Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, and Rep. Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., urge President Donald Trump to appoint a national cyber director. Monday, they said COVID-19 has highlighted the federal government’s lack of cyber structure (see 2003110076). They co-chair the Cyberspace Solarium Commission, which recommended creating a national cyber director with oversight from new congressional cybersecurity committees. The position would be president-appointed and Senate-confirmed.
Unmanned aerial systems are seeing a push due to COVID-19, speakers said on an FCBA webinar Monday. During a second panel, speakers said spectrum issues remain, with the FCC looking at the best airwaves for drones.
The FCC should seek public comment on any NTIA petition about Communications Decency Act Section 230 (see 2006040056), said Commissioner Mike O'Rielly. "From there, we can see if there’s something that we should do or should not do" about President Donald Trump’s executive order on 230 and how it applies to social media platforms, said O'Rielly. Also last week, Commissioner Geoffrey Starks asked where's the petition.
It’s unlikely the FTC has motivation or authority to police social media companies for conduct President Donald Trump cited in his executive order (see 2005290058), compliance attorneys said in interviews this week. Some noted that comments from Commissioners Christine Wilson and Rohit Chopra suggest bipartisan interest in examining social media algorithms.
The FCC Communications Security, Reliability and Interoperability Council approved a report Wednesday that warned vulnerabilities in 4G networks could carry over into a 5G world. The report was developed by the Managing Security Risk in the Transition to 5G Working Group and is expected to be posted by the FCC Thursday, officials said. CSRIC also got an additional charge from the FCC to look at duplicative weather alerts. The group met virtually for the second time because of COVID-19.
The Senate Intellectual Property Subcommittee plans to release draft legislation in December for updating the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, according to a tentative schedule from the office of Chairman Thom Tillis, R-N.C. The schedule includes hearings July 28, Sept. 16 and Oct. 6 leading up to December release of draft text for “stakeholder consideration and comment.”
The U.S. retail sector could take “years to recover from the impact of the coronavirus,” longer than that of the Great Recession, reported eMarketer Monday, saying total retail sales will drop by 10.5% this year vs. an 8.2% drop in 2009. Analyst Cindy Liu called the current period in the U.S. “the sharpest consumer spending freeze in decades.” It will take “years before consumer activity returns to normal levels,” she said.
At least two FTC employees working at the agency's Constitution Center reported potential COVID-19 symptoms in March, and another employee tested positive for the virus in Atlanta, according to emails we obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request.
Businesses dissatisfied by final California privacy rules might sue the state, but an expected November ballot vote on another privacy proposal and other factors could discourage them, business privacy attorneys said this week. The Software & Information Industry Association raised constitutional concerns with the California Consumer Privacy Act and regulations released Tuesday. SIIA General Counsel Chris Mohr told us Thursday it’s “not in a litigation posture at this time.” Rumored suits probably would be a long, uphill fight, said Perkins Coie’s Dominique Shelton Leipzig on an Information Systems Security Association (ISSA) webinar Wednesday.
The FCC may wait a bit before taking up any NTIA petition for rulemaking to clarify the scope of the tech industry’s liability shield (see 2005290058), observers predicted in interviews this week. The Association of National Advertisers said it’s ready to defend marketers’ interests if threatened. A tech industry representative and academics told us President Donald Trump’s executive order last week sets a dangerous precedent and could compromise independent agencies.