Schuetz

On May 2nd, the House Judiciary Committee passed an antispyware bill. This bill was first introduced to the House in 2004 and passed in 2005. But, both times it failed to make it through the Senate. The current version of the bill, H.R. 964 will next be voted on by the House. I think everyone realizes spyware is a problem on the Internet. But there are many facets of the new bill that have companies and individuals concerned.

Summary of H.R. 964:

H.R. 964 would make it unlawful for any person who is not an authorized user or owner of a protected computer to engage in unfair or deceptive practices in connection with specified conduct, including: 1. taking unsolicited control of the computer; 2. modifying computer settings; 3. collecting personally identifiable information; 4. inducing the computer owner to disclose personally identifiable information; 5. inducing the unsolicited installation of computer software; and 6. removing or disabling a legitimate security, antivirus or antispyware program on the computer.

The bill also makes it unlawful for a person to: 1. transmit to a protected computer any information collection program, unless such program provides notice before execution of any of the programs collection functions; or 2. execute any collection information program installed on a protected computer unless, before execution, the user has consented to such exception. The act provides an exception for Web pages visited within a particular websites when the information collected is sent only to the provider of the website accessed.

Sounds great doesnt it? But, not everyone is impressed by this proposed legislation. The following is a list of concerns that critics of H.R. 964 have addressed:

1.It will not protect Internet users against spyware created in any country outside of the United States. There is no similar legislation pending in the United Kingdom and it would be very difficult and expensive for the United States to thwart the spyware practices of other countries violating this act.
2.Though H.R. 964 calls for stricter enforcement of spyware laws, there is no new money allocated by the bill to support the added enforcement.
3.Section 6 of the bill calls for a Federal Preemption which means this federal law would hold sway over any state laws regarding spyware. This is particularly disappointing, as many states have stricter laws regarding spyware than the ones proposed by this legislation.
4.The spyware act omits legislation regarding cookie technology. Cookies are often used to track and collect personal information, but legislators have purposely avoided cookie legislation with this bill, calling cookies a Pandoras Box.
5.The law will still allow any vendor you do business with on your computer to utilize any of the deceptive practices the bill prohibits and load spyware on your computer.
6.The law also makes exceptions and specifically protects computer manufacturers from any liability for spyware they load on your computer before you buy.
7.The bill states that no person other than the Attorney General of a State may bring a civil action under the law. This may be the most disturbing aspect of the bill, as it eliminates the ability of individuals to bring spyware suits against companies who have victimized them. If this act is passed, it will be required that all individuals who believe theyve been victimized by spyware, convince the FTC or state attorney general to take their case.

Spyware on the Internet is increasingly becoming a nuisance to businesses and individuals and predictably, the Federal Government is trying to address these concerns through legislation. In 2003, the government also enacted legislation regarding spam on the Internet. This has become known as the Canned Spam Act because it did virtually nothing to stop spam in the United States. Spam has actually increased each year since the spam act was introduced and is expected to continue this upward trend. Hopefully, the Spy Act will be more successful in stopping spyware. But, many industry experts have strong doubts about the new bill.

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