My Way News - Congress to hold hearing on cable advertising
AP reports: "Cable operators will sit in the hot seat Thursday as Congress reviews their plans to roll out targeted advertising amid fears that consumer privacy could be infringed if the companies were to track and record viewing habits. [...] The hearing will also focus on how network operators track consumers online and through wireless networks. AT&T Inc. (ATT) is sending its chief privacy officer, Dorothy Attwood."

Google Profiles tool makes it easier to search out Smiths - USATODAY.com
USA Today reports: "Once you have the ID, you might be more inclined to shop with Google Checkout, post pictures at Picasa Web Albums or build a blog on Google's Blogger, all areas where Google stands to profit with either fees or ads, Sterling says. 'It deepens your engagement with Google.'"

My Way News - Gov't won't classify proxies as 'sophisticated'
AP reports: "The U.S. government has dropped - for now - a plan to classify the use of 'proxy' servers as evidence of sophistication in committing a crime. Proxy servers are computers that disguise the source of Internet traffic. They are commonly used for legitimate purposes, like evading Internet censors and working from home. But they can also be used to hide from law enforcement."

Comment: This is good news. It would have been counterproductive for the government to place a legal burden on the use of a technology that does a lot of good in the area of privacy and information security.

Whole-Body Security Scans Pass First Airport Tests - NYTimes.com
The New York Times reports: "IN a shift, the Transportation Security Administration plans to replace the walk-through metal detectors at airport checkpoints with whole-body imaging machines — the kind that provide an image of the naked body."

Comment: I'm not sure how I feel about this. I don't understand why we can't just be honest about the efficacy of racial profiling rather than subjecting everyone to increasingly intrusive searches.

Obama dismisses idea of single global currency - Reuters
Reuters reports: "U.S. President Barack Obama and his top two economic officials on Tuesday dismissed suggestions by emerging economic powers that the world move away from using the dollar as the world's main reserve currency."

My Way News - YouTube blocked in China; official says video fake
AP reports: "China occasionally blocks YouTube to prevent access to videos that criticize or shine an unflattering light on its policies. Users in Beijing said they were unable to access the site late Tuesday."

My Way News - Australian Internet `blacklist' prompts concern
AP reports: "The list in question is provided to the creators of Internet filtering software that people can opt to install on their computers. But Communications Minister Stephen Conroy has proposed mandating that Australian Internet service providers implement the list, which would make Australia one of the strictest Internet regulators among democratic countries."

Comment: Isn't Australia a free and democratic country? This smacks of totalitarianism. Government control of the internet is common in repressive countries, inspired either by ideology (China, Singapore) or religion (Saudi Arabia), but this would be a first for a for a so-called Western democracy. Let's watch this closely.

U.S. backs global alternative to dollar - World Net Daily
WND reports: "Increasingly, the International Monetary Fund, with the support of the United States and Russia, appears positioned to launch a one-world currency at the upcoming G-20 meeting in London. The move is intended to be a last-ditch effort to prevent massive bank failures from occurring throughout the European Union. The idea is for the IMF to issue at least $250 billion in Special Drawing Rights, or SDRs, to IMF member states as a method of placing a safety net under developing countries that might otherwise have to declare bankruptcy."

Comment: This is either a very poorly written article or an intentionally deceptive article. Those loan instruments that are mentioned (special drawing rights) already exist and have for some time, and as the article makes clear, they are merely thinking of making some changes to the system. This would not create a new global currency, as these are financial tools available to countries, not individuals, but as the article makes clear, the proposed changes would give greater power to the IMF as a regulator of the global economy, sort of like the Federal Reserve in the U.S. or the European Central Bank, by allowing it to change the supply of funds available to countries. Even though this does not create a true global currency, it still is important and something to keep watching because any effort to further centralize the global financial system would be an important step in preparing for that future.

Straw scraps plan for 'Big Brother' database - Home News, UK - The Independent
The Independent reports: "Sweeping 'Big Brother' plans to give officials and police unprecedented access to the sensitive personal data of millions of people have been scrapped after an outcry from campaigners, doctors and lawyers."

Comment: Sanity prevails in the UK, some good news for a change.

Privacy group urges probe of Google cloud services- Internet -Infotech-The Economic Times
The Economic Times reports: "Cloud computing services provided by Google include Gmail, the Internet search giant's email program; Google Docs, its online word processing and spreadsheet service; Picasa, a software application for digital photos; and Google Calendar. EPIC, in the complaint filed on Tuesday, said that it wanted the FTC to determine whether Google has 'engaged in unfair and/or deceptive trade practices' regarding its cloud computing products. It urged the FTC to enjoin the company from offering such services 'until safeguards are verifiably established.'"

Comment: It's scary to think these web services we use every day have not had to pass stringent privacy reviews. Let's watch carefully to see how this complaint progresses.