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Internet Communications – Encryption Is Not Enough

Most of us have come to enjoy the convenience of secure communications over the Internet, enabling us to feel comfortable that a broad range of commercial transactions, and remote access through virtual private networks (VPNs), as well as the transmission and retrieval of data from the Cloud, are secure – at least reasonably so. However, such communications may be less secure than people think. It has recently come to light that the processes used to authenticate the identity of the party (or organization) with whom one is communicating may actually be deeply flawed. In almost all cases, businesses and individuals alike unwittingly trust a large number of “certificate authorities” (so-called “CAs”) to essentially authenticate or vouch for the identity of the endpoints of secure communications over the Internet.

CAs hail from across the globe. Some are private entities while others are associated with, or operated by, governments – in some cases perhaps a government one may not wish to trust. Still other CAs may simply be incompetent. No matter which is the case, it is clear that these CAs have the power to facilitate man-in-the-middle wiretap exploits and “phishing” through imposter servers. Isn’t it time for general counsel and IT to work together to shore up the authentication processes, because Encryption is Not Enough…

If you aren’t sure your communications are secure, or if you simply don’t know enough to determine the right questions to ask, contact Steven B. Roosa directly, or the Rimon attorney with whom you regularly work.

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Spanish Court Dismisses Copyright Action Against YouTube

In June, Legal Bytes reported [Federal Court Awards YouTube Summary Judgment in Viacom Copyright Infringement Case]that a United States federal court ruled in favor of YouTube and Google in the billion-dollar case brought by Viacom on a summary judgment motion. Just last month, we again reported that Viacom had filed notice of its intention to appeal that ruling [Viacom Appeals Google/YouTube Ruling], and a companion article written by Joseph I. (“Joe”) Rosenbaum [Viacom Appeals YouTube Copyright Ruling] has been posted on the Media & Entertainment Newsletter of the International Law Office.

Now in Spain, the Spanish Federal Court sitting in Madrid has dismissed charges brought by the Spanish broadcasting company Telecinco (Gestevision Telecinco SA), alleging that YouTube was liable for copyright infringement resulting from users uploading content and material that infringed the copyright of others. Mediaset, the Italian company that is the majority shareholder of Telecinco, is also involved in a copyright infringement action involving such video uploads, although no ruling has yet issued in that case. The ruling from the Spanish Federal Court comes on the heels of a ruling at the end of last year in France that found Google guilty of copyright infringement, but in that case, books were being scanned and excerpts put online without first obtaining permission or consent from the copyright owner. That said, earlier this month, a court in Germany ruled against Google, holding it liable for videos that were subject to the copyright of others and uploaded on YouTube.

The Spanish court essentially agreed with YouTube’s argument that it is a content-hosting platform, not directly responsible for content uploaded or posted by others. Without appearing flippant, Legal Bytes notes that, similar to Viacom’s decision to appeal the ruling in the United States, everyone who is on the losing side of these battles is (or has indicated an intention of) appealing the ruling against them.

Need to understand user-generated content, uploading videos or other content, rights of authors, and creators of content, and understand them in multiple jurisdictions around the world?  Contact Joseph I. (“Joe”) Rosenbaum, or the Rimon attorney with whom you regularly work. We can help.

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Viacom Appeals YouTube Copyright Ruling

The U.S. Media & Entertainment Newsletter of the International Law Office (ILO) has published an adaptation of the original Legal Bytes posting by Joseph I. (“Joe”) Rosenbaum discussing the appeal by Viacom of the ruling in favor of YouTube and Google in the billion-dollar case brought by Viacom. You can download or view a copy of the ILO publication, "Viacom appeals Google/YouTube ruling", and you can view the original Legal Bytes posting, Viacom Appeals Google/YouTube Ruling.

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Transcending the Cloud – Tying Up Cloud Antitrust Issues in a Bow

As you know, we have been updating our Cloud Computing initiative with a consistent stream of information – new chapters and white papers intended to provoke thought, stimulate ideas and, most of all, demonstrate the thought leadership Rimon attorneys bring to bear when new and important trends and initiatives in the commercial world give rise to new and interesting legal issues. Often, especially when words like “privacy” and “security” are thrown about, it becomes easy to overlook some of the other issues lurking in the background.

So here, from Jeremy D. Feinstein, is a glimpse at some antitrust issues. This next chapter in Rimon’s on-going series, “Transcending the Cloud: A Legal Guide to the Risks and Rewards of Cloud Computing,” is titled “Tying Up the Cloud,” and seeks to give you some insights into the potential antitrust and competitive issues that even customers should be aware of, if not concerned with, when considering entering the cloud.

As we continue to do, we have updated the entire work so that, along with the single chapter on “Tying Up the Cloud” applicable to antitrust, you can now access and download the PDF of our complete “Transcending the Cloud: A Legal Guide to the Risks and Rewards of Cloud Computing” compendium, up to date and including all the previous chapters in one document.

Feel free to contact Jeremy D. Feinstein directly if you have any questions or require legal counsel or assistance related to competition or antitrust. Make sure you subscribe via email or get the Legal Bytes RSS Feed so you are always in touch with our latest information. Of course, if you ever have questions, you can contact me, Joseph I. (“Joe”) Rosenbaum, or Adam Snukal, or any Rimon attorney with whom you regularly work.