April 1996
A lot of different topics from cryptography and electronic money to legal consequences of supporting an obscene web page were covered. Many of these topics, while interesting to the on-line community, are less important for RPI. We'll just briefly mention them so interested parties can get more information. Two web pages are:
The pannel sessions and keynote are available in ``RealAudio'' format.
The Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 1986 extended the wiretap act to cover electronic communications including e-mail. What does the ECPA protect and what are the exceptions?
``... any transfer of signs, signals, writing, images sounds, data, or intelligence of any nature transmitted in whole or in part by wire, radio, electromagnetic, photoelectric or photoptical system that affects interstate or foreign commerce.''
Also prohibits unauthorized access, and unauthorized use or disclosure of stored communications, and ``exceeding'' an authorized access and therefore gaining access to stored data.
It is not only unlawful to intercept, it is unlawful to disclose the contents of intercepted messages.
With the passage of the communications decency act there has been a lot of discussion about adult material in the Internet. The CDA is likely to be struck down by the courts, but it hardly matters. The courts have long established that ``indecency'' can be regulated (but not banned) and that obscenity has no first amendment protections.
Application of laws to the Web?
I would think the consensus is we are CCS providers, but the services we provide are: e-main, usenet, web access, home pages---the same services provided by AlbanyNet or CRISNY. In fact, we are in competition with them. Some of our users buy service from them, and some of their users access our services through them.
The state of Texas says ``yes.'' The logic is a state telecommunications regulation stating: ``computer service providers are not telecommunications companies, so long as the services they provide are not telecommunications services.''
How these questions are answered may affect the way we do business, and what regulatory structure we fall under.