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One of the biggest legal problems facing the Internet is the issue of international jurisdiction.

When a dispute arises between individualsand organizations from several countries, whose laws apply? Theapplication of national laws to a worldwide medium like the Internetis a difficult process. Within the United States similar jurisdictional issues exists betweens t a t e s . T h e i m p o s i t i o n o f s t a t e a n d l o c a l s a l e s t a x e s o n I n t e r n e t transactions is a major concern. The Internet NondiscriminationAct prohibits states from imposing any new taxes that single out I n t e r n e t t r a n s a c t i o n s , b u t d o e s n t p r o h i b i t t h e s t a t e s f r o m t a x i n g Internet transactions the same way they tax any other transaction. The Internet can be a dangerous place fro children. Blockingsoftware a t t e m p t s t o p r e v e n t c h i l d r e n f r o m a c c e s s i n g objectionable sites. The Communications Decency Act attemptedto prevent people from preying on children on the Internet, but wasstruck down by the Supreme Court. The Childrens Online PrivacyProtection Act (COPPA) requires Web sites that target children u n d e r a g e 1 3 t o p o s t a p r i v a c y p o l i c y t h a t c l e a r l y s t a t e s w h a t information they collect and set up parental notification and consentsystems before gathering information from children. The Childrens Internet Protection Act (CIPA) requires librariesreceiving any type of federal funding to implement technology thatblocks or filters certain objectionable material on the Internet. The Neighborhood Childrens Internet Protection Act ( NCIPA) requires libraries receiving the E-Rate discount to establish a n Internet safety policy to protect children. Enforcement of CIPA has been blocked by the courts. Congress has taken a different approach to child protection b y establishing .kids.us d o m a i n t h a t w i l l p r o h i b i t c o n t e n t t h a t i s unsuitable for children. Ethics refers to standards of moral conduct. Although unethical actsmay be immoral, they are not always illegal, although illegal acts are almost always unethical. Computer professionals

are people whose work focuses on the c o m p u t e r s y s t e m s t h e m s e l v e s , p e o p l e w i t h t i t l e s s u c h a s programmer, systems analyst, network administrator, and computeroperator. A number of professional organizations involved in variousaspects of information technology have developed their own codesof ethics.

Nonprofessionals are normally responsible for the everyday use of c o m p u t e r s a n d m u s t b e f a m i l i a r w i t h t h e a p p l i c a b l e e t h i c a l principles. Businesses have the ethical and, in many cases legal, responsibilityto protect the privacy of customers personal data stored on theircomputers. Under an opt-in policy , businesses notify customers of their privacy policy, and the customers must specifically agree before the business can release their data tothird parties. With an opt-out approach, customers are assumed to have agreed to the releaseof their data unless they specifically request that the business keep it private. The ability of computers to alter reality imposes certain ethical o b l i g a t i o n s o n n e w s organizations. Intellectual property (IP) refers to results of intellectual activity in the industrial, scientific,literary, or artistic fields. IP is legally protected in several ways. The U.S. Copyright Act protects literary and artistic works. Patents protect inventions, and trademark law protects therights of businesses to their identity. Copyright protection provides the creator of a literary or artistic work control over the useand distribution of that work. Digital representation of IP makes it much easi er to violatec o p yr i g h t l a w . T h e c o n c e p t o f f a i r u s e a l l o w s yo u t o m a k e u s o f c o p yr i g h t e d w o r k s f o r limited purposes, including criticism, news reporting, education, and research, provided suchuse falls within specific guidelines. The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) makes it illegalt o u s e , d e v e l o p , o r p u b l i s h m e t h o d s o f b r e a k i n g a n t i p i r a c y protections added to copyrighted works and bans devices designedfor that purpose. Critics complain that this law prevents users from exercising their fair use rights.

Computer software is classified as copyrightable i n t e l l e c t u a l property. The software license specifies the rights of the purchaser,b u t generally prohibits selling or giving away copies. The NoElectronic Theft (NET) Act prohibits reproducing or distributingcopyrighted material by electronic means, regardless of the purposeor motive. Copyleft is an alternative means of controlling software rights in which everyone has permission to run, copy, or modify the program,a n d t o d i s t r i b u t e m o d i f i e d v e r s i o n s , b u t n o t p e r m i s s i o n t o a d d restrictions of their own. Digital Images are protected by copyright. You must h a v e permission to distribute an image or use it on your Web site. Plagiarism is the representation of someone elses words or ideasas your own. Fair use allows you to include a portion of anothers work within your own, but only if you properly cite, or identify, the source. Patents protect inventions by granting the patent holder exclusiverights to the invention for 20 years. Business methods implementedin software may be patented. A trademark is a word, name, symbol, or device used to distinguishone company and its products from another. Cybersquatting involves registering common words and phrases as domain names, with the intention of selling the domain name ata profit to a company that wants a catchy, easy-to-remember URL. The Anti-Cybersquatting Consumer Protection Act providesp e n a l t i e s u p t o $ 1 0 0 , 0 0 0 f o r a n y o n e r e g i s t e r i n g a d o m a i n n a m e using someone elses trademark

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