FBI CHIEF BLAMES COMPUTERS FOR PRIVACY FLAP

When reading this Internet news i realized that it softly went over the subject of the patriot act which gives FBI to the power to get information about and American without a warrant. This is now allowed for anyone with some type of security to be able to obtain information from your bank or Internet service etc. without a warrant, which means that once again your privacy is thrown out the door. I guess as I have said before it is so easy to believe that you are safe when you are sitting at your computer by yourself in your own home, who would think that everything your doing on the Internet can been seen by someone else million of miles away. This is just another thing we allow to happen because we think it will helps us in the long run be safe. All the government aka Bush has to say is that they need to invade our privacy but looking at all our computers to keep us safe from another 9/11 attack and most Americans just willingly give up their privacy rights. A lot of us meaning citizens of the United States don't understand or exactly know what rights they really have, even those that can recite the constitution wouldn't see the privacy because it isn't listed in the constitution but it is still there. A lot of the time Americans don't know their privacy rights are being violated. What bothers me is that the government knows this is totally takes advantage of this. The thing is if people aren't willing to enforce their rights then the government isn't going to do it for them.

VIACOM LAUNCHES BILLION DOLLAR SUIT AGAINST YOUTUBE

I felt it necessary to follow up on what I wrote about last week with the Microsoft and Google copyright problem. Every since Google got YouTube it has been nothing but trouble and has had many suits filed against it for copyright problems. This case is Viacom suing Google for $1 billion dollars. It has said that Google has purposely allowed videos that are copyrighted to be posted on YouTube and has even use some of the clips of the videos to attract people to the website. Now Google says there is a copyright law that protects Google from what their users post, problem is they seem to be more involved in what their posters put up then not aware. Google says they hope to one day pay of these big media companies with what they made on the site. Viacom is not the only one upset with youtube as a lot of different media sites continue finding their copyrighted material on Youtube and don't see it going away, though none have gone as far as Viacom. It is a big burden on every media company out there to have to search this one website for their material to make sure it is not on there. The most confusing part is that Google feels they are completely safe and within the laws. So how on earth is this going to turn out? Well honestly I don't know but I do know this, if now when Internet is at it's peek and growing, this site is causing this many problems between this many companies and Google, how many problems do you think it is going to cause in a couple years when Internet is like brushing your teeth, EVERYONE does it EVERYDAY at least three times. Some people go on the Internet more than 20 times a day. The amount of material that will be on YouTube will be doubled and from all around the world. United States won't be the only country having major problems with YouTube and Google anymore. I enjoy YouTube as much as the next individual but if it is causes this much trouble and is clearly violating laws then i say get rid of it. If Viacom does win this $1 billion dollar lawsuit Google might have to start thinking about getting rid of it.

Microsoft attacks Google on copyright

I did this article in relevance of what we are going to be learning in class. First and foremost the idea that a company as huge as Google felt that breaking copyright laws was okay is amazing to me. Google, one of the biggest search engines in well at least America, (not sure where else) Used over 100,000 copyrighted movies just on You tube alone, which is owned by Goggle. They are accused of using copyrighted material from books, music, films and television. They are being sued by the Association for American Publishes for making photo copies of copyrighted material. They are trying to justify what they are doing by telling all who are mad at them for doing this that it is okay, the copies are secure they are only showing small parts, and it will help them out. Honestly this is not something that i would expect Google to try and do because they are not stupid, clearly, yet they are trying to make what they did what was to steal copyrighted material and use it for their own benefits online. For them to try and get away with this it is crazy.

Music labels target college piracy suspects with settlement offer

doesn't monitor my computer but for those who do live on campus When it comes to downloading music online i really believe more than 90% of people at this university or at least 60% of Americans Do it on a daily bases or at least once in their lives. Online makes it so easy to just do it that you download without ever thinking of the consequences. Realistically no one thinks they will get caught I mean you are in your room alone no one else knows you downloading songs and movies you think you are safe, it's easy than running into a music store and grabbing a CD and running out. You think you have a chance of getting caught by security tapes and employees of the store but who will ever catch you online in your room? Well apparently you aren't safe. People forget everything you do online is basically open to the public if you look hard enough and the "Internet police" for the music you illegally download will see what you are doing even though they aren't in the same room and you will get into trouble. It is scary thinking that even though you are alone in your room there are many many people that can see everything your doing through the Internet, i mean they can't see into your room but they can see into your computer. I also love that Umass Amherst is one of the schools that get into trouble but i mean come on University of Arizona Umass Amherst, they each have like 25,000 students so it is so much easier to focus on the bigger schools than to even bother looking at Westfield state or umass Lowell who have 5-10,000 at the most. Ever feel like your being targeted? well that's cause you are. They look at the bigger schools so they can sue 35 people as they are currently doing at Umass than only finding 5 people at Westfield. Honestly our OIT doesn't have to give up the names of our students until they are subpoena but as they proved two years ago with the whole i2hub thing they really don't mind handing over their students name. Its funny how BU fights for their students rights yet our Administration staff rather let us be sued than help us out, Is this making them look better? I feel that this is all connected to the people looking through our computers to see us. I don't live on campus so OIT shuts you off and hands over your name to the Music companies so really you have at least two different eyes on you at all time when you are on your Internet. Wicked fun i know. Honestly i am not trying to argue that these students have a right to illegally download music, i just find it in a way creepy knowing that my Internet is always monitored. If i was to say something bad about the president then a red flag would automatically go up and whatever it was i wrote in a blog or something else would be sent to the FBI, really we have so much less privacy than if i was to send a letter with the same text to my friend. No one would go through my mail unless they had a prior suspicion but without any suspicion people will go through my emails, Privacy is so much less expected on the Internet than if i were walking down the street. Why is this okay?