[Chapter-delegates] FW: Internet Society North America Updates – May 2017

Mon May 15 07:07:58 PDT 2017

Hi, all,

Please find below the May 2017 edition of the North American Bureau’s newsletter.

Thanks!

Mark Buell

Regional Bureau Director, North America

Internet Society

Skype: mark_at_isoc

Twitter: @mebuell and @isoc_na

www.isoc.org 

From: Mark Buell <buell at isoc.org>
Date: Monday, May 15, 2017 at 9:12 AM
To: "northamerica-chapters at elists.isoc.org" <northamerica-chapters at elists.isoc.org>
Subject: Internet Society North America Updates – May 2017

Welcome to the May 2017 edition of the Internet Society North American Bureau’s monthly newsletter!

In the News:

Seattle Acts to Restore Internet Privacy Rules, Could Be First in a Trend

“The city of Seattle this week will move forward with its own plan to restore broadband user privacy rules despite the recent law passed by U.S. Congress, signed by President Trump in April, which gave ISPs the green light to collect customer data. Brandon Macz reporting in the Capital Hill Times: "The Federal Communications Commission in October passed rules that would have required explicit consent from consumers for ISPs to share the data they collect, such as financial, health and browsing history details. Congress passed a law, signed by President Donald Trump on April 3, that overturned those FCC rules before they were set to take effect. Seattle Chief Technology Officer Michael Matt Miller said Mayor Ed Murray asked what power the city has to restore those privacy rules at the city level, which turns out to be allowed under municipal code. ... [Miller says:] 'We have talked to a number of cities that are exploring how they implement protections for their consumers.'"

Do FCC Claims on Low-Income Broadband Access Add Up?

“A big reason current net neutrality rules need to get the boot, says the head of the Federal Communications Commission, is that they're curbing broadband investment in low-income neighborhoods — cutting off important information and services 21st-century citizens access via high-speed Internet.

But were these 2015 rules, which aimed to prevent companies that bring Internet into homes from favoring their own content over others, really the culprit?One study of the largest carriers, the basis for the FCC's claim, does show investment fell over the two-year period the rules were in effect.

But that was largely due to AT&T. It's blamed the Open Internet rules for decreased broadband investment. Analysts point out, however, that like other large carriers it was engaged in a competitive shift that likely played a role —  two mammoth acquisitions including the $85.4 billion deal for Time Warner. At the same time, Comcast — another big spender of broadband investment — increased its outlays by double digits.”

Startups Write to FCC to Oppose Net Neutrality Rollback

“Signatories to the letter include some recognizable names, like Y Combinator, Etsy, Foursquare, GitHub, Imgur, Nextdoor, and Warby Parker. But the majority of the companies involved will be unknowns to 99 percent of the population. Which is exactly the point. These aren’t established firms that will be able to sway government policy to their advantage (see: Netflix, which softened its support for net neutrality after becoming an established player in the industry), but companies who will have to fight an uphill battle against internet providers if Pai and the FCC get their way. They’re just trying not to get strangled in the crib.”

Rural Communities Cooperate to Get High-Speed Access

“However, for a few parts of the U.S., market-based solutions are not a reality. Some of our most remote and rural communities in places like South Dakota and New Mexico as well as in tribal communities across the country remain unconnected or underconnected with the latest and greatest networks.

This problem has prompted some of those communities to employ a “do-it-yourself” approach to internet access. Local leaders have decided to build and operate their own community networks to support their citizens. In fact, a recent Pew Research survey shows a “substantial majority of the public – 70 percent – believes local governments should be able to build their own broadband networks if existing services in the area are either too expensive or not good enough.”

Most Americans See Internet Access as a Privilege, Not a Right

“Among key findings are that over two-thirds of Americans (68 percent) believe internet access is a privilege while only 32 percent think it's a human right. Of those that think access is a privilege, 42 percent say ISPs are responsible for safe and secure access, while for those who believe it’s a right, 41 percent say the government is responsible.

"Our survey finds that the majority of consumers are concerned in the aftermath of the Federal Communications Commission's rollback of internet privacy protections," says David Gorodyansky, founder and CEO of AnchorFree. "At this juncture, it's clear that neither government nor the private sector is taking responsibility for consumers’ online privacy. It now squarely rests on each individual to actively manage their own privacy."

Over 80 percent say they're more concerned about their online security and privacy than they were a year ago, and 70 percent say they're doing more to protect their privacy. While the majority of consumers take precautions like changing passwords and not opening suspicious emails, only one in five use more sophisticated solutions like VPNs.”

Canada Eyes Opportunities in US Tech Industry Clashes with Trump

“Last week, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission ruled that ISPs can’t discriminate between types of online content in a case that prohibited Quebecor Inc.-owned Videotron from offering music streaming services to some wireless customers that wouldn’t count toward their monthly data caps.

The ruling has been hailed as a win for Ottawa’s support of “net neutrality,” a term that means all Internet traffic should be treated equally.

At the same time, Silicon Valley giants have been gearing up for a fight with U.S. President Donald Trump’s new appointees to the Federal Communications Commission over what they fear will be rollback in U.S. laws supporting net neutrality. “Sorry Canada, now you’re in the class with backward India,” Roslyn Layton, an FCC-adviser appointed by Mr. Trump, wrote on Twitter after last week’s CRTC ruling.”

Facebook and Google Lose $100 million in Phishing Scheme

“Facebook said in a statement: “We recovered the bulk of the funds shortly after the incident and has been cooperating with law enforcement in its investigation.” Likewise Google said it had “detected this fraud against our vendor management team and promptly alerted the authorities. We recouped the funds and we’re pleased this matter is resolved.”

The case shows just how big an issue phishing and online fraud has become, with phishing attacks conning people and companies all over the world out of significant sums of money.”

ISOC’s Work:

Watch the Chatham/ISOC House Roundtable on the Internet and Society
“In a little more than a generation, the Internet has transformed ways of communicating, transacting and accessing knowledge. For the earliest adapters, the Internet promised a new home of the mind and offered new possibilities for addressing the challenges facing the world. Yet, mounting concerns over the impact of globalization, rising social and cultural divisions, and the spread of false or misleading information online all raise an uncomfortable, pressing question: is the Internet eliminating divisions in society, or is it accentuating them?”

ISOC Study Links Connected Learning to Improved Education Outcomes in Africa

“Expanded connectivity thanks to increased access to mobile broadband and the development of submarine cables enabled more than a quarter of the African population (approximately 341 million people) to have Internet access in 2016. This represents a significant opportunity to use the Internet to provide education and learning opportunities. However, the report underscores that integration of ICTs and leveraging the Internet for education requires clear vision and strategy and, most importantly, commitment accompanied by investment in broadband connectivity, learning resources, and technical support. 

“A skilled workforce that can use Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) effectively to solve Africa’s problems will also determine Africa’s competitiveness in the global economy,” explains Dawit Bekele, Africa Regional Bureau Director for the Internet Society.  “And policymakers have a critical role to play in creating the necessary ecosystem for integrating ICT in education,” he added.”

Results for the 2017 ISOC Board of Trustees Election

“Hiroshi Esaki has been re-elected to the board by Organization Members, Hans Peter Dittler has been re-elected to the board by Chapters, Glenn McKnight has been elected to the board by the Chapters.

In addition, the Internet Architecture Board (IAB) has selected, and the IETF has confirmed, Sean Turner to serve a second three-year term as Internet Society trustee, following the process documented in RFC 3677.”

ISOC Supports the Jakarta Declaration on Press Freedom

“Media leaders, including ISOC's Senior Director for Global Internet Policy, Constance Bommelaer, gathered at the World Press Freedom Day 2017 event in Indonesia to approve the Jakarta Declaration, which calls on governments to support encryption and on all journalists to use encryption to protect their research, their communications, their sources, and themselves. This is an important and positive signal to the international community.”

How Will AI Change Our World in the Future?

“AI is taking on an increasingly important role in international discussions on the Internet. Recently in Dusseldorf, as part of the German G20 presidency, ministers responsible for their countries’ digitalization agendas met with other stakeholders to discuss policies for the digital future. The impact of AI driven applications, alongside strategies for how to capitalize on the Internet’s vast opportunities for productivity and economic growth, were centre stage.  

The ability of machines to exhibit advanced cognitive skills to process natural language, to learn, to plan or to perceive, makes it possible for new tasks to be performed by intelligent systems, sometimes with more success than humans. By using AI-driven automation in existing industries, alongside using AI technologies in new emerging areas, artificial intelligence could vastly boost productivity and economic growth.

AI is a technology that could change the world for the better. It can make medical procedures safer, increase productivity and boost the economy, or be used in applications to improve the quality of life for the disabled. But, AI is also a technology that comes with challenges, such as accountability, security, technological mistrust, and the displacement of human workers.”  

Upcoming Events:

5/14-17/17 – International Telecoms Week, ITW 2017, Chicago, IL

5/15-25/17 – ITU, 2017 Session of the ITU Council, Geneva, Switzerland

5/16-19-17 – IBM, Vision 2017, Orlando, FL

5/22-25/17 – IEEE, 38th IEEE Symposium on Security and Privacy, San Jose, CA

5/23/17 – Technology Policy Institute, The Future of the Internet in a Post-Internet Regulation World, Washington, DC

5/24-26/17 – PPDD, Partnership for Progress on the Digital Divide 2017 International Conference, San Diego, CA

6/12-16/17 – ITU, World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Forum, Geneva, Switzerland

6/26-28/17 – US Ignite, Smart Cities Innovation Summit, Austin, TX

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If you have any events, news or announcements you would like to include in the North American newsletter, please let me know.

Mark Buell

Regional Bureau Director, North America

Internet Society

Skype: mark_at_isoc

Twitter: @mebuell and @isoc_na

www.isoc.org 

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