Berkman Buzz: March 22, 2013

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Dan Gillmor considers the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act

Is the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act the "worst law in technology", as Columbia Law School's Tim Wu calls the statute? I think there are worse laws for the technology industry and its customers, but the CFAA is more than bad enough – a vague, outdated and Draconian law, abused by the government in several high-profile cases – to have spurred calls for repeal.

From Dan Gillmor's post for The Guardian, "Is the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act the 'worst law in technology'?" About Dan | @dangillmor

Zeynep Tufekci explores children, privacy, and consent

There has been a rash of irresponsible decisions by parents and national media in forcing national exposure on children who are clearly below an age for any reasonable definition of consent. An oft-stated argument is that the exposure was about “something with which there is nothing wrong” and therefore exposure is okay. That is wrong and a dangerous view of privacy. I think every adult can ponder this for 60 seconds and come up with parts of their life with which there is “nothing wrong” but they would not want subjected to national exposure. Further, that view gravely misunderstands privacy and the right to consent. Privacy is not something to be granted only if you prove you deserve it; on the contrary, there should be a strong reason to violate it.

From Zeynep Tufekci's blog post, "Your Children are not Your Children: Why NYT public editor (@Sullivew) is Wrong on Children’s Right to Privacy" About Zeynep | @techsoc

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