Don't forget to check out http://auda.org.au/domain-news/ for today's edition of the complete domain news, including an RSS feed - already online! Headlines from today's edition of the news include: us: Christians, Rockers and Pro-Choicers Testify for Net Neutrality | Battle Against Fast-Flux Botnets Intensifies | ICANN recommendations on fast-flux hosting not tough enough: experts | The Fable Of Front Running: ICANN Says 'No Evidence' But Network Solutions Is Sued In Class Action by Matthew Hall and Tyrilly Bolton | .Asia Landrush Closes with Half a Million Domain Name Applications | Opinion: Government and industry unite in cybercrime battle | DHS Holds Cyber Storm II Exercise to Further Cyber Security Preparedness and Response Capabilities | au: Telstra, CommBank, DoD in secret cyberwar games | Australian Government Systems Under Attack | Cyber terror: Australia faces the storm | Killing Domain Names May Be Oppressive, But Completely Legal | GoDaddy shuts down police rating Web site | The Snowe Bill - Pros and Cons by Jay Westerdal | A Free Speech Double Whammy: Flawed Anti-Phishing Bill Would Dilute Trademark Fair Use and Anonymity Protections | Fund.com sells for $10 million (almost) | Spitzer Scandal Erupts; Domain Names Registered And see my website - http://technewsreview.com.au/ - for daily updates in between postings. *************************************************** The domain name news is supported by auDA *************************************************** UK launches first Internet Governance Forum http://www.computerworlduk.com/management/online/e-business/news/index.cfm?newsid=7882 Who should bear the cost of tomorrow's broadband? [IDG] http://www.infoworld.com/article/08/03/06/Who-should-bear-cost-of-broadband_1.html ICANN looks toward end of US agreement [IDG] http://www.infoworld.com/article/08/03/07/ICANN-looks-toward-end-of-US-agreement_1.html ICANN seeks public comment on domain tasting http://icann.org/public_comment/#domain-tasting ICANN: Global Policy Proposal for Remaining IPv4 Address Space ? Background Report http://icann.org/announcements/proposal-ipv4-report-29nov07.htm Problems with .nl Numerical Domain Names Landrush http://www.domainpulse.com/2008/03/08/problems-with-nl-numerical-domain-names-landrush/ Cyber Storm II security exercise commences http://technewsreview.com.au/article.php?article=4170 Cyber Storm II challenges banks, telcos and government http://computerworld.co.nz/news.nsf/scrt/93C601DA05A5B34DCC257404007B56DB Australia engages allies in cyber warfare http://www.computerworld.com.au/index.php/id;1447007406;fp;2;fpid;1 Chinese hackers: No site is safe http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/03/07/china.hackers/ Kiwi Cybersquatter has change of heart http://stuff.co.nz/4429708a11.html God Saves Kiwi Cybersquatter! http://technewsreview.com.au/article.php?article=4162 Yahoo! wins sponsored links ruling in High Court http://out-law.com/page-8916 Getting Ahead in Domain Name Trading http://www.ecommercetimes.com/story/61967.html ********************** GOVERNANCE ********************** UK Internet Governance Forum launched The inaugural UK Internet Governance Forum was held at the Houses of Parliament on Thursday and featured representatives from Nominet, the Specialist Crime Directorate, several MPs and a British ambassador. http://news.zdnet.co.uk/internet/0,1000000097,39363103,00.htm UK launches governance forum Leading lights from the UK's internet industry will meet today to launch the UK Internet Government Forum, a working group that will support international efforts to improve internet governance. http://www.itweek.co.uk/itweek/news/2211427/uk-launches-governance-forum UK launches first Internet Governance Forum The UK Internet Governance Forum (IGF) was held at the Houses of Parliament on Thursday, with representatives from Nominet, the Specialist Crime Directorate, MPs and a British ambassador. http://www.computerworlduk.com/management/online/e-business/news/index.cfm?newsid=7882 http://www.networkworld.com/news/2008/030708-uk-launches-first-internet-governance.html UK Internet Governance Forum opens its doors The UK IGF is officially launched, against the backdrop of Nominet's web Best Practice Challenge. http://www.itpro.co.uk/news/175698/uk-internet-governance-forum-opens-its-doors.html Who should bear the cost of tomorrow's broadband? [IDG] As the volume of Internet traffic grows explosively, driven by factors like rampant demand for online video, a new question is arising: Who will get the bill for the megasized data pipes of the future? A panel of industry executives and analysts mulled that question and related issues during a keynote event Thursday at the Cebit conference in Hanover, Germany. http://www.infoworld.com/article/08/03/06/Who-should-bear-cost-of-broadband_1.html http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,143193-c,broadband/article.html From Zittrain to Aristotle in 600 words Here is a picture taken during Jonathan Zittrain's LSE lecture yesterday on "The Future of the Net (and how to stop it)". In case you can't read it or guess it, the word tattoo-projected onto JZ's forearm is not "open is we" or "CC rules" but "Communitarian". When I saw the word, the memory bells started to ring. I'll tell you why. http://www.opendemocracy.net/blog/tony_curzon_price/from_zittrain_to_aristotle_in_600_words ********************** DOMAIN NAMES ********************** ********************** - ICANN ********************** ICANN looks toward end of US agreement [IDG] ICANN is starting to look at how the organization might function after its current memorandum of understanding with the U.S. Department of Commerce expires in September 2009. http://www.infoworld.com/article/08/03/07/ICANN-looks-toward-end-of-US-agreement_1.html http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,143219-pg,1/article.html http://www.itworld.com/Tech/4535/icann-080307/ http://computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9067318 http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/08/AR2008030800059.html http://www.thestandard.com/news/2008/03/07/icann-looks-toward-end-us-agreement-0 http://www.circleid.com/posts/83716_icann_jpa_department_of_commerce/ ICANN seeks public comment on domain tasting Explanation: The GNSO Council is considering the issue of "domain tasting", a term used to describe the case when someone registers a domain name and then tests to see if the name has sufficient traffic to provide more income than the annual registration fee (usually through pay-per-click advertising). If the name is deemed sufficiently profitable, it is kept. http://icann.org/public_comment/#domain-tasting ICANN Formalizes Relationship with ccTLD Managers for South Africa and Azerbaijan ICANN has announced today that it has signed an exchange of letters with the ccTLD manager for .za-South Africa ZA DNA, and an accountability framework with the ccTLD manager for .az-Azerbaijan, IntraNS. http://icann.org/announcements/announcement-06mar08.htm ICANN: Global Policy Proposal for Remaining IPv4 Address Space ? Background Report - Updated 5 March 2008 Introduction: The development of Global Internet Number Resource Policies is the subject of an MoU between ASO/NRO and ICANN. There are also specific ICANN Board Procedures for handling global policy proposals in this context. The Board procedures also state that the Board can request ICANN staff to undertake an ?early awareness? tracking of proposals for global policies under development in the addressing community. At its meeting on 20 November 2007, the Board resolved to request such tracking of the development of a global policy proposal for allocation of remaining IPv4 address space, currently being discussed in the Regional Internet Registries, or RIRs. The status overview presented below is compiled in response to this request and will be timely updated as developments proceed, for information to ICANN entities and the wider community. http://icann.org/announcements/proposal-ipv4-report-29nov07.htm Asking for your help in shaping ICANN?s travel support for constituencies by Doug Brent During the New Delhi meeting, I made a presentation on ICANN?s goal of creating a documented, consistent policy that makes it clear when, for whom, and how ICANN will provide travel support for volunteers who make ICANN?s community-based work possible. While lots of valuable input came from that meeting, I made a commitment to host an online forum to collect further input. While this is not a formal ICANN process, input is being sought and will be used in the spirit of ICANN?s commitment to openness and transparency. That forum is now open and will be open for comments until 17 April 2008. http://blog.icann.org/?p=281 Internationalized Domain Names IDNs are perhaps the only hope to increase Internet penetration in India, enabling the non-English speaking population to comfortably use the Internet. http://www.expresscomputeronline.com/20080310/technology01.shtml ICANN Wants To End Commerce Dept. Oversight In 2009 Ian Lamont writes "ICANN's current Joint Project Agreement with the US Commerce Department is set to expire in September of 2009, and ICANN wants to become more autonomous and switch to a global governance model, says ICANN's executive officer. http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/03/07/2251247 ********************** - (cc)TLD NEWS ********************** .Asia Landrush Countdown - 5 days to go! Only 5 days to go! Only 5 days to go - .Asia Landrush ends on March 12, 2008. Don't miss out on the best opportunity to invest in prime real estate on the new .Asia cyberspace. Over a quarter million domain applications were received within the first 24 hours of the .Asia Landrush, which started on Feb 20, 2008. http://www.sedo.com/links/showhtml.php3?Id=1671 cz: CZ.NIC Securing the Czech Internet [news release] The DNSSEC technology increases the DNS system security; DNSSEC will be useful mainly for companies handling sensitive information and data; launch of a testing version for the ENUM domain is scheduled for April, testing version for the .CZ domain will be launched in August and the full operation launch will be carried out in September 2008 http://www.nic.cz/page/445/cz.nic-securing-the-czech-internet-/ Domain registration in Germany The registry for the .de domain is administered by DENIC in Germany. The Domain Name Contract with DENIC can be concluded once the registration guidelines and general terms and condition laid down by DENIC are fulfilled. The contents of these provisions describe the rights and obligations of the Registry and the Registrant with respect to registration and all issues in relation to Domain Name. There is no restriction on the number of domain names that a single entity or person can register. This article answers the following questions: What characters are permitted for domain name registration under .de in Germany? What duties lie on the Domain Holder at the time of registration? What conditions lead to termination of the domain Contract by the DENIC? What is a DISPUTE entry? What material must be stipulated in an application to dispute entry? http://www.ibls.com/internet_law_news_portal_view.aspx?s=articles&id=F324D6ED-6B4E-4FC7-B488-A6DF2ED918B1 jp: Cumulative Number of Registered JP Domain Names Exceeds One Million [news release] On 4 March 2008, JPRS announced that the cumulative number of registered JP domain names as of 1 March 2008 exceeded one million for the first time, hitting 1,003,285. http://jprs.co.jp/en/topics/080305.html Problems with .nl Numerical Domain Names Landrush SIDN logoThe recent landrush for numerical .nl names has not gone as expected with some problems occurring that relate to speculative applications for names from a small number of applicants. Both SP-Kamerlid Arda Gerkens and the association for internet service providers, ISPConnect, are both dissatisfied with the process with the latter speaking of a massive hijack. Gerkins meanwhile claims there was a massive hijack, something denied by SIDN, and the government must take the role of SIDN away and transferred to OPTA. http://www.domainpulse.com/2008/03/08/problems-with-nl-numerical-domain-names-landrush/ Nominet launches Best Practice Challenge 2008 [news release] Today we launch our second Best Practice Challenge to celebrate innovation and achievement in the British Internet. http://www.nominet.org.uk/news/latest/?contentId=4830 Nominet Retains First Class Star Status with Best Companies Workplace Award [news release] Nominet, the .uk domain name registry, has retained its 'First Class Star Status' Accreditation by Best Companies Ltd. The accreditation is based on a 'Michelin-style' star rating system and focuses on employee engagement with their organisation and acknowledges companies that provide an excellent working environment for its employees. http://www.nominet.org.uk/news/releases/?contentId=4772 Registrar information days [news release] 2008 programme launched We are running another series of our popular information days to help familiarise members and registrars with our business practices and the use of our automated systems. http://www.nominet.org.uk/news/latest/?contentId=4831 uk:Registrar systems - simultaneous connections [news release] On the 11 March 2008 we will implement a number of changes to our registrar systems that may affect the connections you make to our systems. http://www.nominet.org.uk/news/latest/?contentId=4832 uk: March PAB meeting agenda and papers [news release] The Policy Advisory Body will be meeting on Wednesday 12 March 2008 and it welcomes stakeholder comments on the issues being discussed at this meeting http://www.nominet.org.uk/news/latest/?contentId=4692 33M Internet domain names added in 2007, VeriSign says The Internet grew by almost 33 million domain names last year, according to the fourth-quarter 2007 "Domain Name Industry" report released yesterday by VeriSign Inc., a digital infrastructure vendor that manages Internet domain names such as .com. http://computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9066999 http://www.computerworld.com.au/index.php/id;574729208;fp;2;fpid;1 Those Expanding Internet Domain Names Think all the good domain names are taken? Think again. If the latest set of statistics from VeriSign is any indication, there are still a lot of domain names to go around. VeriSign reported that in 2007 there were 33 million new domain registrations, bringing the total number of domains registered to 153 million. http://itmanagement.earthweb.com/cnews/article.php/3732841 ********************** - DNS SECURITY ********************** Cyber Storm II security exercise commences Cyber Storm II commences this month involving and planned in close coordination with federal, state, local, and international governments, including Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom. In addition, private sector players from the Information Technology (IT), Transportation (Rail and Pipe), and Chemical sectors along with multiple Information Sharing and Analysis Centers (ISACs) are scheduled to participate. Cyber Storm exercises are prepared by the United States' Department of Homeland Security. It is a biennial National Cyber Exercise whose goal is to examine the processes, procedures, tools, and organisational response to a multi-sector coordinated attack through, and on, the global cyber infrastructure. http://technewsreview.com.au/article.php?article=4170 http://www.domainnews.com/general/2008032738/cyber-storm-ii-security-exercise-commences/ http://www.domainpulse.com/2008/03/07/cyber-storm-ii-security-exercise-commences/ Cyber Storm II challenges banks, telcos and government Attacks on the digital infrastructure of various companies and industry sectors will be role-played nationally and internationally in the Cyber Storm II exercise, to be held from today through to Friday. The active exercise will centre on the Tuesday to Thursday period, and locally will involve government departments, banks, at least one power distribution company (plus TransPower), telecoms and internet service providers, and networking companies. http://computerworld.co.nz/news.nsf/scrt/93C601DA05A5B34DCC257404007B56DB Washington Prepares for Cyber War Games - Week-Long Simulation Tests Agencies', Companies' Response to Online Attacks The U.S. government will conduct a series of cyber war games throughout next week to test its ability to recover from and respond to digital attacks. Code-named 'Cyber Storm II,' this is the largest-ever exercise designed to evaluate the mettle of information technology experts and incident response teams from 18 federal agencies, including the CIA, Department of Defense, FBI, and NSA, as well as officials from nine states, including Delaware, Pennsylvania and Virginia. In addition, more than 40 companies will be playing, including Cisco Systems, Dow Chemical, McAfee, and Microsoft. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/07/AR2008030701157.html Australia engages allies in cyber warfare Cyber Storm II was today officially launched by the Attorney General in which five countries will engage in an international hacking exercise. The wargame is a follow-up to last years' Cyber Storm and will test the national security of Australia, the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and New Zealand between March 11 to 14. http://www.computerworld.com.au/index.php/id;1447007406;fp;2;fpid;1 Chinese hackers: No site is safe They operate from a bare apartment on a Chinese island. They are intelligent 20-somethings who seem harmless. But they are hard-core hackers who claim to have gained access to the world's most sensitive sites, including the Pentagon. In fact, they say they are sometimes paid secretly by the Chinese government -- a claim the Beijing government denies. http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/03/07/china.hackers/ Surge of Phishing Kits Hits the Net Researchers have discovered a cache of over 400 do-it-yourself phishing kits now in the wild -- including some used by phishers to phish other phishers. The phishing kits, which include some traditionally distributed by a phishing group known as ?Mr. Brain? that offers free phishing kits that surreptitiously target other phishers, are set up to go after social networks, video-sharing, VOIP, and free email service providers as well as the usual financial services victims. Among the banks that are being targeted by the freebie and easy-to-use kits are Barclays, BankOne, Charter, Chase, Citibank, and HSBC, according to researchers at Trend Micro, which are investigating this development. http://www.darkreading.com/document.asp?doc_id=147810 ********************** - DOMAIN DISPUTES ********************** Kiwi Cybersquatter has change of heart The internet address OzJet wanted, but would not pay for ? www.ozjet.co.nz ? is now free for the airline's use, after a dramatic change of heart by reformed cybersquatter Jeff Twigge. http://stuff.co.nz/4429708a11.html God Saves Kiwi Cybersquatter! A New Zealand cybersquatter Jeff Twigge says he gave up the practice after reading "a passage in 1 Corinthians, chapter 6, from the Bible (King James version). 'Extortioners', listed among various kinds of people who would not inherit the kingdom of God, 'leapt off the page,'" reports the Manawatu Standard. Previously Mr Twigge justified his cybersquatting "as modern-day Robin Hood behaviour." http://technewsreview.com.au/article.php?article=4162 http://www.domainpulse.com/2008/03/06/god-saves-kiwi-cybersquatter/ http://www.domainnews.com/litigation/2008032737/god-saves-cybersquatter/ NZ charidee cybersquatter fears burning in Hell A Kiwi cybersquatter has recanted his domain hostage-taking after a Bible-powered epiphany taught him the error of his ways. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/03/07/cybersaquatter_sees_the_light/ us: R.N.C. Snap Up Domain Names Cannotrustclinton.com? clintonisbad.com? At least 25 domain names related to Hillary Rodham Clinton have links to the Republican National Committee: the names were either registered by the R.N.C. last year or showed up on servers the committee uses. Half a dozen seemed to guess at Mrs. Clinton?s eventual running mate, like clintonomalley.com, referring to Gov. Martin O?Malley of Maryland. The day after Barack Obama won the Iowa caucuses, the R.N.C. snapped up at least 20 domains related to his candidacy. Some of them may signal the party?s future strategy: baracknotready.com and norealexperience.com. The party has also begun preemptively registering domains that could be used to attack John McCain, like mccainamigos.com, voteagainstmccain.com, flipflopmccain.com and hatemccain.com (ihatemccain.com was taken.) http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/03/06/rnc-snap-up-domain-names/ US seizes domain name of Spanish company selling Cuba trips The United States has often presented itself as the guardian of Internet free speech. China may censor the Internet, and otherwise-civilized nations such as Germany or France may attempt to block what they view as unacceptable material, but the United States of America likes to think of itself as a place that doesn't censor people online... unless you happen to own a foreign travel business that offers trips to Cuba. Under such circumstances, as Steve Marshall discovered, all bets are off. http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20080307-us-interferes-with-travel-to-cuba.html Sabotage: an occupational hazard on the net Sabotage. That's the right word for what Pakistan Telecom did to YouTube on the last Sunday in February. It was intended to be censorship ? blocking Pakistanis from seeing a video that their government found offensive. But it resulted in all of YouTube vanishing from the internet for up to two hours. ... So, like YouTube, you could find your domain name hijacked, accidentally or intentionally, at almost any time. http://computerworld.co.nz/news.nsf/mgmt/300FEEEFF14D0442CC2574040078E640 Aniti-phishing bill working its way through U.S. Senate A group of U.S. senators have introduced a bi-partisan bill aimed at stopping phishing, but some privacy advocates are worried that website registrants will have to forfeit too much personal information. http://www.securecomputing.net.au/news/71701,anitiphishing-bill-working-its-way-through-us-senate.aspx New Anti-phishing law: A Snowe job? by Milton Mueller Three U.S. Senators, led by Maine Republican Olympia Snowe, have proposed a new, harsh law allegedly to combat phishing, the Anti-Phishing Consumer Protection Act of 2008. But since the Senators obviously pandered to major trademark holders during its drafting, the law does little more than attempt to expand the powers that brand holders have over domain names, while adding little or nothing to the fight against phishing -- which is already completely illegal. The problem is that the bill focuses too much on the domain names used by phishers and adds little to efforts to prosecute phishing itself. It might better be renamed, "The Selective Anti-Typosquatting and antiWhois Privacy Act of 2008." A group representing small business interests in domain name policy, the Internet Commerce Association, has sounded the alarm against the bill, noting that: http://blog.internetgovernance.org/blog/_archives/2008/3/7/3566502.html Fucked Up - The Theft of Fucked.com and Pornos.com A domainer is cheated of over $120,000. The FBI and the police are involved. And so is an allegedly 16 year old boy in Ontario, Canada. You work hard for what you have earned in life. You spend all day crouched over your computer doing research and negotiating deals. But some people aren't willing to put in this work and want quick shortcuts - and will do this at the expense of your life savings. http://www.domainbits.com/domain-theft/ National Arbitration Forum Reports Rise in Domain Name Disputes [news release] The National Arbitration Forum, an international provider of alternative dispute resolution services, administered a total of 1,805 domain name disputes in 2007, up from 1,658 disputes in 2006. The National Arbitration Forum has been approved as a domain name dispute resolution program provider by ICANN since 1999. http://domains.adrforum.com/newsroom.aspx?itemID=1363 ********************** - MISCELLANEOUS ********************** MobiTV threatens suit over link providing free video streams ... Howard Forums' users, as you might expect, are hardly happy about the threats. E-mail correspondence that Howard Forums posted from MobiTV shows its lawyers consider the link to be obtained through "hacking" and that ICANN will be contacted as well. http://www.news.com/8301-13578_3-9888724-38.html http://www.cnet.com/8301-13739_1-9888749-46.html Afilias and CERT-In Sign MoU to Improve Internet Security in India [news release] Afilias, a global provider of registry services, today announced that it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) to share critical information and resources to enhance cyber-security in India and world-wide, increase awareness of important security issues, and to cooperate in emergency response to critical threats. http://www.afilias.info/news/press_releases/pr_articles/2008-02-12-01 What everyone ought to know about Geo domains I've got a real interest in Geo Domains as I think that they have a lot of potential for future appreciation. As well, coming from a competitive webmastering background, I could see how the right Geo Domain could provide a substantial competitive advantage. In fact, the first major domain purchase I made was a Geo Domain. Because of this, I was happy to see the launch of Simply Geo a few months ago. This is a blog devoted solely to the Geo Domain industry. http://www.domainbits.com/steven-morales/ ********************** - DOMAINING ********************** Yahoo! wins sponsored links ruling in High Court Yahoo! did not infringe a businessman's rights by displaying adverts for other companies when users entered his trade marks as search terms. The High Court dismissed a lawsuit against the web giant as being "totally without merit." http://out-law.com/page-8916 Domain Parking Company ParkingDots Closes its Doors A major domain parking company just announced that it is closing its doors. ParkingDots will be no more effective March 9th. http://domainnamewire.com/2008/03/08/parkingdots-closes-its-doors/ DomainerTV and Domain Roundtable preview by Jay Westerdal The domain industry keeps growing. We now have two TV channel websites that create unique content which cover domaining. The first is DomainerTV.com and the other is Page Howe?s DNTV.tv. I am very impressed by the level of detail these sites have launched with in very little time. DomainerTV interviewed me while I was attending the TrafficZ party in Las Vegas. I talked about the up coming Domain Roundtable event and what DomainTools working on. http://blog.domaintools.com/2008/03/domainertv-and-domain-roundtable-preview/ ?Gamble for Good? Benefit Hosted at Domain Roundtable Club 443Inspired by last year?s $20,000 success, Domain Roundtable is back at it again! So, get ready to press your luck Saturday, April 19 as you are invited to Gamble for Good at the Domain Roundtable Conference. http://blog.domaintools.com/2008/03/gamble-for-good-benefit-hosted-at-domain-roundtable/ DOMAINER SPOTLIGHT: Jeffrey Behrendt; DomainBits.com If you're interested in following along side-by-side with the domain industrys most seasoned domainers then look no further than inside your computer. Domainers have long been pressing their thoughts about domaining into the screen before most of us even knew what a blog was. The more info about domains that comes out the more people there are that are introduced to domaining and eventually hop in for the ride of their lives. http://www.domainerdeveloper.com/2008/02/domainer-spot-1.html ********************** - AFTERMARKET ********************** Internet domain prospectors try to capitalize after NIU tragedy Less than 24 hours after the shootings at Northern Illinois University, "domain prospectors" went to work registering various Web site addresses they hoped to sell later for a profit. http://www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=150196&src=109 Getting Ahead in Domain Name Trading Domain name appraisers have become quite prominent. If you go to Google, for example, and search for "domain name appraisers," you will get about the same number of hits as for "domain name auctions" -- over 200,000. It seems to me that virtual real estate has created a new profession: domain name appraiser. Most of us are painfully aware that the real estate market has been on the decline for some time. In fact, some experts feel that it might take at least two years for prices to hit bottom. However, an interesting twist is bringing good news: Virtual real estate prices (domain names) are on the rise! In fact, we now have active trading in domain names. http://www.ecommercetimes.com/story/61967.html Comparison search tool for domain names Whether you buy domain names on a large scale or not, this service may be of interest: Ofindo is a (relatively) new website where you can compare registrars offers. Using different criteria (TLD, registrar's country, currency and/or mean of payment), users may select which registrar best suits their needs. Comparison is only possible among the providers which registered and publish their offers. http://domaine.blogspot.com/2008/03/comparison-search-tool-for-domain-names.html Domain Name Appraisal Scam Resurfaces An old scam in the domain name world appears to be resurfacing. The domain name appraisal scam works like this: someone emails you interested in buying a domain. When you reply, they require an appraisal to verify the value. The scammer either owns the domain appraisal company you are referred to, or is a paid affiliate. http://domainnamewire.com/2008/03/06/domain-name-appraisal-scam-resurfaces/ UNet.com Yields $100,000 to Top a Long List of Reported Domain Sales From the Past Fortnight We're back after a week off to cover last week's T.R.A.F.F.I.C. West conference in Las Vegas (our comprehensive review of that event will be published on our home page by the end of the week). Given the 14-day span since our last column, you won't be surprised to hear that hundreds of new four, five and six figure sales have been reported since our previous trip to the plate. The lone surprise is that from among all of those sales, only one cracked the six-figure mark and that one - Unet.com, sold at Sedo.com for $100,000 to barely clear the bar. http://dnjournal.com/archive/domainsales/2008/domainsales03-04-08.htm ********************** RESEARCH PAPERS ********************** Mobile Access to Data and Information [news release] 62% of Americans are part of a wireless, mobile population that participates in digital activities away from home or work http://www.pewinternet.org/press_release.asp?r=300 ********************** INTERNET USE ********************** CONFERENCE: The Future of the Internet The internet has caused far-reaching changes and has become today a critical infrastructure for economy and society. Todays' 1 billion fixed network users will soon be joined by 3 billion more as mobile devices become more cost effective, making use of a fully pervasive wireless Internet infrastructure, anywhere, anytime. http://ec.europa.eu/information_society/newsroom/cf/itemdetail.cfm?item_id=3962 http://www.fi-bled.eu/ Survey Pegs Cell Phone as Americans' Most Valued Tech Tool Cell phones are valued by more Americans than TV or the Internet, according to a study from the Pew Internet & American Life Project. The cell phone was regarded as being "very hard to give up" by just over half of the respondents, compared to 43 percent who felt the same way about TV. Last year, respondents most commonly expressed attachment to their land line phones. http://www.technewsworld.com/story/61998.html http://www.ecommercetimes.com/story/handheld-devices/61998.html The battle for Wikipedia's soul The internet: The popular online encyclopedia, written by volunteer contributors, has unlimited space. So does it matter if it includes trivia? http://www.economist.com/printedition/displaystory.cfm?story_id=10789354 Thou shalt not steal sermons from the internet, priests told Young Catholic priests who download sermons from the internet to save themselves the trouble of writing their own have been told that they could be prosecuted for plagiarism. The warning was issued by a leading Polish priest, and has been taken up by Catholic newspapers around the world. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/europe/thou-shalt-not-steal-sermons-from-the-internet-priests-told-793134.html comScore Releases Top German Web Rankings for January 2008 [news release] comScore released its January rankings of the largest and fastest-growing Internet properties and site categories in Germany based on data from the comScore World Metrix audience measurement service. The month saw increases to travel, career, real estate and politics sites as German Internet users reflected on the year past and prepared for 2008. eBay, with 17.6 million unique visitors, grabbed the second position among all Web properties, trailing only Google Sites. http://www.comscore.com/press/release.asp?press=2084 How Flickr developed into a classic Web 2.0 success According to some market research I read recently, the world market for digital cameras is predicted to reach 122 million units by 2010. That seems like an underestimate to me. Everyone I know has at least one camera, and most cellphones seem to have one. Some Nokia phones now come with 5 megapixel cameras and Zeiss lenses, enabling their users to produce images of quite startling quality. http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/mar/09/web20.internet Email 'a broken business tool' as staff spend hours wading through inboxes The deluge of email flooding workers' inboxes every day has become so overwhelming that it is now a 'broken business tool' in urgent need of fixing, companies have been warned. http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/mar/09/internet Girls and young woman are now the most prolific web users The internet began as an almost exclusively male preserve. Now young women, from primary school age upwards, are now making it their own http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/the_web/article3511863.ece When Mom or Dad Asks To Be a Facebook 'Friend' When Matt Florian signed onto his Facebook account recently to check the status of his 400-plus friends, he had a friend request. It was from his dad. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/08/AR2008030801034.html Text Generation Gap: U R 2 Old (JK) As president of the Walt Disney Company?s children?s book and magazine publishing unit, Russell Hampton knows a thing or two about teenagers. Or he thought as much until he was driving his 14-year-old daughter, Katie, and two friends to a play last year in Los Angeles. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/09/business/09cell.html Russia: internet advertising market doubles The Runet internet advertising market doubled over the previous year surpassing $400 mln and occupying about 4% of the total media advertising volume. Market participants forecast in 2008 the market will grow by 50-70% net of expenses for promotion, creation and online PR. Business total expenditure for intern advertising has not been calculated yet. http://eng.cnews.ru/news/top/indexEn.shtml?2008/03/04/290590 Stream expands into regions: broadband internet market hots up The Comstar UTS Company has approved the technical, financial and marketing strategis up to 2011. Infrastructure development and active promotion of the company?s services in the regions, first of all the broadband internet under the Stream brand, are emphasized. Analysts highlight that competition for the internet in the regions has reached its peak, so Comstar with its strategies is trying to catch up with the passing train. http://eng.cnews.ru/news/top/indexEn.shtml?2008/03/03/290413 ********************** SOCIAL NETWORKING ********************** Sexual harassment is rife online. No wonder women swap gender Female gamers are used to putting up with sexist claptrap - both from the companies that design games and other players. So a study by psychologists at Nottingham Trent University showing that 70% of them chose to construct male characters when given the option by online games, should come as no surprise. http://lifeandhealth.guardian.co.uk/women/story/0,,2262449,00.html ********************** NEW TECHNOLOGIES ********************** Cebit goes green to smaller crowds The biggest European information technology fair went green this year. The problem was that there were not many people around to notice. http://iht.com/articles/2008/03/06/business/cebit.php ********************** SPAM ********************** Google says spam is huge corporate headache Google released a white paper on Thursday about trends in electronic communications systems at corporations and found, to no surprise, that spam is a huge problem and getting worse. http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9888233-7.html Google Report Highlights Spam As Top Security Issue Having recently acquired messaging security company Postini, Google now finds itself in the threat-prediction business. And as is the case with just about every other computer security company, Google has research to show everyone how dangerous the online world has become. Thus we come to the 2008 Annual Google Communications Intelligence Report. http://www.informationweek.com/news/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=206902563 Clinton, Obama campaigns used in spam blasts Democratic presidential contenders, Sens. Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton are being used in spamming campaigns to dupe people into giving up their personal information and buy into pharmaceutical and pump-and-dump stock schemes. http://searchsecurity.techtarget.com/news/article/0,289142,sid14_gci1303907,00.html Adult Website Operation Settles FTC Charges Unwitting Consumers Exposed to X-Rated Spam [news release] An X-rated Web operation that paid affiliates who used illegal e-mail to drive customers to its Web sites will pay a $413,000 civil penalty under a settlement reached with the FTC and the Department of Justice. The settlement also bars the illegal marketing practices in the future and requires the operator to monitor its affiliates to ensure that they are complying with the law. http://ftc.gov/opa/2008/03/x.shtm ************************** ONLINE CRIME, SECURITY & LEGAL ************************** Internet wiretapping: Bugging the cloud Law enforcement: Governments want to extend wiretapping rules from phones to the internet, but doing so is hard: Among the many benefits of the internet's rise over the past decade has been the advent of free phone calls between its users?and much cheaper calls even for people who are not online, since ordinary calls can be partly routed over the internet. For people who work in foreign countries, have friends and relatives spread around the world, or simply have to make a lot of calls, this is great news. But for law-enforcement organisations who are used to being able to tap conventional telephone networks, it is causing increasingly painful headaches. Around the world, the emergence of voice-over-internet-protocol (VoIP) telephony is forcing authorities and communications firms into both conflict and co-operation. http://www.economist.com/printedition/displaystory.cfm?story_id=10789393 au: Aussie mums fleeced in online scam Police are hunting a 27-year-old woman who has been ripping thousands of dollars off mothers and concert lovers for at least three years in an online scam. They confirmed that the woman traded under several aliases and used multiple internet provider addresses in Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide and Brisbane to evade detection. http://www.australianit.news.com.au/story/0,24897,23348425-15306,00.html nz: ?Akill? could face extradition, says criminal law expert Owen Walker, the 18-year-old alleged ring-leader of an international botnet coding group, could face extradition to the US if he is accused or convicted of committing an offence against US law, says barrister Jonathan Krebs, who is the convener of the NZ Law Society?s Criminal Law Committee. http://computerworld.co.nz/news.nsf/scrt/3EDB2EB22058A3FFCC25740400783B04 us: Busted: online escort ring was a real gem US authorities have smashed an online escort service that gave its prostitutes a one to seven diamond-ranking, with a "seven diamond" woman costing $US5500 ($5921) an hour. Four organisers and managers of the international ring were arrested by US authorities and charged with conspiracy to violate federal prostitution laws, Newsday.com reported. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2008/03/07/1204780030605.html http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2008/03/07/1204780030605.html British widow, 65, humiliated by Bebo web page that painted her as a scarlet woman A woman aged 65 who became the victim of an online smear campaign that she says made her ?look like a sexual predator? called yesterday for stricter controls on social networking websites. ... The case raises fresh issues about regulation of the internet and the lack of overarching legislation to deal specifically with online defamation. http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/the_web/article3498888.ece High Court decision on keyword advertising and trade mark infringement [Law-Now - reg req'd] On 20 February 2008, the High Court handed down its decision in an important trade mark infringement case brought by Mr Wilson against Yahoo! UK Ltd and its sister company, Overture Services Ltd (?Yahoo!?). The case, which concerned an application for summary judgment and/or strike out, considered whether the use of keywords in sponsored advertising amounted to trade mark infringement by Yahoo!. http://www.law-now.com/law-now/2008/adverttrademarkmar08.htm Authorities seize gadgets during patent raid at CeBIT [AP] Police and customs officials investigating suspected patent violations seized mobile phones, navigation devices and other gadgets in raids at a technology fair in Germany, with many Chinese exhibitors among those searched, authorities said Thursday. http://news.smh.com.au/authorities-seize-gadgets-during-patent-raid-at-german-tech-fair/20080307-1xo2.html http://news.theage.com.au/authorities-seize-gadgets-during-patent-raid-at-german-tech-fair/20080307-1xo2.html http://news.wired.com/dynamic/stories/G/GERMANY_TECH_FAIR_RAID US Web publisher fights to save comment forums from trade mark suit A US online publisher is fighting to keep its product review forums alive in the face of a trade mark lawsuit that seeks to ban the use of one company's product name. Realself.com is a site where people who have undergone plastic surgery review various products and procedures. It has been sued by Lifestyle Lift, a facelift company which wants to stop the site using its name in reviews. http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/03/07/plastic_surgery_review_comments/ http://out-law.com/page-8917 uk: Tories call for big changes to cybercrime offences Civil servants who lose public data could be prosecuted under proposals announced by the Conservative Party. It's one of a number of measures touted, as the Tories call for major changes in how the UK deals with cybercrime and data protection. The Tories' report - Tackling Cybercrime - calls for new offences for civil servants or government contractors who lose confidential data, a new police squad to go after cybercrims and a minister for cybercrime. http://out-law.com/page-8919 How boom in rogue ticket websites fleeces Britons First it was football supporters desperate for cup final tickets, then music fans hoping for concert seats. Now touts are targeting the Beijing Olympics. Jamie Doward reports on the explosion in online ticket scams http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/mar/09/olympicgames2008.internet ************************** PRIVACY ************************** Ad system 'will protect privacy' Two respected privacy campaigners have praised the user protection measures of a controversial online advertising system about to be deployed in the UK. The tools, developed by US firm Phorm, track users' online surfing habits. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/7280791.stm ********************** FILE SHARING ********************** Israeli internet providers ordered to block file sharing website The Haifa District Court two weeks ago ordered the three largest internet service providers in Israel to block access to the Israeli file-sharing site httpshare, this following a petition levied by the 12 largest record companies in Israel. http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3515275,00.html ********************** CENSORSHIP ********************** Pentagon bans Google from mapping military bases The Pentagon has banned Google's mapping teams from making detailed street-level video maps of US military bases after images of one camp's internal layout ended up on the internet. http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/mar/07/google.internet1 Pentagon bans Google map-makers The US defence department has banned the giant internet search engine Google from filming inside and making detailed studies of US military bases. Close-up, ground-level imagery of US military sites posed a "potential threat" to security, it said. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7282635.stm Pentagon bans Google from US bases The Pentagon has banned Google from taking photographs and video footage of US military bases after images showing important security features of a base in Texas appeared on the company's website. http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/article3503624.ece Pentagon blocks Google from mapping bases [AFP] The US Defence Department said today it is forbidding Google from filming and depicting in detail its military bases, after officials found precise imagery of a Texas base on the Google Maps website. "We received a report that Google Maps was collecting imagery and 360 degree views, including detailed imagery, of a base in Texas," Gary Ross, spokesman for the US Northern Command, told AFP in explaining the Pentagon's move. http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2008/03/07/1204780025570.html http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2008/03/07/1204780025570.html Council of Europe Works to Criminalize Political Expression by Milton Mueller The Council of Europe is pushing to extend the Cybercrime Convention to impose criminal sanctions on what it considers to be unacceptable forms of political or religious expression. The Cybercrime Convention was originally negotiated to respond to transnational problems such as theft of data, breaking into computers, computer-based financial fraud and the like. But now the Council is engaged in bulk unsolicited emails to promote the idea that web site content that is insulting or xenophobic is a cybercrime of the same order. http://blog.internetgovernance.org/blog/_archives/2008/3/6/3563421.html Google pulls map images at Pentagon's request [Reuters] Google Inc has complied with a request by the Pentagon to remove some online images from its street-level map service because they pose a security threat to US military instillations. http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/03/07/2183097.htm http://uk.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUKN0625659220080306 Singapore's Bloggers Scold Government [Reuters] Singapore's state-controlled media and government have come under fire from critics and Internet bloggers for failing to give the public important answers on the escape of a suspected Islamic militant. http://www.pcworld.com/article/id,143175-c,currentevents/article.html ************************************************ CHILD PROTECTION, FILTERING & CONTENT REGULATION ************************************************ Face haunts pedophile-busters It's a face that haunts police around the world. A young girl, probably now nine, who has grown up from infancy on film - thousands of pictures and movies shot of her being molested by an abuser who then shared the images with a network of like-minded internet pedophiles. As a two-year Queensland-led investigation culminated last weekend with the arrest of 22 people in eight countries, the relief and celebration at busting one of the world's longest-running and most sophisticated internet pedophile rings was muted by the knowledge that the girl was still out of reach of protection. http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,,23338907-2702,00.html http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,23339978-421,00.html au: Cyber pedophile ring cracked Hunched over their computers in homes around the world, the network of pedophiles devoured the horrific images of children that flashed up on their monitors from their vast library. Using highly sophisticated double encryption codes and stringent vetting procedures, the predators remained confident their evil activities in the cyber world were completely secure. http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,23341259-5007191,00.html Behind the sting - Stephen Tidwell and John Rouse explain the operation Detective Inspector John Rouse FBI executive assistant director Stephen Tidwell speak about the Operation Achilles police investigation. http://www.abc.net.au/lateline/content/2007/s2181361.htm AFP to get new paedophile tracking technology The Australian Federal Police are expected to announce the Child Exploitation Tracking System is finally going to be available in Australia, after concerns the sophisticated software was taking too long to be introduced. http://www.abc.net.au/lateline/content/2007/s2182898.htm Australian study targets 'toxic' cyber-bullying The West Australian Government will spend $400,000 on a world-first five-year study into cyber-bullying, amid growing concern about the damaging effect on children being targeted by abusive text messages, emails and degrading digital photos. Education Minister Mark McGowan said yesterday that up to 15 per cent of WA students were victims of "vicious" cyber-bullying, which was generally anonymous and had potentially dire consequences. http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,23347281-5013404,00.html http://www.australianit.news.com.au/story/0,24897,23348279-15306,00.html http://www.news.com.au/perthnow/story/0,21498,23348168-2761,00.html Microsoft helps AFP curb online nasties Microsoft's Child Exploitation Tracking System (CETS) will allow law enforcement agencies in Australia to share and track information relating to online child exploitation and abuse with their counterparts all over the world. http://www.australianit.news.com.au/story/0,24897,23334295-15306,00.html au: Govt sticks to guns on internet porn filters Porn on the net is a massive industry, with a very high request rate across all search engines. http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/03/06/2181828.htm NZ Internal Affairs crack child porn ring [AAP] New Zealand authorities have claimed credit for sparking an international child porn investigation that led to arrests worldwide. The Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) said it triggered the investigation that ultimately led to more than 100 arrests. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/1/story.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10496524 http://stuff.co.nz/4428364a10.html NZ gardening group hid porn ring Something was peculiar about the gardening news group. Internet users discussing the seemingly innocuous topics of plants and motoring were encrypting files so others couldn't see it. The sheer volume of material on the site was odd. Their suspicions raised, Internal Affairs inspectors in Wellington infiltrated the site. Over three months they uncovered a vast secretive child pornography ring in Australia, United States, Canada and Europe. http://stuff.co.nz/news.html au: AFP launches online child porn tracker The Australian Federal Police (AFP) is launching an online tracking system to help it catch child predators and paedophiles. The Child Exploitation Tracking System will allow federal police to share information with law enforcement agencies throughout the country and the world. http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/03/07/2183002.htm NZ Children's Commissioner warns paedophiles The Children's Commissioner says paedophiles feeding their addiction through the internet will be caught. Internal Affairs has alerted international authorities to a web-based pornography ring, resulting in 40 children being rescued and 22 people arrested in Australia, Britain, Germany and America. http://home.nzcity.co.nz/news/article.aspx?id=82562 Using open source to fight porn ... A new Red Hat employee queried an internal e-mail list as to methods of protecting their children from accessing pornography, and through the responses I learned a few things I thought I'd share... Perhaps the first question to answer is "what is to be protected?" We live in a media-saturated culture where some of the raciest material is to be found in all its pixelated glory of some of the most conservative TV programs (see Fox News Porn). Between the catalogs, newpaper ads, billboards, etc., there's plenty of disturbing material to go around. Indeed, when traveling through the airport with my daughter last year, she had quite a laugh when she came face-to-face with the image of a woman barely dressed on the cover of Cosmopolitan. (She called her "naked-bottom girl" for the rest of the day.) Deciding where to begin has become difficult indeed. http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9888001-7.html uk: Five-year-olds should be taught about online safety, say Tories Children as young as five would be taught about the dangers of putting their personal details on the internet under plans drawn up by the Conservatives to tackle cyber-crime. Issues such as privacy, information security, and the risks posed by posting photographs online would all be addressed as part of the compulsory ICT curriculum, which is introduced at Key Stage 1, the Conservatives said. http://technology.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/tech_and_web/the_web/article3496245.ece uk: The mobile internet kids by Rory Cellan-Jones I spent a day this week at a school in Tynemouth, on the coast outside Newcastle, helping pupils at Marden High School make a film about mobile phones for the BBC's School Report project. There?ll be more about this on the website on School Report day on March 13th, but one thing struck me immediately. Children are at the cutting edge of the mobile internet revolution and both teachers and the phone industry can learn from them. http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/technology/2008/03/the_mobile_internet_kids.html Ofcom update on TV advertising of HFSS products to children In February 2007, after conducting a public consultation, Ofcom launched a package of rules to restrict the television advertising of high fat, salt and sugar (?HFSS?) food and drink products to children. These restrictions were due to be implemented in three phases: Phase 1 (ban on advertising HFSS products in programmes aimed at 4 ? 9 year olds) commenced in April 2007; Phase 2 (extension of ban to programmes aimed at 9 ? 15 year olds, and scaling back of HFSS advertising to 50% of 2005 levels) commenced in January 2008; and Phase 3 (complete ban on all HFSS advertising on children?s channels) is due to commence in January 2009. http://www.law-now.com/law-now/2008/ofcomupdateontvadvertising220208.htm Concern in Europe on Cellphone Ads for Children [reg req'd] The MO1 beginner mobile phone is not as cuddly as a teddy bear, but manufacturers of the curvy crimson-and-blue handset for 6-year-olds promise a similarly warm and fuzzy relationship. They boast about socialization, emotional health and the comforts of ?peace of mind.? And yet such shiny child-size phones are stirring some parental and government unease, particularly at a time when the mobile telephone industry is reaching deeper into saturated markets to tap customers with chubby hands capable of cradling both dolls and phones. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/08/technology/08mobile.html http://www.news.com/2100-1039_3-6233637.html ************************** GOVERNMENT & PUBLIC POLICY ************************** EU to consider buying open-source software [Bloomberg] The European Commission will propose in the next few days to buy more of its computer software from open-source developers, a commission spokeswoman said Wednesday. http://iht.com/articles/2008/03/05/business/open.php Will Europe Let Google Out of the Penalty Box? Reuters and Bloomberg report that the European Union is preparing to approve Google?s pending acquisition of DoubleClick, the advertising technology firm. The deal, which was announced last April, has been delayed mainly because of protests by Microsoft that Google would gain monopoly power in the online advertising business. http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/03/06/europe-lets-googles-doubleclick-deal-out-of-the-penalty-box/ ********************** TELECOMMUNICATIONS ********************** NZ Telecom incentive wrangle 'will be defused' Telecom is confident it can defuse controversy over the level of group incentives that can be paid to the head of Telecom's wholesale business once the company is separated into three divisions, but won't say whether it is in direct negotiations with the Government over an acceptable dollar figure. http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/4433331a28.html nz: Tindall telco meeting finds no easy way forward Telecommunications companies, users groups and investors discussed improving New Zealand's broadband at a meeting held at the behest of Communications Minister David Cunliffe and hosted by The Warehouse founder Stephen Tindall without coming to any conclusion other than to meet again, sources say. http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/4433286a28.html nz: Broadband: consensus on problems but not solutions Discussions of broadband strategy between telcos, financiers, policymakers and ICT industry luminaries in Auckland this month reached no startling conclusions or clear consensus on solutions, say participants. http://computerworld.co.nz/news.nsf/news/A6256CF962BA0F7BCC257405000419C0 Telecom cleared to buy radio spectrum management rights The Commerce Commission has cleared Telecom to buy radio spectrum management rights that can be used for WiMax or third generation cellular services. http://nbr.co.nz/home/column_article.asp?id=20670 ComCom to study next generation networks The Commerce Commission will investigate next generation telecommunication networks, aiming to achieve the best outcome for users and providers of the evolving technology. http://nbr.co.nz/home/column_article.asp?id=20644 ********************************** ARRESTS/COURT CASES FOR CHILD PORN ********************************** au: Man charged after child porn raid A 46-year-old north Queensland man will face court charged with downloading child exploitation material from the internet. http://au.news.yahoo.com/080308/21/1630t.html au: Pedophile ring offered live vision of abuse POLICE have arrested a Townsville man they allege is third in command of an "insidious" international pedophile ring which offered live vision of children being sexually abused. http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,23327763-1248,00.html MAJOR CHILD PORN RING BUSTED: And 20 Children Rescued Worldwide [news release] ?Mala is to die for in those pigtails,? read one message. ?I have a few 5yo [year old] Taras that you do not have,? read another. ?Just dropping in for a hot minute ? to help out the dry spell, and to give everyone something to do for an afternoon,? said still one more. They?re hard comments to read?when you know that they were posted in a massive secret child pornography newsgroup on the web. That sordid network was exposed this week, thanks to a global law enforcement operation spanning five countries, three continents, and 11 U.S. states. As part of the continuing investigation, a total of 22 men have been arrested, including 14 in America, four in Germany, and two each in Australia and the U.K. http://www.fbi.gov/page2/march08/innocentimages_030608.html +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ (c) David Goldstein 2008 --------- David Goldstein address: 4/3 Abbott Street COOGEE NSW 2034 AUSTRALIA email: Goldstein_David §yahoo.com.au phone: +61 418 228 605 (mobile); +61 2 9665 5773 (home) "Every time you use fossil fuels, you're adding to the problem. Every time you forgo fossil fuels, you're being part of the solution" - Dr Tim Flannery Get the name you always wanted with the new y7mail email address. www.yahoo7.com.au/y7mailReceived on Thu Mar 13 2008 - 08:27:51 UTC
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