The Patriot Act allows the FBI to issue "National Security Letters" to ISPs and other organizations, seeking information on users of those service providers -- with an automatic gag order forbidding the service provider from telling anyone that they have received an NSL. Not surprisingly, this resulted in the NSLs being widely abused , with the FBI issuing them in many, many cases when they were not appropriate. But, of course, since no one could complain, there was no incentive for the FBI to actually follow the rules. A panel of judges is now reviewing the overall constitutionality of the gag order on NSLs -- and, so far, they seem skeptical. It seems ridiculous that the FBI should be allowed to impart an automatic gag order without any sort of judicial overview -- especially when it’s already been shown that the FBI can and does abuse this power quite often.
Permalink | Comments | Email This Story ...
Content suppressed by ://URLFAN, for full article visit source
Sony officially quits rear-projection TV productionFrom: buzzya.com
Post Date: 2007-12-27 00:07:00
Filed under: HDTV
Remember how we told you that Sony, like so many others, is quitting the rear-projection TV business ? Well, they finally decided to officially announce as much today, stating that come February its three RPTV plants would quit production of the sets and the company would focus its energy henceforth on LCD and OLED (huge surprise there). Don’t let the door-of-obsolecense hit your ass on the way out, RPTV. Read | Permalink | Email this | Commen...
more Japan’s AMEDIA shows off 18 new devices for the visually impairedFrom: buzzya.com
Post Date: 2007-12-26 23:43:00
A trade show held in Japan recently called AMEDIA showed off 18 new products aimed at helping the visually impaired better utilize technology. Among the devices on offer were an adaptive Braille display, which can convert text from a PC screen into the hand-read alphabet in real time, the REHA Vision "Color Talk," a handheld scanner which can recognize 220 colors and speak them to the user, and what appears to be GW Micro’s VoiceSense PDA (here being employed to help those wit...
more GPhone To Debut In February?From: buzzya.com
Post Date: 2007-12-26 23:26:02
Google powered phones could be debuted as soon as February, according to speculation by APC .
It’s an interesting exercise in drawing the dots together to get to a completely unsupported conclusion, but there are some interesting facts APC has reported that are worth taking a look at:
You can bet that if Google’s handset partners lift the covers on their Android phones during the Mobile World Congress expo, which kicks off on February 11th in Barcelona - or if Google itself t...
more 
Websites mentioned in article
Buzz Words mentioned in article:
How popular is www.buzzya.com?
