US State Department’s Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC) Activity Report: November 2007 AP: US State Department issues Top 10 list of security threats for US businesses: “…Intellectual property theft, terrorism, natural disasters and political instability were listed as the most serious security challenges in Asia.” Continue Reading
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Monthly Archives: December 2007
FTC Issues Staff Report on Malicious Spam and Phishing
Press release: “In a new report, the Federal Trade Commission staff describes findings from its July 2007 workshop, Spam Summit: The Next Generation of Threats and Solutions and proposes follow-up action steps that stakeholders can adopt to mitigate the harmful effects of malicious spam and phishing. In addition to proposing action steps for stakeholders, the… Continue Reading
President Bush To Veto National Defense Authorization Act
Fact Sheet: National Defense Authorization Act Section 1083: A Danger to Iraq’s Progress: “President Bush intends to veto the National Defense Authorization Act for FY08 (NDAA) because particular provisions included in the bill risk imposing financially devastating hardship on Iraq that will unacceptably interfere with the political and economic progress everyone agrees is critically important… Continue Reading
Spare Lithium Batteries No Longer Allowed in Checked Baggage
TSA: “Effective January 1, 2008, spare lithium batteries – extra batteries not installed on devices – will no longer be allowed in checked baggage. Spare lithium batteries may be packed in carry-on baggage and lithium batteries installed in a device may be packed in either checked or carry-on, as long as the battery is installed… Continue Reading
Enhancements to Cornell LIIs United States Code Now Available
Thomas R. Bruce – Director, Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School, writing on Technoids: “First and newest: vastly improved views of US Code updates at all levels. Clicking the “updates” link at the right at any level of the Code gives you all of the classification-table updates for that chunk of the Code since the… Continue Reading
Proofpoint Reports Spam Email Trends for November 2007
Press release: “Proofpoint, Inc., the leading provider of unified email security and data loss prevention solutions, today reported spam trends for data collected during the month of November 2007, finding that, on average, spam continues to represent nearly 90% of the total email volume received by large enterprises. Attachment-based spam made a comeback with the… Continue Reading
MOA Between DoD and the Department of State on USG Private Security Contractors
Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) Between the Department of Defense and the Department of State on USG Private Security Contractors – (12/5/2007): “The purpose of this MOA is to clearly define the authority and responsibility for the accountability and operations of USG Private Security Contractors in Iraq…Pursuant to this MOA the Secretary of State and the… Continue Reading
Patent Claims Against Google's AutoLink and AdSense Programs Remanded for Further Proceedings
Courthouse News: “The Federal Circuit renewed patent infringement claims over Google’s AutoLink and AdSense programs by tossing out part of a summary judgment ruling for Hyperphrase Technologies LLC. The circuit decision is a setback for the Internet search engine and a victory for Hyperphrase, which challenged the judgment that neither program infringes any of 15… Continue Reading
Task Force on the Future of Military Health Care Delivers Final Report
Task Force on the Future of Military Health Care, Final Report, December 2007 (204 pages, PDF): “The Task Force concludes that, first and foremost, DoD must maintain a health care system that meets the militarys readiness needs. DoD should make changes in its business and health care practices aimed at improving the effectiveness of the… Continue Reading
Mandate for Public Access to NIH-Funded Research Now Law
Alliance for Taxpayer Access: “President Bush has signed into law the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2007 (H.R. 2764), which includes a provision directing the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to provide the public with open online access to findings from its funded research. This is the first time the U.S. government has mandated public access… Continue Reading
EEOC Moves to Protect Retiree Health Benefits
Press release: “The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)…announced the publication of a final rule allowing employers that provide retiree health benefits to continue the longstanding practice of coordinating those benefits with Medicare (or comparable state health benefits) without violating the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA). The regulation, which safeguards retiree health benefits, was… Continue Reading
Citizen Satisfaction with Federal Government Lags Private Sector, e-Gov Still a Bright Spot in Federal Services
Press release: “Citizens are less satisfied with federal government services than they are with private sector services, according to the annual federal government report from the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) released [December 18, 2007]. In aggregate, citizen satisfaction with the federal government is 67.8 on ACSIs 100-point scale, 11 percent lower than the National… Continue Reading
