Computer Law Commons^™

Protocol Layering And Internet Policy, Christopher S. Yoo

Faculty Scholarship

An architectural principle known as protocol layering is widely recognized as one of the foundations of the Internet’s success. In addition, some scholars and industry participants have urged using the layers model as a central organizing principle for regulatory policy. Despite its importance as a concept, a comprehensive analysis of protocol layering and its implications for Internet policy has yet to appear in the literature. This Article attempts to correct this omission. It begins with a detailed description of the way the five-layer model developed, introducing protocol layering’s central features, such as the division of functions across layers ...

When Antitrust Met Facebook, Christopher S. Yoo

Faculty Scholarship

Social networks are among the most dynamic forces on the Internet, increasingly displacing search engines as the primary way that end users find content and garnering headlines for their controversial stock offerings. In what may be considered a high-technology rite of passage, social networking companies are now facing monopolization claims under the antitrust laws. This Article evaluates the likely success of these claims, identifying considerations in network economics that may mitigate a finding or market power and evaluating whether a social network’s refusal to facilitate data portability can constitute exclusionary conduct. It also analyzes two early private antitrust law ...

The Anonymous Internet, Bryan H. Choi

Maryland Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Granting Clause And Intellectual Property Rights Management In Open-Source Software Licensing, Vikrant N. Vasudeva

IP Theory

No abstract provided.

Concerted Activity And Social Media: Why Facebook Is Nothing Like The Proverbial Water Cooler, Natalie J. Ferrall

Pepperdine Law Review

Social media is an increasingly powerful platform for expression. In late 2009, the National Labor Relations Board began to address the extent to which unionized employees could make disparaging comments about their employers on social media websites. To date, the Board has persisted in treating Internet communications the same as traditional, face-to-face interactions between employees. Additionally, the Board continues to apply dated precedent to current social media cases. This Comment argues that the Board's present approach is inadequate to address the distinct qualities of social media and sets forth recommendations for alternate ways to evaluate employee speech.

Emerging Technologies And Dwindling Speech, Jorge R. Roig

Jorge R Roig

Inspired in part by the recent holding in Bland v. Roberts that the use of the “Like” feature in Facebook is not covered by the Free Speech Clause, this article makes a brief foray into the approach that courts have taken in the recent past towards questions of First Amendment coverage in the context of emerging technologies. Specifically, this article will take a closer look at how courts have dealt with the issue of functionality in the context of First Amendment coverage of computer source code. The analysis of this and other recent experiences, when put in a larger context ...

When The Classroom Is Not In The Schoolhouse: Applying Tinker To Student Speech At Online Schools, Brett T. Macintyre

Seattle University Law Review

Despite the overwhelming increase in students’ Internet use and the growing popularity of online public schools, the United States Supreme Court has never addressed how, or if, schools can discipline students for disruptive online speech without violating the students’ First Amendment rights. What the Supreme Court has addressed is how school administrators can constitutionally discipline students within traditional schools. In a landmark decision, Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District, the Supreme Court announced the now famous principle that students do not “shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate.” Still, the Court ...

Information Privacy And Data Control In Cloud Computing: Consumers, Privacy Preferences, And Market Efficiency, Jay P. Kesan, Carol M. Hayes, Masooda N. Bashir

Washington and Lee Law Review

So many of our daily activities now take place “in the cloud,” where we use our devices to tap into massive networks that span the globe. Virtually every time that we plug into a new service, the service requires us to click the seemingly ubiquitous box indicating that we have read and agreed to the provider’s terms of service (TOS) and privacy policy. If a user does not click on this box, he is denied access to the service, but agreeing to these terms without reading them can negatively impact the user’s legal rights. As part of this ...

Compliance In The Ether: Cloud Computing, Data Security And Business Regulation, J. Nicholas Hoover

Journal of Business & Technology Law

No abstract provided.

Dependence On Cyberscribes - Issues In E-Security, Thomas R. Mclean, Alexander B. Mclean

Journal of Business & Technology Law

No abstract provided.

Adequate Attribution: A Framework For Developing A National Policy For Private Sector Use Of Active Defense, Shane Mcgee, Randy V. Sabett, Anand Shah

Journal of Business & Technology Law

No abstract provided.

A Commission On A Cyber Mission, Adrian Wilairat

Journal of Business & Technology Law

No abstract provided.

Best Mode Trade Secrets, Brian J. Love, Christopher B. Seaman

Yale Journal of Law and Technology

Trade secrecy and patent rights traditionally have been considered mutually exclusive. Trade secret rights are premised on secrecy. Without it, they evaporate. Patent rights, on the other hand, require public disclosure. Absent a sufficiently detailed description of the invention, patents are invalid. However, with the passage of the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (“AIA”) last fall, this once black-and-white distinction may melt into something a little more gray. Buried amidst myriad tweaks to the Patent Act is one that has the potential to substantially change the boundary between patent and trade secret protection. For the first time since at least 1952 ...

Reverse Engineering Informational Privacy Law, Michael Birnhack

Yale Journal of Law and Technology

Is technology-neutral legislation possible? Technological neutrality in legislation is often praised for its flexibility and ability to apply to future technologies. Yet, time and again we realize that even if the law did not name any technology, it was nevertheless based on an image of a particular technology. When new technologies appear, they expose the underlying technological mindset of the existing law. This article suggests that we read technology-related laws to uncover their hidden technological mindset so that we can better understand the law and prepare for the future. Reverse engineering the law is an interpretive mode, tailored to uncover ...

Anonymity, Disclosure And First Amendment Balancing In The Internet Era: Developments In Libel, Copyright, And Election Speech, Jason M. Shepard, Genelle Belmas

Yale Journal of Law and Technology

The Supreme Court has long protected anonymity for speakers and writers under the First Amendment. The Internet enables anonymity for individuals who post writings, download music, and participate in political discussion. However, this poses a challenge for plaintiffs who want to sue anonymous speakers for libel, copyright infringement, or election speech. This Article evaluates current legal developments in these areas and makes recommendations about how the law should deal with these different but related issues of anonymous speech.

Moving From Nixon To Nasa: Privacy's Second Strand--A Right To Informational Privacy, Christina P. Moniodis

Yale Journal of Law and Technology

The Supreme Court’s data privacy jurisprudence consists of only two cases, yet these cases have fueled a circuit split on data privacy rights. The Court’s hesitance to foray into data privacy law may be because the nonrival, invisible, and recombinant nature of information causes plaintiffs’ harms to elude courts. Such harms threaten the democratic relationship between citizen and state. However, the Court renewed its attention to data privacy in NASA v Nelson, in which the Court may have recognized a tension in its jurisprudence and rejected one of its precedents to better account for the harms and interests ...

In Search Of The Right Balance: Patco Lays The Foundation For Analyzing The Commercial Reasonableness Of Security Procedures Under Ucc Article 4a, Melissa Waite

Boston College Law Review

On July 3, 2012, in Patco Construction Co. v. People’s United Bank, the First Circuit held that security procedures used to verify electronic funds transfers initiated through online banking were commercially unreasonable. In reaching its decision, the court laid a strong foundation for analyzing commercial reasonableness in future cases. This Comment argues that future courts should build on this analysis by considering recent merger activity when determining the standard against which commercial reasonableness should be measured.

Australia’S 2012 Privacy Act Revisions: Weaker Principles, More Powers, Nigel Waters, Graham Greenleaf

University of New South Wales Faculty of Law Research Series 2013

The Australian Government’s Privacy Amendment (Enhancing Privacy Protection) Act 2012 was enacted on 29 November 2012 but will not commence until March 2014. It contains the first significant amendments to the Privacy Act 1988 since 2001. The whole process took nearly seven years since the Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) started work on its privacy reform reference. This article focusses on those aspects of the law which have been changed, for better or worse. We have previously analysed the deficiencies of the Bill in articles and submissions , and the Bill was enacted with none of those deficiencies removed.

The ...

China’S Npc Standing Committee Privacy Decision: A Small Step, Not A Great Leap Forward, Graham Greenleaf

University of New South Wales Faculty of Law Research Series 2013

The Decision of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC Standing Committee) of December 28, 2012 concerning data privacy and the internet (‘2012 Decision’) is the highest level law yet enacted in China to deal specifically with data protection issues. This article analyses that Decision, comparing its content with the MIIT Regulation directed at the same IISPs, and covering much of the same ground (see G Greenleaf ‘China's Internet Data Privacy Regulations 2012: 80 Percent of a Great Leap Forward?’ available at ).

The conclusion is reached that, other than that this Decision comes from the high ...

Singapore’S New Data Protection Authority: Strong Enforcement Powers And Business Risks, Graham Greenleaf

University of New South Wales Faculty of Law Research Series 2013

Singapore’s Ministry of Communications and Information (MCI) has quickly brought into effect on 2 January 2013 the Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA) enacted in October 2012. This article analyses the enforcement aspects of the Act. The data protection principles in the Act are analysed in <http://ssrn.com/abstract=2212608>.

The structure and functions of the Personal Data Protection Commission are explained, and why it is not as an independent statutory authority. The artice examined the various methods of dispute resolution at its disposal; avenues of appeal; the extent of transparency of the complaint and appeals processes and the ...