EPIC: “The French Data Protection Commissioner, acting on behalf of the European Union, announced it will take action against Google after the company failed to reply to questions about its handling of user information. In October 2012, officials representing 24 countries in Europe sent a letter requiring Google to comply with European data protection laws, and give users greater control over their personal information. The action followed an investigation triggered by the collapse of the Google privacy policy in March 2012, which allowed the company to combine user data across 60 Internet services. Last year, EPIC sued the Federal Trade Commission to force the FTC to enforce the terms of a settlement with Google. Googles policy consolidation also prompted objections from state attorneys general, members of Congress, and IT managers in the government and private sectors. For more information, see EPIC: Google Buzz and EPIC: Enforcement of Google Consent Order.”
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Daily Archives: February 19, 2013
TRAC: Three-Year Rise in Patent Lawsuits
“The latest available data from the federal courts show that during January 2013 the government reported 530 new patent civil filings, according to the case-by-case information analyzed by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC). This number is up 46 percent over the same period one year ago, and is nearly two and a half times… Continue Reading
New GAO Reports: DHS, Pipeline Permitting, GAO Mission and Operations, Unmanned Aircraft Systems
Department of Homeland Security – Progress Made and Work Remaining after Nearly 10 Years in Operation, GAO-13-370T, Feb 15, 2013 Pipeline Permitting – Interstate and Intrastate Natural Gas Permitting Processes Include Multiple Steps, and Time Frames Vary, GAO-13-221, Feb 15, 2013 GAO Mission and Operations – Summary of GAO’s Performance and Accountability Report Fiscal Year… Continue Reading
New Simpson Bowles Plan Would Cut Deficits by $2.4 Trillion
Via ABA: “Erskine Bowles and Alan Simpson, former heads of the debt commission, announced a new deficit reduction plan Tuesday. The deal, which would cut the deficit by $2.4 trillion over the next 10-years, is an attempt to find a middle ground between Democrats and Republicans. House Republicans have set a $4 trillion target for… Continue Reading
Capitalizing on the Evolving Power Sector: Policies for a Modern and Reliable U.S. Electric Grid
“The U.S. electric power sector faces a significant transition over the next decade, with implications for the cost, reliability, and environmental impacts of the electricity supply. Specifically, economic trends and state and federal energy and environmental policies will continue to increase the share of natural gas and renewable energy in the generation mix. This ongoing… Continue Reading
Libraries, e-Lending and the Future of Public Access to Digital Content
Libraries, e-Lending and the Future of Public Access to Digital Content, Prepared by Civic Agenda, International Federation of Library Associations and Institutes (IFLA) “Owing to the maturity of the e-book market in Europe and North America, this paper necessarily depends upon numerous examples which are drawn from those territories. In a document of this length… Continue Reading
Treasury and Federal Reserve Foreign Exchange Operations, OctoberDecember 2012
U.S. Monetary Authorities Did Not Intervene in FX Markets During the Fourth Quarter: “During the fourth quarter, the U.S. dollars nominal trade-weighted exchange value increased 1.0 percent as measured by the Federal Reserve Boards major currencies index. Th e dollar appreciated 11.3 percent against the Japanese yen and depreciated 2.5 percent against the euro, though… Continue Reading
Margin requirements for non-centrally cleared derivatives – Second consultative document
Margin requirements for non-centrally cleared derivatives – Second Consultative Document, February 2013 “The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision and the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) have today published a second consultative paper which represents a near-final proposal on margin requirements for non-centrally-cleared derivatives. Several features of the near-final proposal are intended to manage the… Continue Reading
Short-Term Energy Outlook Supplement: Key drivers for EIAs short‐term U.S. crude oil production outlook
“Crude oil production increased by 790,000 barrels per day (bbl/d) between 2011 and 2012, the largest increase in annual output since the beginning of U.S. commercial crude oil production in 1859. The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) expects U.S. crude oil production to continue rising over the next two years represented in the Short‐Term Energy… Continue Reading
Dept. of Energy IG – Management of the Award of a $150 Million Recovery Act Grant to LG Chem Michigan Inc.
OIG Special Report: “The Department of Energy’s Vehicle Technologies Program was established to develop and deploy efficient and environmentally friendly highway transportation technologies to reduce the Nation’s dependence on foreign oil and provide greater energy security. The Vehicle Technologies Program received $2.4 billion under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act) for… Continue Reading
New Report – APT1: Exposing One of Chinas Cyber Espionage Units
News release: “The Mandiant® Intelligence Center released a detailed report exposing a multi-year espionage campaign by one of the largest Advanced Persistent Threat (APT) groups. The report, APT1: Exposing One of Chinas Cyber Espionage Units, provides evidence linking one group, designated by Mandiant as APT1, to Chinas 2nd Bureau of the Peoples Liberation Army (PLA)… Continue Reading
