Tuesday, December 28, 2010

Is Email Snooping a Crime? - Law Blog - WSJ

Is Email Snooping a Crime? - Law Blog - WSJJust covered this piece for ABC Nightly News with Diane Sawyer airing tonight. I understand that these "hacking and intrusion laws" are rarely used in marital cases, but spyware misuse is commonly charged as a wiretap offense. There appears to be two concerns: Will you be arrested for checking emails on your spouse's account? and Can a spouse hide befind the "marital computer" and "shaed accounts" exemptions used in the wiretapping laws?

This particular law (a state law in Michigan prohibiting unauthorized or use exceeding authorization)is not a wiretapping law. Therefore, the exemptions about who owns the computer in question is irrelevant. The issue here is the same whether the man being charged used his computer to access his wife's gmail account, a library computer or his wife's cell phone. He accessed her email account using a password. He was not authorized by her to do that. It wasn't a good faith use of her account. He did it for the reason the law was written to curtail, to prevent spying, hacking and unauthorized access.

Bottomline - don't use someone's account without permission. Don't spy. Don't cheat. And if you need to use electronic surveillance to see what your spouse is doing, the marriage is over.

my 2 cents

Monday, December 27, 2010

Fix It: Bogus e-mail is a lesson to safeguard account - The Daily Journal

Fix It: Bogus e-mail is a lesson to safeguard account - The Daily JournalFree email addresses, unless tied to verifiable credentials/email accounts, have their place. But unless you have a good password, a clean machine (no spyware) and exclusive access to the devices used to email with that account, don't use them for anything important that isn't backed up elsewhere or couldn't be replicated.

Friday, December 24, 2010

iOS Parental Controls

This post will show you how to turn on parental control restrictions for iOS devices such as the iPod Touch and iPhone. Note that some of the screens may look slightly different from yours depending on the exact device you are using.

Step 1: Tap “Settings”



















Step 2: Tap “General”




















Step 3: Tap “Restrictions”




















Step 4: Tap “Enable Restrictions”





















Step 5: Enter your passcode to prevent tampering with the parental controls. Note, that this may also be an alphanumeric passcode. If no passcode is set, you will be prompted to create one.





















Step 6: Select applications and features to disable and select ratings appropriate for the user.

Thursday, December 23, 2010

Internet Safety Tips - The Craigslist Killer Movie | myLifetime.com

Internet Safety Tips - The Craigslist Killer Movie | myLifetime.comIn partnership with Lifetime, WiredSafety and Parry have provided safety tips for its viewers in conjunction with the Craigslist Murders move, airing for the first time on January 3rd. Parry uses craigslist often to shop for and sell items, hire staff and look for rentals. But she and the other volunteers at WiredSafety have learned ways to limit the risks of real life encounters from the Internet. While the murders that occur, occur very rarely, even one is too often. And becoming a victim of a scam artists who takes your money and fails to deliver as promised online can be devastating, especially over the holidays and in this challenging economic times.

Bottom line - use your head and some of Parry's tips to get a good deal or find love, safely, online.

CNN.com - Transcripts

CNN.com - TranscriptsCNN International - Parry discusses online privacy and governmental regulations.

Anderson Cooper 360: Blog Archive - Harassment and Cyberstalking explained « - CNN.com Blogs

Anderson Cooper 360: Blog Archive - Harassment and Cyberstalking explained by Parry Aftab « - CNN.com Blogs

Saturday, December 18, 2010

Online Dating - Apps and Laws Strive for Safer Matchmaking - NYTimes.com

Online Dating - Apps and Laws Strive for Safer Matchmaking - NYTimes.comFor fifteen years we have been advising lonely singles on ways to cyberdate more safely. Some sites offer background checks. Others do marital checks. Some guard your personal information from those you meet online until you are ready to share more. Bottom line - be careful, meet in a public place, take it slow and bring friends in the beginning (preferably sumo-wrestlers :-)). But during these days when we work 24/7...the Internet can be a big help in finding matches. Visit wiredsafety.org's cyberdating tips. And if something doesn't feel right, stop the communications and report it.

Tuesday, December 07, 2010

Hampton Bays Schools Address All Forms of Bullying - Hampton Bays, NY Patch

Hampton Bays Schools Address All Forms of Bullying - Hampton Bays, NY Patch

Sextortion is newest cyber-sex crime

Sextortion is newest cyber-sex crime

Inland online harassment cases among those scrutinized | Local News | PE.com | Southern California News | News for Inland Southern California

Inland online harassment cases among those scrutinized | Local News | PE.com | Southern California News | News for Inland Southern California

Children's cyber protector Parry Aftab of Bergen honored by FBI

Children's cyber protector Parry Aftab of Bergen honored by FBI

Wyckoff expert on cyber-crime honored by FBI - NorthJersey.com

Wyckoff expert on cyber-crime honored by FBI - NorthJersey.com

Parents Struggle With Cyberbullying - NYTimes.com

Parents Struggle With Cyberbullying - NYTimes.com

Cyberbullying - What Parents Can Do - NYTimes.com

Cyberbullying - What Parents Can Do - NYTimes.com

Internet Poker: Bill to Allow U.S. Casinos Share of Online Gambling - ABC News

Internet Poker: Bill to Allow U.S. Casinos Share of Online Gambling - ABC News

HR2267 Financial Services Hearing - Parry Aftab - 12/3/09

Aftab - Ask Parry - Kids and Online Contests

Aftab - Ask Parry - Kids and Online Contests

Regulation of Internet Gaming Best Way to Protect Kids

Regulation of Internet Gaming Best Way to Protect Kids

WiredSaftey.org and, Internet Privacy and Security Expert, Parry Aftab Support Licensing and Regulation of Online Poker - CNBC

WiredSafety.org and, Internet Privacy and Security Expert, Parry Aftab Support Licensing and Regulation of Online Poker - CNBC

Aftab - Ask Parry - Are My Teen's Online Gambling Debts Enforceable?

Aftab - Ask Parry - Are My Teen's Online Gambling Debts Enforceable?

Aftab - Making Safety an Issue in Internet Gambling

Aftab - Making Safety an Issue in Internet Gambling

Friday, December 03, 2010

WiredSafety.org and, Internet Privacy and Security Expert, Parry Aftab Support Licensing and Regulation of Online Poker - CNBC

WiredSaftey.org and, Internet Privacy and Security Expert, Parry Aftab, Support Licensing and Regulation of Online Poker - CNBC

WiredSafety and Parry Aftab support the legalization and tough regulation of online gambling


WiredSafety.org and, Internet privacy and security expert,
Parry Aftab Support
Licensing and Regulation of Online Poker

Washington, DC (December 3, 2010) –Parry Aftab, Executive Director of WiredSafety.org, the world’s largest online safety and education group, today released the following statement in response to news reports regarding a new bill that would license and regulate online poker. Existence of the bill was first reported in today’s Wall Street Journal.

“As I informed Congress during my testimony last year, licensing and regulating online poker is the most effective and responsible way to ensure the online safety of America’s children and consumers. Given today’s news reports regarding a potential bill Congress is circulating which would implement this important step, I encourage lawmakers to consider the importance of this action in protecting America’s children and consumers.

In a study Wired Safety commissioned last year (available on the WiredSafety.org website), Harvard Professor, Dr. Malcolm Sparrow, evaluated the 10 biggest risks associated with online gambling and determined overwhelmingly that the most effective way to protect consumers – including our children, is to regulate and license rather than pretend to be able to ban online gambling. Nothing illustrates the failure of existing regulations better than the millions of Americans who play poker on the internet despite the passage of 2006’s Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA).

“At the time of my testimony, I recognized the irony of our study’s conclusion that the best way to protect consumers from the risks of online gambling is to legalize it, rather than attempt to ban it. But over the last fifteen years I have spent in child and consumer online protection, I have learned the hard way that some solutions are ironic. Attempts to try and outright ban online gambling have been ineffective and the problems continue to grow without recourse. It has become the “hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil” problem. It’s time to speak out and do something to stop the online gambling abuses, crimes and fraud we have been witnessing,” explains Aftab.

It is hoped that this bill will give government the teeth it needs to address criminal gambling sites and unethical providers targeting our nation’s youth. It will enable governmental agencies to ensure legal players are protected and young people are excluded from licensed online gambling sites. According to Aftab, “Given the growing popularity of online poker, especially on college campuses, we cannot afford to miss this opportunity to protect America’s children and consumers. We must take action now.”