rights

Chinese human rights Web sites suffer attacks

The sites of Chinese Human Rights Defenders and four related groups were targeted by cyberattacks over the weekend, the organization said Monday.

A distributed denial of service (DDOS) attack paralyzed the Chinese Human Rights Defenders site for about 16 hours on Saturday and Sunday, the organization said. Also attacked were Civil Rights and Livelihood Watch, Independent Chinese Pen Center, New Century News, and Canyu, the group said.

"Chinese government is the most likely suspect for these attacks," the organization said, though it wasn't able to locate the source and didn't share specific evidence beyond saying such … Read more

Does the Fourth Amendment cover 'the cloud'?

One of the biggest issues facing individuals and corporations choosing to adopt public cloud computing (or any Internet service, for that matter) is the relative lack of clarity with respect to legal rights over data stored online. I've reported on this early legal landscape a couple of times, looking at decisions to relax expectations of privacy for e-mail stored online and the decision to allow the FBI to confiscate servers belonging to dozens of companies from a co-location facility whose owners were suspected of fraud.

However, while I've argued before that the government has yet to apply the … Read more

Microsoft adds Office, Windows rental option

Although there are plenty of places that rent out time on Windows-based computers, doing so had never been strictly, speaking, legitimate.

The licensing terms for Windows (and Office) prohibit such use even though there are thousands of Internet cafes, business centers, and kiosks that do so. Starting January 1, though, Microsoft added an option for those that wish to rent out Windows or Office to do so by paying an extra fee.

"Windows desktop operating system and Microsoft Office system licenses do not permit renting, leasing, or outsourcing the software to a third party," Microsoft notes on its Web site. &… Read more

Microsoft fixes Office 2003 bug with patch

Microsoft says it has a fix for a bug that was keeping Office 2003 users from being able to access some rights-managed files.

The bug, which cropped up on Friday, meant that users of Office 2003 were unable to access files protected using Microsoft's rights management service (RMS) technology.

Microsoft posted a software download known as a "hotfix" on Saturday that it says resolves the issue.

"The issue of the inability to open Office 2003 documents protected with RMS has now been resolved with a hotfix," Microsoft said in a short statement on its Office … Read more

Bug keeps some Office users from their files

Some users of an older version of Microsoft Office may find that their protected documents are now not only protected, but completely inaccessible.

Microsoft warned on Friday that a glitch is causing users of Office 2003 to be unable to access files protected using Microsoft's Rights Management Service.

The software maker acknowledged the bug on its Office Sustained Engineering blog and said it is working to fix the issue.

Starting on December 11, 2009, customers using Office 2003 will not be able to open Office 2003 documents protected with the Rights Management Service (RMS) or save Office 2003 documents … Read more

Q&A: A front-row seat for media's meltdown

During a visit to Hollywood last week, I wanted to talk to people who knew a thing or two about the film industry's burgeoning meltdown. One of the people I sought out was Eric Garland, CEO and co-founder of Big Champagne.

Beverly Hills, Calif.,-based Big Champagne has collected data on file sharing and sold it to media companies for almost 10 years. Garland's company has survived all that time, even while making the same sad pitch. He tells the music labels and film studios they are going to be chopped down at the knees by the Internet … Read more

Finland makes 1Mb broadband access a legal right

Finland's Ministry of Transport and Communications has made 1-megabit broadband Web access a legal right, YLE, the country's national broadcasting company, reported on Wednesday.

According to the report, every person in Finland (a little over 5 million people, according to a 2009 estimate) will have the right of access to a 1Mb broadband connection starting in July. And they may ultimately gain the right to a 100Mb broadband connection.

Just more than a year ago, Finland said it would make a 100Mb broadband connection a legal right by the end of 2015. Wednesday's announcement is considered an … Read more

Inside CNET Labs Podcast 62: The secret to scoring: Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left...

We have a very special guest this week, Mr. Jeff Sparkman. Jeff gained notoriety previously by being named CNET's nerdiest employee. Soon after, it was a fast life of drugs, women, and comic books. We discuss at least one of those subjects with him.

Also in this episode, we talk about fighting with the Vulcan nerve pinch, Dong getting beat up by a girl, and Eric crying like a baby while watching "The Lord of the Rings."

Tech this week, we take a look at Lucid's soon-to-be-released tech. Also, Dong schools us on using Windows Media … Read more

State AGs on Google Books settlement: We object

Five state attorneys general have joined the opposition to Google's settlement with book authors and publishers, objecting to the way the settlement distributes unclaimed funds.

The attorneys general for Connecticut, Missouri, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Washington joined the chorus of opposition to the settlement this week, filing briefs with Judge Denny Chin of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York before the October 7 hearing to determine whether the settlement should be approved. The states involved are not pleased with the way the Books Rights Registry set up as part of the deal appears to … Read more