More transparency and oversight must govern the way law enforcement agencies acquire personal information from wireless companies, lawmakers and privacy groups said Monday. The reactions came after nine wireless carriers, in responses made public Monday, said they had received more than 1.3 million federal, state and local law enforcement requests for cellphone records in 2011. The carriers emphasized that they are legally required to respond to police warrants, court orders and subpoenas and sought to reassure lawmakers that they do not sell their customers’ personal information to law enforcement agencies.
On July 6 the Foreign Agricultural Service issued the following GAIN reports:
It’s feasible for Multi-Line Telephone System manufacturers to provide precise 911 location information, but groups that commented Friday differed on the proper role of the FCC in encouraging that capability. Some thought the FCC should pass rules explicitly extending location service requirements to MLTS manufacturers and operators, while others said the FCC was better positioned as an agency to guide the development of voluntary industry standards.
President Barack Obama Friday established a new National Security and Emergency Preparedness (NS/EP) Executive Committee as a “forum” on communications issues of importance to national security. The new committee will have a high-profile membership and is to make recommendations directly to the president.
President Barack Obama Friday established a new National Security and Emergency Preparedness (NS/EP) Executive Committee as a “forum” on communications issues of importance to national security. The new committee will have a high-profile membership and is to make recommendations directly to the president.
Communications carriers serving the broad area struck by a “derecho” Friday experienced widespread problems in its aftermath. The storm struck a large area, and millions of people lost power during the derecho that had damage-causing winds exceeding 60 miles per hour. In one of the more potentially troubling developments for the FCC, officials in Fairfax and Prince Williams counties in Virginia reported some in the area experienced problems calling 911. The commission is probing the 911 outages.
Bring on the relay provider complaints. Monday marked the deadline for states and providers of interstate telecom relay services (TRS) to file a year’s worth of consumer gripes with the FCC Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau from June 1, 2011, to May 31, 2012. TRS allows people with hearing or speech disabilities to make calls via a text telephone or other device. The FCC describes a two-fold reason for the demand. The complaint logs “are intended to provide an early warning to the Commission of possible service quality issues,” and the process “also allows the Commission to determine whether a state or interstate TRS provider has appropriately addressed consumer complaints, and to spot national trends that may lend themselves to coordinated solutions,” the commission said in a recent reminder about the deadline. The complaints, which address a variety of technical and customer service problems, come in just as the FCC has shifted the rules for IP relay due to allegations of fraud from earlier this year.
It’s time to better evaluate how broadband stimulus has worked, the government and grant managers say. As federal Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP) grants continue to fund expansion of broadband throughout the states, the questions arise -- how effective are these grants? And how are they truly helping people? In the last year there has been “a tremendous shifting in the public-computing arena into collecting data and reporting and thinking about outcomes,” said Samantha Becker, a University of Washington professor responsible for assessing BTOP programs in her state who helps oversee the education of grantees across the country in 2012. BTOP grantees are “trying very hard” to properly evaluate how well their programs are doing, Becker said, describing as a barrier “the huge range in sizes and sophistication” of the grantee programs.
Energy Secretary Steven Chu Thursday released a cybersecurity self-evaluation survey tool for utilities that the Department of Energy said would “strengthen protection of the nation’s electric grid from cybersecurity threats.” The tool is part of a wider White House initiative to develop a “Cybersecurity Capability Maturity Model for the electricity sector, which aims to support the private sector and utilities nationwide in determining their current cybersecurity resources and identifying additional steps to help strengthen their defenses,” a press release said (http://xrl.us/bnc75q). “The new Cybersecurity Self-Evaluation Survey Tool for utilities is vitally important in today’s environment where new cyber threats continue to emerge,” said Chu. “Adoption by the electric sector will further protect critical infrastructure and, at the same time, provide an invaluable view of the industry’s cybersecurity capabilities."
Energy Secretary Steven Chu Thursday released a cybersecurity self-evaluation survey tool for utilities that the Department of Energy said would “strengthen protection of the nation’s electric grid from cybersecurity threats.” The tool is part of a wider White House initiative to develop a “Cybersecurity Capability Maturity Model for the electricity sector, which aims to support the private sector and utilities nationwide in determining their current cybersecurity resources and identifying additional steps to help strengthen their defenses” (http://xrl.us/bnc75q). “The new Cybersecurity Self-Evaluation Survey Tool for utilities is vitally important in today’s environment where new cyber threats continue to emerge,” said Chu. “Adoption by the electric sector will further protect critical infrastructure and, at the same time, provide an invaluable view of the industry’s cybersecurity capabilities."