President Donald Trump should order the CIA and other U.S. intelligence agencies to “responsibly disclose” any cyber vulnerabilities they've identified in U.S. devices and software, said Information Technology and Innovation Foundation Vice President Daniel Castro in a Monday blog post. It responded to WikiLeaks’ posting last week of more than 8,700 documents purporting to originate from the CIA’s Center for Cyber Intelligence, including some unverified files about how the agency could use smart TVs and other devices as surveillance tools (see 1703070047). The documents “validate concerns that U.S. spy agencies are stockpiling cybersecurity vulnerabilities,” Castro said. “The intelligence community uses undisclosed vulnerabilities to develop tools that can penetrate the computer systems and networks of its foreign targets. Unfortunately, since everyone uses the same technology in today’s global economy, each of these vulnerabilities also represents a threat to American businesses and individuals.” Full disclosure of stockpiled vulnerabilities will help the private sector patch “security holes,” Castro said.

President Donald Trump should order the CIA and other U.S. intelligence agencies to “responsibly disclose” any cyber vulnerabilities they've identified in U.S. devices and software, said Information Technology and Innovation Foundation Vice President Daniel Castro in a Monday blog post. It responded to WikiLeaks’ posting last week of more than 8,700 documents purporting to originate from the CIA’s Center for Cyber Intelligence, including some unverified files about how the agency could use smart TVs and other devices as surveillance tools (see 1703070047). The documents “validate concerns that U.S. spy agencies are stockpiling cybersecurity vulnerabilities,” Castro said. “The intelligence community uses undisclosed vulnerabilities to develop tools that can penetrate the computer systems and networks of its foreign targets. Unfortunately, since everyone uses the same technology in today’s global economy, each of these vulnerabilities also represents a threat to American businesses and individuals.” Full disclosure of stockpiled vulnerabilities will help the private sector patch “security holes,” Castro said.

President Donald Trump should order the CIA and other U.S. intelligence agencies to “responsibly disclose” any cyber vulnerabilities they've identified in U.S. devices and software, said Information Technology and Innovation Foundation Vice President Daniel Castro in a Monday blog post. It responded to WikiLeaks’ posting last week of more than 8,700 documents purporting to originate from the CIA’s Center for Cyber Intelligence, including some unverified files about how the agency could use smart TVs and other devices as surveillance tools (see 1703070047). The documents “validate concerns that U.S. spy agencies are stockpiling cybersecurity vulnerabilities,” Castro said. “The intelligence community uses undisclosed vulnerabilities to develop tools that can penetrate the computer systems and networks of its foreign targets. Unfortunately, since everyone uses the same technology in today’s global economy, each of these vulnerabilities also represents a threat to American businesses and individuals.” Full disclosure of stockpiled vulnerabilities will help the private sector patch “security holes,” Castro said.

Federal websites run by the FCC, FTC, Patent and Trademark Office and the White House performed well overall in meeting basic standards of accessibility, mobile friendliness, speed and security, reported the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation. ITIF, which assessed 297 of the most popular government websites on those four criteria, said 92 percent weren't up to snuff and recommended the White House largely take the helm in helping fix them.

Federal websites run by the FCC, FTC, Patent and Trademark Office and the White House performed well overall in meeting basic standards of accessibility, mobile friendliness, speed and security, reported the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation. ITIF, which assessed 297 of the most popular government websites on those four criteria, said 92 percent weren't up to snuff and recommended the White House largely take the helm in helping fix them.

Free-market oriented groups urged the FCC to reverse its ISP privacy rules, approved in October. The FCC posted thousands of public comments this week on the rules (see 1703060054), many of them urging the agency to better align its rules with those of the FTC. The Institute for Policy Innovation (IPI) said the FCC should reject the October rules. “Part of the FCC’s agenda under new Chairman Ajit Pai should be to undo the errors and mistakes of the previous regime,” IPI said in a filing in docket 16-106. Under former Chairman Tom Wheeler, “the FCC made a distinct departure from sound policy analysis, disregarded empirical evidence, showed contempt for input from Congress and from other federal agencies, neglected cost/benefit and other economic analysis, and stubbornly pursued a narrow ideological agenda,” IPI said. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation reminded the FCC that the privacy rules were approved in the “waning days” of the Obama presidency. “Thankfully, the Commission now has an opportunity to revisit these flawed rules,” ITIF said in a filing. “The Commission should vacate these rules in their entirety or significantly revise the rules such that they ‘parallel the [Federal Trade Commission’s] framework as closely as possible’ so as to not erect technology-based regulatory silos, unduly impede innovation, or diminish dynamic, cross-sector competition.” Consumer Policy Solutions said in a filing it makes little sense for the FCC to impose unique rules for just ISPs. “The process for developing privacy regulations should be through a multi-stakeholder process with FCC, FTC, and NTIA collaboration with consumer organizations, industry, academics, government and policy leaders, and privacy policy experts,” the group said. “Consumers want and need a more consistent approach to privacy regulation that will match their online experience.” But the Center for Digital Democracy, Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, Institute for Public Representation, Common Sense Kids Action, Consumer Action and the Electronic Privacy Information Center said the FCC should preserve the rules. “Children’s Advocates oppose the request of some petitioners to rescind the rules in their entirety,” the groups said in a filing. “Because the FTC’s Section 5 jurisdiction does not extend to common carriers, the effect of rescinding the rules in their entirety could mean that parents would have no control over their ISP’s use of their children’s information.” The groups also opposed petitions seeking to modify the privacy rules by changing the classification of certain sensitive information to nonsensitive, or replacing opt-in consent with opt-out. “These proposed modifications would significantly weaken privacy protections for children.”

Free-market oriented groups urged the FCC to reverse its ISP privacy rules, approved in October. The FCC posted thousands of public comments this week on the rules (see 1703060054), many of them urging the agency to better align its rules with those of the FTC. The Institute for Policy Innovation (IPI) said the FCC should reject the October rules. “Part of the FCC’s agenda under new Chairman Ajit Pai should be to undo the errors and mistakes of the previous regime,” IPI said in a filing in docket 16-106. Under former Chairman Tom Wheeler, “the FCC made a distinct departure from sound policy analysis, disregarded empirical evidence, showed contempt for input from Congress and from other federal agencies, neglected cost/benefit and other economic analysis, and stubbornly pursued a narrow ideological agenda,” IPI said. The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation reminded the FCC that the privacy rules were approved in the “waning days” of the Obama presidency. “Thankfully, the Commission now has an opportunity to revisit these flawed rules,” ITIF said in a filing. “The Commission should vacate these rules in their entirety or significantly revise the rules such that they ‘parallel the [Federal Trade Commission’s] framework as closely as possible’ so as to not erect technology-based regulatory silos, unduly impede innovation, or diminish dynamic, cross-sector competition.” Consumer Policy Solutions said in a filing it makes little sense for the FCC to impose unique rules for just ISPs. “The process for developing privacy regulations should be through a multi-stakeholder process with FCC, FTC, and NTIA collaboration with consumer organizations, industry, academics, government and policy leaders, and privacy policy experts,” the group said. “Consumers want and need a more consistent approach to privacy regulation that will match their online experience.” But the Center for Digital Democracy, Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, Institute for Public Representation, Common Sense Kids Action, Consumer Action and the Electronic Privacy Information Center said the FCC should preserve the rules. “Children’s Advocates oppose the request of some petitioners to rescind the rules in their entirety,” the groups said in a filing. “Because the FTC’s Section 5 jurisdiction does not extend to common carriers, the effect of rescinding the rules in their entirety could mean that parents would have no control over their ISP’s use of their children’s information.” The groups also opposed petitions seeking to modify the privacy rules by changing the classification of certain sensitive information to nonsensitive, or replacing opt-in consent with opt-out. “These proposed modifications would significantly weaken privacy protections for children.”

Some experts argue for more antitrust scrutiny of data-rich companies because they may gain an unfair market advantage and risk privacy, but an Information Technology and Innovation Foundation report released Monday said existing authority is enough to address any abuses. ITIF Senior Fellow Joe Kennedy, the report's author, said collection of vast amounts of data doesn't by itself threaten competition. Data use in specific circumstances might require regulatory intervention, he said, but large amounts of data are a "vital input" for digital assistants, medical diagnoses, online platforms and other innovations. In the 34-page report, Kennedy discounted concerns from some legal experts and policy activists that consumers' privacy will be hurt. He said consumers have a "lax attitude" toward privacy because they share a lot of personal information online even though they say they want more privacy. He said consumer protection agencies have sufficient power to ensure companies' promises to uphold their data policies and enforce data misuse.

Some experts argue for more antitrust scrutiny of data-rich companies because they may gain an unfair market advantage and risk privacy, but an Information Technology and Innovation Foundation report released Monday said existing authority is enough to address any abuses. ITIF Senior Fellow Joe Kennedy, the report's author, said collection of vast amounts of data doesn't by itself threaten competition. Data use in specific circumstances might require regulatory intervention, he said, but large amounts of data are a "vital input" for digital assistants, medical diagnoses, online platforms and other innovations. In the 34-page report, Kennedy discounted concerns from some legal experts and policy activists that consumers' privacy will be hurt. He said consumers have a "lax attitude" toward privacy because they share a lot of personal information online even though they say they want more privacy. He said consumer protection agencies have sufficient power to ensure companies' promises to uphold their data policies and enforce data misuse.

Current and former journalists defended their profession at a discussion about a report that news coverage of technology gradually has become more negative. Some panelists speculated one reason the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation study found increased negativity was greater sophistication about tech.