From: IN%"educom@educom.unc.edu" 11-AUG-1996 20:55:02.08 To: IN%"edupage@elanor.oit.unc.edu" "EDUCOM Edupage Mailing List" Subj: Edupage, 11 August 1996

***************************************************************** Edupage, 11 August 1996. Edupage, a summary of news about information technology, is provided three times a week as a service by Educom, a Washington, D.C.-based consortium of leading colleges and universities seeking to transform education through the use of information technology. *****************************************************************

U.K. INTERNET PROVIDERS PLAN TO RESTRICT CYBERPORN Reacting to pressure from Scotland Yard, the Internet Service Providers Association, representing 60 of an estimated 140 providers in the United Kingdom, will be asking its members to voluntarily block access to sites and services featuring hard-core pornography. An executive of Demon Internet, which has the largest subscriber base in the U.K., dismisses the proposed action as ineffective: "This is not a solution, it is just hiding the problem." (Financial Times 10 Aug 96)

I suspect that the largest subscriber base is about to get larger...

PRIVACY VS. FREEDOM-OF-INFORMATION ON THE WEB A computer consultant in Oregon paid the state $222 for its complete motor vehicles data base, which he then posted to a Web site, prompting charges of privacy violations from people who complained that he had invaded their privacy. The database allows anyone with an Oregon license plate number to look up the vehicle owner's name, address, birthdate, driver's license number, and title information. The consultant's motive in posting the information, which anyone can obtain for a fee by going to a state office, was to improve public safety by allowing identification of reckless drivers. Oregon Governor John Kitzhaver says that instant access to motor vehicle records over the Internet is different from information access obtained by physically going to state offices and making a formal request for information: ``I am concerned that this ease of access to people's addresses could be abused and present a threat to an individual's safety.'' (Associated Press 8 Aug 96)

At least they mentioned that it was publically available... but I don't see any difference between net.availability and physical.availability. -Allen

Edupage is written by John Gehl <gehl@educom.edu> & Suzanne Douglas <douglas@educom.edu>. Voice: 404-371-1853, Fax: 404-371-8057.

Technical support is provided by Information Technology Services at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

*************************************************************** Edupage ... is what you've just finished reading. To subscribe to Edupage: send mail to: listproc@educom.unc.edu with the message: subscribe edupage Ray Croc (if your name is Ray Croc; otherwise, substitute your own name). .... To cancel, send a message to: listproc@educom.unc.edu with the message: unsubscribe edupage. (If you have subscription problems, send mail to manager@educom.unc.edu.)