law

I once used to live in an apartment in London that had previously been something of a bordello.

It was a very nice apartment. However, it was extremely disconcerting to receive late-night calls from strange men wondering if Hermosa was available.

But this was but a mere twinge when compared with the discomfort of a woman from Norwalk, Conn., who also allegedly began to receive phone calls of a somewhat perplexingly sexual nature.

She described these communications to CBS 2 this way: "Men calling, looking for a good time. And I said, 'You got the wrong number.' I hung … Read more

I haven't managed to become dependent on GPS yet.

It seems to be quite fun when you're driving in strange areas of America. But I'm not sure I want to hear a voice telling me where to go all the time. It's all a little too, well, corporate for me. Or a little too like a 20-year-old marriage.

However, I was moved to virtual paralysis when I learned that an appeals court in Wisconsin decided that police can stick a GPS-tracking device on anyone they want without getting a search warrant. Even if that person is … Read more

In a move that some Silicon Valley insiders had anticipated might happen, Facebook chief privacy officer Chris Kelly has announced his exploratory bid for the elected post as attorney general of California.

He has set up the Web site www.kelly2010.com as his online campaign headquarters. Kelly also has an official Facebook fan page for his campaign.

"Over the past year, many people I respect have asked me to run for California Attorney General in 2010. Today, after much consideration, I am announcing that I've launched a committee to further explore the race," Kelly, who is … Read more

Editors' note: This is a guest post. See Michael Songer's bio below.

Throughout the 1990s and 2000s, we have seen a number of well-known legal disputes: legality of peer-to-peer services such as Napster and Grokster, cybersquatting, laws (trying) to regulate porn, even "veejay" Adam Curry trying to use the MTV domain name.

As we head into 2010 and beyond, here are some legal issues that are likely to careen through cyberspace in the next few years.

1. Lawsuits related to stupid/silly conduct shown on the Internet. The assimilation of broadband brought with it those "viral videos": … Read more

In the wake of the murder of Craigslist-advertising masseuse Julissa Brisman, and the arrest of Philip Markoff, Craig Newmark and Jim Buckmaster of Craigslist gave interviews Friday to Martin Bashir of ABC's Nightline.

Their attitude was both defiant and a little uncomfortable.

Bashir asked Newmark whether he was a law-abiding citizen of America, to which the Craigslist founder said he was "very consistent" about that.

As the interviewer read out a few Craigslist ads and asked him if he thought they were ads for prostitution, Newmark replied: "Probably." He said that if there are ads … Read more

The Erotic Services section of Craigslist Boston is still full of advertisers vying for attention with exclamation points, heart symbols, stars, and even percentage signs.

However, one ad, posted late Thursday, offered a sober reminder of what happened in Boston over the previous week.

Headlined: "Were You Attacked or Robbed by a Client? (Boston)", the ad asks for further potential victims of the alleged killer who preyed on women through Craigslist to come forward.

Even though Philip Markoff, 22, has been arrested in connection with a murder and an assault in Boston hotels, he is not named in … Read more

Swedes tend to be charming.

They try to live a decent life. They try to consider the good of society. And they have really committed themselves to producing great male and female golfers.

Which is why I find the bubbling kerfuffle over the verdict in the Pirate Bay case rather disturbing.

It's not that I think the verdict was especially right or wrong. Neither side seems especially winning. However, I was fairly turned to puree by the words of the judge in question, Tomas Nordstrom, as reported by CNET's Mats Lewan.

Judge Nordstrom declared: "Every time I … Read more

Buses aren't safe. Night clubs aren't safe. Neither is Craigslist.

Every time we put ourselves into any kind of public arena, there will always be risks.

Some would see it as unfortunate that Craigslist is linked with any felony that might happen through the medium of its pages, such as the latest case of the alleged Craigslist killer in Boston, the third murder allegedly linked to the site.

But the fact is that Craigslist is such an open marketplace that some are questioning whether the site has enough security measures in place.

Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley says … Read more