pursued an
- encryption policy which has limited the availability of privacy and
- security products -- leaving Internet users and businesses out in the
- cold.
-
- Last year, the Pro-CODE bill (then S. 1726) received broad bipartisan
- support in the Senate. Internet users, rallying to the cry of "My
- Lock, My Key," expressed their support for the bill in meetings
- members of Congress in live interactive chat sessions. Netizens also
- participated in the first interactive online Senate hearings and
- provided valuable testimony for the Committee on this issue.
-
- Yet almost a year after Congress entered this critical Internet policy
- debate, and despite the overwhelming call for encryption policy
- reform, the Administration remains committed to an outdated and
- unworkable approach to US Encryption policy. In November of 1996, the
- Administration announced yet another effort to reform US encryption
- policy. The proposal, which would allow the export of strong
- encryption programs only if they include government-approved
- "key-recovery" mechanisms, has met with uniform criticism from
- Internet users, privacy experts, and the computer and communications
- industry.
-
- Current export controls are serving only to limit the availability of
- privacy and security technologies for Internet users inside the US and
- disadvantage US industry on the competitive global market, while doing
- nothing to keep strong encryption out of the hands of foreign
- adversaries.
-
- By relaxing encryption export controls, the Pro-CODE bill will reform
- US encryption policy in a way that recognizes the realities of the
- information revolution and the competitive global marketplace.
-
- The Internet community has been instrumental in helping to educate my
- colleagues in the Congress about the importance of encryption policy
- reform. In the coming months I will need your help and support as
- this bill makes its way through the legislative process.
-
- As the bill moves forward, I want to invite you to take advantage of
- several online resources set up to educate the Congress and the public
- about the need for encryption policy reform. You can find out more by
- visiting my web page at http://www.senate.gov/~burns/.
-
- Thank you for your support,
-
- Conrad Burns
- United States Senator
- <Conrad_Burns@burns.senate.gov
-
- ------------------------------
-
- Date: Thu, 6 Mar 97 21:58:38 -0800
- From: Paul W. Meek, pmeek@phrf.org
- Subject: File 3-- Open Internet Policy Principles
-
- I hope I'm sending this to you correctly, and that you and readers of CU
- Digest will find this of interest.
-
- Please let me know if you need any further information.
-
- Paul W. Meek
- Vice President
- Parliamentary Human Rights Foundation
-
- Voice: (202) 333-1407
- Fax: (202) 333-1275
-
-
-
- Open Society Institute - Regional Internet Program
- Parliamentary Human Rights Foundation
-
- News Release Contact: H. Juergen Hess, OSI-RIP
- Public Relations Director
- tel. (212) 887-0602
- FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE fax (212) 974-0367
- jhess@sorosny.org
-
- "Open Internet Policy Principles"
- Adopted by Group of International Experts
-
- March 5, 1997 -- New York/Washington, D.C. -- The Open Internet
- Policy
- Principles, a set of recommendations to guide the use of the Internet
- and related technologies, were adopted today by a group of
- international experts*. These Principles are intended as a framework
- for government officials, parliamentarians, and nongovernmental
- organizations as they consider the impact of the Internet in their
- own
- and other countries. The experts included European and American
- parliamentarians, government officials, nongovernmental
- organizations,
- and the academic and business communities.
-
- In its Preamble, the Principles state [full text attached]: "The
- Internet is an inherently open, decentralized communications
- infrastructure which is ideally suited to support the free exchange
- of
- ideas, a rich political discourse, and a vibrant economy."
-
- With regard to policymaking and the Internet, the Principles point
- out
- that policymaking ought to be undertaken "by policymakers who are
- well
- informed about the unique nature of the net and have direct
- experience
- with its use; and, with substantial input and comment from the user
- community."
-
- Other Principles address the following subject matters:
-
- * Access to Infrastructure: "Access to the global Internet and other
- interactive communications infrastructures is essential for all
- citizens of the world to enable full participation in the global
- society and developing digital economy;"
-
- * Freedom of Expression: "There should be no regulation of Internet
- content by government;"
-
- * Communications Privacy: "Users of the Internet should have the
- right
- to be free of unlawful government interception of or access to
- communication and information online;"
-
- * Right of Anonymity: "Users should have the right to communicate
- without disclosing their identity;"
-
- * Unfettered Right to Use Encryption: "Users should have the right to
- use any form of cryptographic technology they choose to protect the
- privacy of their communications;"
-
- * General Legal Framework: "The Internet does not exist in a legal
- vacuum. For the most part, existing laws can and should regulate
- conduct on the Internet to the same degree as other forms of conduct.
- Such laws may differ from country to country, but should conform with
- the applicable binding human rights obligations contained in the
- Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on
- Civil and Political Rights and the European Convention on Human
- Rights;"
-
- * Objectionable Content: "To enable Internet users to shield
- themselves and their families from objectionable or unwanted content,
- priority should be given to 'downstream filtering' by users;"
-
- * Civil and Criminal Law Enforcement: "(...) combating online crime,
- while protecting civil liberties, can best be accomplished with
- additional resources and training of law enforcement agencies, not by
- enactment of new laws;"
-
- * Access to Government Information: "Governments should enable
- citizens access to legislative, judicial and executive branch
- information through the Internet;"
-
- * Overseas Development Assistance: "Overseas development assistance
- programs should strive to promote full access to the Internet;"
-
- * Market Structure: "There should be no a priori limitation to market
- entry by Internet service providers (...)."
-
- The Principles are based upon the results of a conference organized
- by
- the Parliamentary Human Rights Foundation (PHRF), Parliamentary Human
- Rights Foundation/Europe (PHRF/Europe) and the Regional Internet
- Program of the Open Society Institute (OSI-RIP) held in Brussels,
- Belgium on November 23, 1996. (An Annex with diverging opinions is
- attached to the Principles.)
-
- "The Open Internet Policy Principles are the first phase of a larger
- project. As a next step, a case study will be undertaken of the
- telecommunications framework in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, to
- apply the principles developed in Brussels to the particular
- circumstances of these emerging democracies," explained Don Bonker,
- Chairman and President of the Parliamentary Human Rights Foundation
- and a former Member of Congress. Representatives from these nations
- participated in the drafting of the Principles and the Brussels
- deliberations.
-
- "We hope that the Open Internet Policy Principles will lead to the
- development of model legislative and regulatory frameworks with
- global
- application," added Maartje van Putten, PHRF/Europe's Chair and
- Member
- of the European Parliament from the Netherlands.
-
- Jonathan Peizer, Chief Information Officer of the Open Society
- Institute clarified why the Baltic countries were chosen: "They are
- the most progressive countries with regard to use of the Internet in
- Central and Eastern Europe. OSI-RIP has been funding
- Internet-related
- activities in those nations since 1994. This, however, is our first
- major policy initiative for the Internet."
-
- The Parliamentary Human Rights Foundation (PHRF) is a worldwide,
- voluntary, non-partisan, not-for-profit organization committed to the
- promotion of human rights. PHRF works directly with parliamentarians
- to: enhance understanding of the meaning and importance of human
- rights; strengthen institutions for the protection of human rights;
- improve access to information about human rights conditions; foster
- international cooperation in the promotion of human rights; offer
- training and technical assistance to human rights advocates,
- especially parliamentarians; call attention to human rights abuses
- that violate internationally recognized standards; and nurture
- constitutional democracy, the rule of law, and other protections of
- human rights. PHRF can be found on the World Wide Web at
- <http://www.phrf.org>.
-
- The Open Society Institute--New York is a private operating and
- grantmaking foundation that promotes the development of open
- societies
- around the world, both by running its own programs and by awarding
- grants to others. The Open Society Institute--New York develops and
- implements a variety of U.S.-based and international programs in the
- areas of educational, social, and legal reform, and encourages public
- debate and policy alternatives in complex and often controversial
- fields. The Open Society Institute--New York is part of an informal
- network of more than 24 autonomous nonprofit foundations and other
- organizations created and funded by philanthropist George Soros. The
- Open Society Institute can be found on the World Wide Web at
- <http://www.soros.org>.
-
-
- # # #
-
-
-
-
- *Experts included representatives from: European Commission, European
- Parliament, Netscape Communications Corp., Oracle Corp., Ministry of
- Education and Science (Latvia), Ministry of Transportation and
- Communications (Estonia), Ministry of Transportation and
- Communications (Latvia), Electronic Frontier Foundation, American
- Civil Liberties Union, Voters Telecommunications Watch, Electronic
- Privacy Information Center, Computer Professionals for Social
- Responsibility, Center for Democracy and Technology, Riga Information
- and Technology Institute (Latvia), PT Finland, Baltic Institute of
- Finland, University of Leuven (Belgium), University of Groningen
- (Netherlands), Villanova School of Law (USA), Ghent University
- (Belgium), Levicom Ltd. (Estonia), Xs4all Internet BV (Netherlands),
- National Criminal Intelligence Service (Netherlands), Open Society
- Institute/Soros foundations network, Parliamentary Human Rights
- Foundation, and Parliamentary Human Rights Foundation/Europe.
-
- PHRF CONFERENCE
- Brussels, Belgium 23 November 1996
-
-
- OPEN INTERNET POLICY PRINCIPLES
-
-
- A broad consensus was reached on the following points:
-
- Preamble
-
- The Internet is an inherently open, decentralized communications
- infrastructure which is ideally suited to support the free exchange of
- ideas, a rich political discourse, and a vibrant economy. The
- decentralized architecture of the Internet provides an abundance of
- communication opportunities, and gives users an unprecedented degree of
- control over the information that they receive. As organizations devoted
- to basic human rights, the growth of the Internet, and the flourishing of
- democratic culture, we believe that the foregoing principles will ensure
- that the Internet remains open and continues to support basic democratic
- values.
-
-
- I. Policymaking and the Internet
-
- In recognition of the novel and rapidly changing nature of the Internet,
- policymaking ought to be undertaken:
-
- * by policymakers who are well informed about the unique nature of the
- Internet and have direct experience with its use; and,
-
- * with substantial input and comment from the Internet user community.
-
- II. Internet Access and Market Structures
-
- A. Access to infrastructure
-
- 1) Access to the global Internet and other interactive communications
- infrastructures is essential for all citizens of the world to enable full
- participation in the global society and developing digital economy.
-
- 2) Government and the industry have a shared responsibility in building
- the
- Global Information Infrastructure ("GII"), and in ensuring as wide an
- access as possible to its services.
-
- 3) Competition, open systems and interoperability are the best way to
- enlarge access.
-
- 4) In particular, access to the Internet by schools, libraries and other
- public
- institutions should be viewed as a policy goal, subsidized as necessary.
-
- B. Access to Government Information:
-
- 1) Governments should enable citizens access to legislative, judicial and
- executive branch information through the Internet. Such access should be
- backed up by a legal right to public information, without any showing of
- need or intended use. Such information should be available in standard
- formats to promote broad and effective access.
-
- C. Market structures
-
- 1) There should be no a priori limitation to market entry for Internet
- service providers (ISPs), and ISPs should not be prevented from using or
- establishing their own terrestrial or wireless infrastructure.
-
- 2) In particular, licensing should not be used as a method of restricting
- market entry.
-
- 3) ISPs and other intermediaries have responsibilities, but those
- responsibilities should be enforced other than through licensing
- mechanisms.
-
- D. Overseas Development Assistance
-
- 1) Overseas development assistance programs should strive to promote full
- access to the Internet. Such programs should include support for the
- development of public policy environments consistent with these Open
- Internet Policy Principles, and adequate resources for training and
- ongoing
- support.
-
- III. The Rights and Responsibilities of Internet Users
-
- Internet users have rights and responsibilities which should shape the way
- the law addresses the Internet.
-
- A. General Legal Framework
-
- 1) The Internet does not exist in a legal vacuum. For the most part,
- existing laws can and should regulate conduct on the Internet to the same
- degree as other forms of conduct. Such laws may differ from country to
- country, but should conform with the applicable binding human rights
- obligations contained in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the
- International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the European
- Convention on Human Rights.
-
- 2) The legality of publishing activity on the Internet should be judged
- according to the law in the country in which the publisher originally acts
- to publish the material. While this "law of the place of origin" is
- consistent with the "Television Without Borders" policy of the European
- Commission, strong public policies in places of reception may necessitate
- negotiation of an international convention on this choice-of-law question.
-
- B. Objectionable Content
-
- 1) To enable users to shield themselves and their families from
- objectionable or unwanted content, priority should be given to "downstream
- filtering" by users. There should be no government censorship of Internet
- content.
-
- 2) Filtering should empower users to be responsible for the content they
- access.
-
- 3) Filtering can promote freedom of choice through a variety of rating
- systems.
-
- 4) Filtering systems should make clear what sites they block (or select)
- and what criteria they use to block (or select) sites.
-
- 5) Access to multiple 3rd party content labeling systems, as opposed to
- government censorship, can support the great diversity of cultural and
- moral values of Internet users around the world.
-
- IV. Law, Human Rights and the Internet
-
- Legal regulation of the Internet should implement the foregoing principles
- relating to rights and responsibilities of Internet users, while also
- recognizing international human rights law and legitimate national law
- enforcement interests.
-
- A. Freedom of Expression
-
- There should be no regulation of Internet content by government. We
- understand the fundamental rights of freedom of expression, as embodied in
- Art. 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights ("Everybody has the
- right ... to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any
- media and regardless of frontiers" ) and in Art. 19(2) of the
- International
- Covenant on Civil and Political Rights ("Everyone shall have the right to
- freedom of expression; this right shall include freedom to seek, receive
- and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers,
- either orally, in writing or in print, in the form or art or through any
- other media of his choice") -- to apply with
- full force to Internet communication.
-
- B. Civil and Criminal Law Enforcement
-
- Enforcing existing laws in the international Internet environment raises
- specific challenges. In general,combating online crime, while protecting
- civil liberties, can best be accomplished with additional resources and
- training for law enforcement agencies, not by enactment of new laws.
-
- In carrying out their duties, law enforcement agencies should:
-
- *be fully aware of the unique characteristics of the Internet;
-
- *adhere to internationally recognized principles of human rights;
-
- *╘.
-
-