Cyber Stalking and Cyber Bullying - Don't Let It Happen to You

Monday, 30 April 2012 0 comments
ByConnie Brill

I am on the lam. Running for my life. I feel like pinching myself because it is surreal. Is this really happening? How can it be that my life has been so disrupted by one person?

What is worse, is that this is the second time in 15 years that I have had to do this. Sell everything I own. Change my name. Leave town. Start my life over from square one. New friends, new loves, new work, new everything. This just doesn't happen to people. Why can't I stop it?

I am writing this article because I want other victims out there to know how far these kinds of games can be taken, and what to do from the very start. Because at the very start I didn't take this serious enough and it spun out of control so fast and so horrendously.

Cyber stalking and cyber bullying are on the rise. And if you get on the other side of a really sick and sadistic person, as I did 15 years ago, your life can become a nightmare of epic proportion. Cyber stalking and cyber bullying usually flip back and forth between online and offline harassment. Take care if you think somebody is victimizing you online. Online abuse can become offline abuse very quickly, and the opposite is true as well.

I have made so many mistakes throughout the course of my ordeal. If you think that you are a victim of a cyberstalker or cyberbully perpetrator, please read the following and take the necessary action.

Don't ignore the first signs of stalking, bullying and harassment.

This was my biggest mistake. The minute I began having trouble with these people I should have slapped a restraining order on them. Even though I could not prove they were doing anything, a restraining order would have shown them that I was not going to put up with their stuff, and also if I were to get evidence, the consequences would have been more harsh for them. Nobody wants a criminal record, and so it's a good idea to let them know you mean business.

Don't think that they will stop. They will not stop until you stop them.

This has taken a long time for me to learn. I put up with vandalism, harassment and degradation of my character for 3 years before my first time moving, thinking the perpetrators would have moved on to attempting to have a life of their own, and I was wrong.

Then, after 5 or 6 years of thinking the ordeal was over, I allowed myself to be vulnerable to it yet again, and that is why I am in the position I am in today.

This personality type will not stop for anybody or anything. They are mentally disordered, do not forget that. They do not think like you and I or anybody operating within the realms of normal behavior.

If your trouble continues, move and do it fast.

If a restraining order doesn't work and you cannot stop them, move immediately, quietly, and do not tell anybody when or where you are going. Get a P.O. Box at least 2 zip codes away from where you are living. Do not forward mail through the U.S. Post Office. Contact the people you receive mail from and give them the P.O. Box.

Also, these days there is virtual mail. There are a lot of services out there, so pick one that suits you, and don't tell anybody that you are doing it. I made the mistake of thinking that the people working at the service would not give out my information. I gave the address out to one of the perpetrators and the service was compromised. So if you sign up for virtual mail, keep in mind they are not as solid as the U.S. Post Office, and can be compromised. Keep the information to yourself.

Don't give your cell phone number to anybody.

If your stalker/bully is clever like mine, she will infiltrate your social circle somehow to find out where you are. There is a product on the market which allows these types to install software onto their computer, put your cell phone number in, and then your perp will have access to your phone conversations and text messages. More frightening, they can track your movements through the GPS feature on your phone. They do not need access to your cell phone to do this. They can't access your email, but any access to private conversation, texting or your whereabouts is heinous and violating.

Get a land line or VOIP through the computer, change your cell phone number and use the cell for emergencies only. Sorry. It's terrible to have to give up that cell, but if you are in serious trouble, you just have to do it.

Computer security.

When going through your emails, do not click on any links from anybody who you are not familiar with. There is a way for perpetrators to send an email with a link that if clicked will install a software on your computer, without your knowledge, that will give them access to your emails. Be very careful with this, it is all too easy to absent-mindedly click on a link that can cause you a lot of cost and trouble.

Visit www.thejoythieves.com to find out about the cyberstalker/bully personality type and what they are capable of.

Written by Connie Brill. Find out more at http://www.thejoythieves.com

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Cyber Crimes and the Law

ByLance Brooke

Defining Cyber crime is not so simple and perhaps that is why there has not been a single definition that is collectively approved by all the law enforcing bodies. However, the below mentioned definition is a commonly accepted and generally used definition by Various US law enforcing bodies:

"A criminal offense in which the computer is involved as an object of crime or as a tool for committing an offense's material component."

If you find yourself under criminal investigation for cyber crime then you should definitely seek legal advice. It is always better to have some knowledge about the law and crime that you are dealing with in order to save yourself from any unjust or undeserving sentences. Further, it will help you in avoiding any activity that may break the cyber law and put you in trouble.

Some of the most common and well defined internet crimes are:

Child pornography: Online predators targeting children are in the top hit list of FBI. Child pornography is considered a very serious crime and even the possession of one such picture can land you in prison for five years. According to 18 U.S.C 110, Sexual Exploitation and Other Abuse of Children, the punishment for such a crime can be up-to 15 years in federal prison.
Cyber stalking: Like the stalking in the real world, people can also stalk others over internet. Cyber stalking falls under the category of harassment and is a punishable offence.
Scams and fraud: Fraud is actually a very broad term and covers a lot of different actions and activities. Basically, these crimes are dishonest acts which are done in order to gain monetary benefits.
Trademark violations: Like it sounds, the trademark violations are those crimes where the registered trademark of one business is used by some other third party over the internet, with or without intent.
Copyright violations: Copyright violations are perhaps the most common online activity. Copying content from any other source on the internet and using it for personal purpose without citing and linking to the source is considered as copyright violation.
Computer and network hacking: These are the cyber crimes which are related to computer as well as network dealings. Such crimes include hacking, website defacing, creating and distributing computer viruses maliciously etc.
Credit card hacking: Credit card hacking also falls under fraud cases but it is now a very common crime therefore we would point it out separately. The credit card information of users is retrieved and hacked by unauthorized personals who intend to use it for personals gains.
Bank account hacking: Just like credit card hacking, the bank card hacking also involves access of bank account information of users. This information is then usually used for transferring funds to other accounts.

The first law against cyber crime was enacted in 1984 and was called "The Computer Fraud and Abuse Act". CFAA is the most important computer statute in US as all the other statutes concerned with above problems come by modifying the CFAA.

Further, in 1986 "Electronic Communication Privacy Act" was enacted which actually was an amended version of wiretap law. According to this law, intercepting, using, accessing or disclosing of transmitted or stored electronic communications without authorization is illegal.

Now that you know something about cyber crime and law you can avoid situations where you can be accused of cyber crime. Further, if you have any doubt or confusion then you can ask legal questions to cyber law attorneys over internet for free and clear all your doubts. It is always better to be informed than make mistake and then regret.

Legaladvice dot com is a platform that abridge the gap between common person looking for free law advice and the legal industry experts who can offer legal suggestions to them. Ask legal questions from the best attorneys in your area based on specialty or by location

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Finding a Lawyer Is Easier With Attorney Videos

ByAddison Nelson

During the course of your life there are many different occasions where you may well need the assistance and the expertise of an attorney. It may be that you need them to represent you in a criminal case or you may need someone to seek compensation for you after you have had an accident. Whatever it is that you need your attorney for it is absolutely paramount that you find the very best lawyer that you can for the money that you have to spend. If you are not sure how or where to find a lawyer it can be a rather tricky process. Obviously, every law firm claims to be the best and to have the most competitive rates for their work but who can you trust? It is an extremely difficult question to answer but there are some steps that you can take to help you make the correct decision.

How to find the best lawyer for your requirements

There are a number of different ways that you can attempt to locate the perfect attorney for your case. Obviously, you can ask friends and family members that have had experience with attorneys who they have used in the past and they may well be able to point you in the right direction. Unfortunately, this luxury is not always an option for most people so you will need to find a lawyer by yourself. As there are so many different lawyers and law firms to choose between this can be a rather long and drawn out process if you are not entirely sure where to search. The internet is undoubtedly the best place to locate high quality attorneys for any type of case in the shortest amount of time. Here you will be able to find numerous websites and blogs that will provide you with information and facts about all of the various lawyers that are on offer to you. Obviously, there is a vast amount of information for you to read and take in. Due to this fact it is better to seek out the websites and blogs that have attorney videos on them. This type of site is relatively new to the market but they are extremely useful. These sites give you the option to watch lawyer videos of lawyers that practice all types of different law. Watching a video is far quicker than actually reading about every lawyer and it is also a lot more informative. The attorney videos give you a real feel for whether you can trust the attorney and most important of all whether you feel that you can get on well with them during the course of your case.

Choosing the best lawyer for your case

There are many deciding factors to consider when you are trying to find a lawyer. However, the most important ones are the previous case histories of the attorney in question. Obviously, you want one that has been successful in the large majority of their cases. Also, you need a lawyer that is within your price range, budget is extremely important as some lawyers can be very expensive.

Viewmylawyer.com attorney video directory and lawyer finder hosts lawyer videos and has free law library where consumers can go to find free legal information and find a lawyer find a lawyer.

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Is a Website Privacy Policy and a Confidentiality Policy on a Website the Same Thing?

Sunday, 29 April 2012 0 comments
ByVanessa Emilio

A website privacy policy and confidentiality policy are the same type of policy and the terms may be used interchangeably. These policies are required on most websites to comply with Australian laws.

The law outlines that anytime personal information is being collected online, any visitors to and users of the site, must be aware of what information is being collected, why and how it is being collected as well as how and where it is being stored. This may seem straightforward in many cases, but this measure is in place to attempt to prevent the misuse of information and to ensure a website user is fully aware that their information is being collected.

A privacy or confidentiality policy is normally found directly on a website or through a link to a dedicated page outlining this important policy. Essentially, it is recommended that every website have a privacy policy.

When entering information into a website, customers and visitors will want to be sure that they know exactly what this information will be used for and how it will be retained. Ensuring you have a privacy policy on your site assists this and gives confirmation to visitors that any information sent or given to a site will not be used for any unwanted or unknown purpose. Privacy policies must even go further than this and outline how data is stored, essentially forcing website owners to securely store personal information.

By owning or running a business website you need to be aware of the significance of misuse of personal information and your requirements as a website owner. It is quite apparent that this legislation is in place to prevent both the inadvertent and intentional misuse of information such selling email and other addresses which may be used to send spam mail to email addresses and also to ensure the safety and secured storage of information such as credit card details.

Implementing these policies is not a change from the typical practice of most websites. It can instead be interpreted as a codification of a websites current practice.

Generally, as both a safeguard and anytime information is received from a website visitor in any way, it can still be used for whatever purpose a website wishes, provided that the privacy policy first outlines what the purpose/s are in the policy on their site and, in some instances, gives the visitors the opportunity to 'opt out'. Users must have the option to review this policy when visiting the website and if they do not agree with it, they can choose not to use the site. This privacy policy option must be available prior to them giving any of their details and if they choose to opt out, the website owner cannot use any of their details.

When publishing any privacy policy, a website will need to ensure that they consider all the ways in which they gather and store information collected from a visitor to their site and outline its exact use. In many cases this collection will be very obvious but in other instances, it may be less direct. However collected, a website privacy policy needs to be written, clear and easily available to website visitors to ensure compliance with Australian legislation.

Want to know more? Click here for Free information on Website Privacy. Australian legal agreements and forms from http://Legal123.com.au.

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Super Injunctions

are normally won on grounds of privacy and human rights. They are particularly difficult to digest because our embedded sense of justice, which accepts judicial restriction on our freedom of speech whenever the truthfulness of the intended publication is questionable, finds it difficult to logically accept similar restrictions on our freedom of speech when the intended publication is likely to contain truthful information.

We have been brought up to believe that telling lies is wrong, but now it appears the creators of the super injunction are telling us that telling the truth is wrong too. At any other time, this unhealthy mixture of moral messages could have been seen as a massive blow to our democratic system as well as to our personal and social values. However, the on-going democratisation of our world through the internet, which finds its underlying philosophy in the algorithms of the Google search engine, which basically says - 'let the community decide what is useful, important or even truthful', has already started to repair any damage to our moral values by insisting that truthful information should be published, if not by a newspaper then by regular Twitter users, if not in the UK, then outside the jurisdiction or the enforcement power of the local Courts. The democratic nature of the internet has made enforcement of worldwide impossible and Parliament needs to act fast to close the gap between what the public accepts as morally wrong (ie telling false stories) and the heavy penalties which the judicial system is willing to impose on those who are responsible for the publication of true stories.

In the rapidly evolving world of the internet, new laws have unintended and unforeseeable consequences which means that judicial attempts to protect one's privacy are resulting in the forced exposure of the lives of innocent parties. Because Parliament has got the resources to properly assess and develop new law, in the circumstances perhaps it is best to ensure that in future, the law is developed more through Parliament and less through the Courts.

In the meantime, for the simple reason that publication of material on the internet could be done from the most remote parts of the world, and by people who might care very little about what our judges think, will suffer death by a mob and sooner or later, either the courts will simply stop granting them or celebrities will realise that in the fast moving internet world, these will bring them more harm than good.

Yair Cohen is a leading UK online defamation and internet solicitor. Yair is a partner with the niche internet law firm Bains Cohen which has previously obtained injunctions against Google, YouTube and other main internet service providers.
Visit Bains Cohen Solicitors http://www.bainscohen.com
Learn more about online defamation by Visiting Yair Cohen's blog http://www.yaircohenuk.com

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Technology: Revamp Legal Cost Services

ByAlexander Levi

Introduction: Advent of information technology made revolutionary changes in the world. It also played its important role in the expansion and advancement of law firms for about two decade. It has changed the paradigm of legal sector by highlighting the need for change and technology that strength the used to make possible changes with the mutual working of cost professional and solicitors.

Current System: At current the masses of law organizations, forward their files to cost draftsmen for bills of cost. The cost draftsmen then extract information from the files and prepare detail assessment of bills of costs. The whole process is time consuming and expensive one for the client organization.

Effect on Current system: Software technology by the advent of IT sector assists in the preparation of the bill of legal costs by providing user friendly summary and complete bill with all the assessments without charges. Technology will help in splitting the bills of cost in to three major portions that includes stages, tasks, and activities. In the stages section, case evaluation, suggestions and directions, appealing and provisional requests, disclosure, trial groundwork and detailed assessment will be recorded. In the task part, synopsis including cost and payment will be prepared. In last section, detail preparations of individual activity of solicitor while the case is in court. All section must be focused in including accurate level of detail, right format and invoice of costs. If all this be recorded well then it will assist in preparing expenses budgets, reports of costs and most important E- Billing which now a days are in great demand by the corporate customers.

Time recording an example: Time recording with current method of process system includes the date, activity, amount of time, fee earner name. But under the new technological software development it should add in the process as date, phase, task, activity, amount of time, fee earner name. This is apparently a small but important diversity as it would permit time element directly linked into the new format of bill of costs.

Is Cost Budgeting Fits In?:As above mentioned detail cost incurred one case broken down in to series of steps mention earlier and this system will help in multitasking of cost breakups in court cases. This will aid to start and store cost budget electronically which ultimately monitors and compared against actual cost in real time by the new system. Make an edge on case "time" element which is never be negotiated. Combination of electronically recording of time with electronic budgeting will make the work efficient, less costly, and time saving. By this combination or recording it will help the organization to make reports of complex cases with in no time as the database for time recording and budgeting will be same databank. Software systems will have correct reporting tools with the help of this summery and detail information will be extracted on case demand and client too. Commonly used application like Microsoft excel is widely available but not good enough to format and store large quantities of data and compare it on real time bases.

Combining Law Firm Costs Professional together:- The costs expert must study and recognize the necessary change in recording the time and law firms make it certain that time is recorded in the correct format. This change will certainly be tricky task as it will need solicitors to totally change the method in which they at present recording time. Those professionals take initiative steps for that change will surely be ready for the future transform.

The Future Role of the Costs Professional: Currently when preparing a bill of costs professional usually create a manual sheet for the case file. The above system of bills of cost implemented then professional part will be change from the traditional one to new reforms. The new reforms will be cost professional will transfer electronically the time record data in to organizational bill of cost file.

Conclusion: Summing up all, change will be required at every instance. Solicitors need to value the one who take initiative to use the new system of technology. The technological changes in the legal sector should not be undervalued either. Organization must assess their current systems of operation, his potential and then assess the changes they need.

We are a highly reputable company of Law Costs Draftsmen based in UK, with a regular presence in Courts across the country.
Alexander Levi

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Does My Privacy Policy Work for Customers and Visitors to My Website in Other Countries?

Saturday, 28 April 2012 0 comments
ByVanessa Emilio

Local country compliance is a question that many website owners may consider when their website deals with international clients, users and visitors to their website. This question cannot be given a definitive answer as its difficult to control access to your website, however general guidance can be suggested.

One of the most important regulations to consider with respect to other country laws and your website is your Privacy Policy. With respect to internet regulation and laws concerning the collection of information, it's the case that some countries will have no or little regulation. Other jurisdictions, particularly English speaking jurisdictions such as Singapore, the US, much of the EU and Canada do have privacy and security regulation which are similar laws to Australia.

With the nature of privacy over the internet, concerns will be the same in many countries so laws and requirements will be similar. Australia has a strict privacy policy requirements and so following Australia's policy will usually be a safe bet that if you will comply generally with most countries internet privacy requirements, however, you should always confirm this locally.

In many instances, a website will be doing business with visitors from the country of their home site. However, as a website owner, you cannot control where your visitors come from nor which countries and visitors view your website. You are best to have a strong privacy policy that has the potential to cover anticipated countries you may be likely to be doing business with.

When creating a privacy policy the safest bet is for a website to create their policy within the scope of the jurisdiction that they are in, as there is really no way of knowing or even controlling who will visit the site. Having a clearly outlined, strong and visible privacy policy that states exactly what information may be collected, the purpose, and security measures in place to ensure it is kept safe is generally the best approach.

Furthermore, if a website is engaging in the sale of a product or service with a customer from another country, the privacy policy and the terms of sale should clearly state that the sale of the product or service is governed by the laws of the country where the website is located. This is the best approach in terms of risk management; if a problem arises with the goods or services, then it will be determined by, and any action will occur in the courts of your jurisdiction or country in most instances.

Want to know more? Click here for Free information on Website Privacy. Australian legal agreements and forms from http://Legal123.com.au.

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Should Victims of Online Reputation Attacks And Online Intimidation Report To The Police?

Victims of online reputation attacks and online intimidation should take their cases to the High Court instead of reporting them to the police.

In a recent court case where a hospital administrator became the first man in the UK to be jailed for stalking a woman by blogs, the authorities have sent a strong message to all those who wrongly believe that the internet is a lawless land where stalking, bullying, harassment, defamation and blackmail are a fair game and have demonstrated that online harassment shall not be tolerated in our society.

In a case which was heard by a Magistrate Court in Manchester it was alleged that a 38 year old man continuously attacked his female victim by using no less than 35 website blogs in which he repeatedly insulted her, causing her upset and reputational damage. The man also used emails to harass his victims as well as social networking sites such as Facebook.

It is not surprising at all that it took the authorities 18 months before the man was finally jailed. By this time, his victim must have been completely destroyed mentally and emotionally. Her confidence must have been shattered and her trust in people would have been replaced with cynicism and weariness. Had this hate campaign been conducted offline, I have no doubt that the authorities would have acted much quicker to bring it to a halt.

By the time the offender was jailed, he had already appeared in court on a number of occasions. On one occasion, after he admitted harassment, an order was made against him to refrain from mentioning his victim's name on any websites. Again, it appears it took some time before this very limited court order was made and even longer, before breaches were dealt with.

It is very likely, that had this been a case of domestic harassment, where more traditional methods of harassment were being used, the victim would have been relieved from her pain much, much earlier. It seems that the police, the Crown Prosecution Service and the Magistrates' Courts are not yet ready to effectively deal with these sorts of online harassment cases. The civil courts however are much quicker to act in response to online harassment cases with injunctions being granted within days rather than months and years. Victims of online harassment should be wise to take their cases to the High Court where solicitors can obtain a much more comprehensive injunction on their behalf within 48 hours. There is no need for victims of online harassment to suffer for such a long time before the harassment is stopped.

Despite him being jailed, large number of the defamatory blogs that the offender had created against his victim still remain active and is visible to the entire world to view. It is likely that a properly prepared High Court injunction would have ensured that the blogs and websites were removed by the internet service providers and that once such an injunction was granted, it could last for life, preventing anyone from taking part in the publication of material which is prohibited by the court order.

During his online campaign of harassment, the offender boasted of being so skilled in IT that he could set up and manipulate blogs about his victim quicker than they could be deleted.

It is not unusual for IT skilled individuals to blackmail their victims by making threats to destroy their victim's reputation unless certain demands being met. The police have seemed to so far, failed to recognise the fact that this form of blackmail is a criminal offence, mainly out of ignorance and lack of resources. These sorts of threats should be taken very seriously and perpetrators of such online threats should be told about the civil as well as the criminal implications of their actions.

Yair Cohen is a leading online defamation solicitor in the UK - http://www.BainsCohen.com.

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Do I Require Both a Website Disclaimer and Terms and Conditions on My Website?

Friday, 27 April 2012 0 comments
ByVanessa Emilio

Websites that give some type of advice or provide goods or services should have both a website disclaimer and terms and conditions on their website.

A website disclaimer is necessary to ensure a site's information is not improperly relied upon and can protect the owner from various claims by visitors and customers to the website.

One difference between the two is that the website disclaimer whilst used more frequently, is less protection whereas website terms and conditions are more specific and normally include a disclaimer as part of the terms.

As such, if a website has terms and conditions, there is no need to also include a disclaimer as in most instances, the website terms and conditions will normally include disclaimer information. However, for added protection and, in particular, if you are concerned about your liability due to the type of goods or services you may be providing or even just to ensure you are additionally protected, you may wish to include the website disclaimer in addition to your terms and conditions of use from a risk management perspective.

Some websites will require a visitor to the site to accept a disclaimer or terms in order to access the site. For example, if a website is in the business of selling alcohol by email order, before entering the website, a visitor may need to verify their age and by doing so, accept either a disclaimer of liability or certain terms and conditions of the website in order to access it and place any order or purchase.

Other common instances where terms and conditions may be used as a requirement to purchase is when entering a website to purchase a product or service, a customer may be first required to accept the terms and conditions by entering information or clicking a button prior to purchasing the service or any product.

A website disclaimer is used more frequently, and generally should be included on all websites as a minimum requirement for anyone setting up a website, particularly with an online business. A disclaimer will generally state that a website will endeavor to ensure all of the information is updated and correct, however, if a person relies on the information and suffers loss as a result, the site will not be liable for any unanticipated or unforeseen loss, or, alternatively, the disclaimer may state that use of the website and reliance on the information on the website is done at the visitor's own risk.

The website disclaimer is a recommended inclusion for any website, irrespective of the business, as information changes regularly and even the most diligent websites may not update this information immediately as it becomes available. Therefore by including a disclaimer, and as there is no way of controlling when or who accesses the information, a website owner will gain some protection from foreseeable and unforeseeable liability of those relying on the site's information. This does not mean you can post whatever you like on your website-there are laws which you must abide by with respect to such things as defamation, false and misleading information and many consumer protection laws to consider.

In summary, each individual website will need to determine site inclusions that are most appropriate to their website, products and circumstances to minimize their risks. Essentially, the rule of thumb is that, at minimum, there should be a disclaimer on all sites and for any site providing and selling products, services or advice there should additionally be terms and conditions relating specifically to what that site is providing.

Want to know more? Click here for Free information on Website Disclaimer. Australian legal agreements and forms from http://Legal123.com.au.

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Online Defamation By Employees

It is only when you wake up one morning to the devastating reality of seeing your business reputation being tarnished all over the internet that you can fully appreciate the benefits of having in place a reliable online reputation alarm system.

Would any person in their right mind wait until a fire occurs before seriously considering taking out an insurance policy? Surely not. Online reputation attacks spread on the internet (and then continue to spread off-line), in the same way that every fire starts with a single spark, which then turns rapidly into massive balls of fire that burn and raise to the ground everything you ever worked for. Online reputation attacks tend to spread so fast that they can finish off any business, which is not well equipped to deal with them.

The larger your business is, the stronger the flames. After all, fire has never been known to be deterred by the size of the bush and this is a fact. There is simple mathematics to all of this. The more inflammatory the internet posting about your business is, the quicker it will normally spread - by blogs, web links, twitter, Facebook and emails. A single link to a defamatory website about your business can be sent out by email to a mailing list which could contain thousands of subscribers in less than 5 minutes.

Each recipient of the link may then forward it on to their own mailing list the recipients of which, may also forward it on. In total - it could take l0 minutes or less, for what you have worked for all your life, to go up in flames. This is of course the worst scenario. At best, it would take a few days before the defamatory webpages about your business, take up the best part of the first page of the search engines, for everyone else to see.

Very unfortunately, I have seen exactly this course of events occurring to an IT company from Israel who had been trading in the UK very successfully for over two years. Having discovered that its UK Director was stealing from the company, the head office in Israel decided to summarily dismiss him.

The Director, who was well vested in the technical side of the internet, decided to take revenge by posting negative comments and reviews about his former employer on various websites and forums. The comments explicitly suggested that the company was fraud and that it was simply taking its customers' money and never intended to deliver any work. Shortly after this Director left the company, its UK operation had almost died out. The telephone stopped ringing and current customers started to leave the company with various excuses.

This unexpected turn of events must have cost the Israeli IT company tens of thousands of pounds. It wasn't until one of the company's most loyal customers in the UK indicated that they wanted to terminate their

Are There Different Website Privacy Policy Requirements in the UK and Australia?

Thursday, 26 April 2012 0 comments
ByVanessa Emilio

Yes. Although the requirements are similar in each country, there are some differences that websites will need to be aware of to ensure compliance with privacy laws in other jurisdictions. It is possible to amend Australian website privacy policies to ensure that they are in compliance with the requirements of both UK and Australian jurisdictions.

Recently, following an EU directive, amendments were made the UK Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations which came into force in May 2011. The most significant aspect of these UK amendments is that website users and visitors must expressly agree to accepting cookies that give any and all website information from a user or visitor. Prior to this, any information collected, even things as minor as visitor sites that were viewed or visited and collected for the purposes of advertising relevant or related adverts to subject topics they viewed, was exempt from this active requirement. This new regulation now means that any type of 'cookie' which may collect this or any type of visitor information must be actively and positively agreed to by the visitor to the site prior to viewing or access to the website.

This is seen as a very strict and uncommercial policy in comparison to other countries. It is viewed as a barrier and obstacle which will inhibit and stop people from viewing UK websites. Visitors may choose to go to other websites in other countries, such as the US, which do not have this requirement.

Currently in Australia a privacy policy must tell users of websites how information is collected and its purpose (which is stricter than other jurisdictions such as the US) but does not require active agreement for cookies which monitor such things as advertising directional material unlike the UK.

Aside from this major change with visitors and user to sites having to explicitly accept cookies and storage of their information in the UK, there are a number of other modifications Australian websites will need to make in order to ensure that their policies are UK compliant. This includes notifying visitors that their IP addresses, in addition to other information from visitors may be taken and stored.

Although both the UK and Australia generally have similar privacy laws, one should never assume that just because a site complies with a privacy policy in one country that it will also comply with another. Every jurisdiction may be slightly different and may include unexpected or new requirements as website privacy laws are seemingly and constantly changing and being updated.

In addition to new requirements, it is likely that laws may change on a regular basis, as they recently have in the UK and may result in modifications needing to be made to an existing privacy policy. By modifying an existing privacy policy to make it fit the requirements of another jurisdiction will not necessarily void the policy in the home jurisdiction, but rather make it more comprehensive-generally speaking, the stricter the privacy policy compliance, the more likely it will meet local requirements.

Want to know more? Click here for Free information on Website Privacy Policy. Australian legal agreements and forms from http://Legal123.com.au.

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Today's Business Forecast: Increasing Clouds

They say every cloud has a silver lining - you get some benefit out of every bad thing that happens to you. When you're very happy, you're on cloud nine! If you aren't paying attention in class, your teacher might tell you to get your head out of the clouds. If the authorities think you did it, you would be under a cloud of suspicion. These days, when your workforce is located in three different countries and five different cities connected by the internet, you're practicing cloud-based staffing and utilizing cloud computing.

Wait, what?

That's right. Utilizing a virtual workforce through cloud computing is becoming increasingly popular, because it allows businesses to access talent outside of the local area, it shortens time to market, and it allows for flexibility by giving access to files and data when working remotely and/or outside office hours. If this cloudy terminology is new to you, here is a basic definition to get you up to speed:

According to Wikipedia, "Cloud computing refers to the use and access of multiple server-based computational resources via a digital network (WAN, Internet connection using the World Wide Web, etc.). Cloud users may access the server resources using a computer, netbook, pad computer, smart phone, or other device. In cloud computing, applications are provided and managed by the cloud server and data is also stored remotely in the cloud configuration. Users do not download and install applications on their own device or computer; all processing and storage is maintained by the cloud server. The online services may be offered from a cloud provider or by a private organization."

Cloud computing is what makes a successful virtual workforce, or "staff in the cloud" possible. Flexibility is a huge benefit of cloud computing, as is its ease of use. Cloud computing is often cheaper and less labor intensive because it's online - and therefore the need for massive amounts of server space for storage is removed altogether (you'll probably just see a slight increase in your monthly fee for more data storage). We could continue discussing the benefits of cloud computing; however, the point is it's here to stay, along with cloud staffing. So legally speaking, what does this mean for your business?

When choosing a cloud-based service provider that will allow you to sustain a virtual workforce there are many important points to ponder. You will need to thoroughly review the provider's Service Agreement or Terms of Service in order to find out the following before signing up:

• Where is the actual data stored? (And we mean the geographic location of the company's servers that house all of the data).

• How many servers does the company have?

• What security measures are in place to prevent hackers from accessing the data?

• What notification procedures are used by the company to alert customers of a data breach?

• Who has access to your data?

• Are customers able to back-up the data stored on the cloud on their own servers?

• How do you migrate the data from the cloud if you decide to cancel the service?

If you take these questions into consideration and get solid satisfactory answers, you're ready to hit the cloud!

Joshua M. Marks, Esq.
JM LAW GROUP, LLC
1818 MARKET STREET, SUITE 3740
PHILADELPHIA, PA 19103
215.832.3600

http://www.lawmr.com
josh

Cyber Law and Privacy - Is The Game Going to Change Once Again?

Wednesday, 25 April 2012 0 comments

On your personal computer are many things, private things, and things which are no one else's business. Bank account numbers, private emails, and all sorts of things. Likewise, when you go online to search various things - that's your business, perhaps you are planning on going to a movie, out to dinner, or shopping for a gift. It's really none of anyone else's business. Unfortunately, authorities would have you believe that it is their business.

Well, that's a scary thought really, especially in the wake of the tabloid scandal listening in on voice mails of the families of murder victims in England. Let's discuss all this for a moment shall we?

There was an interesting article on SlashDot (News for Geeks Recently) titled "Law Enforcement Still Wants Mandatory ISP Log Retention" posted by Soulskill on July 12, 2011 who cites Schwit1 from CNET, which stated;

"Law enforcement representatives are planning to endorse a proposed federal law that would require ISPs to store logs about their customers for 18-months, and a board member of the National Sheriffs' Association says ISPs do not store customer records long enough. 'The limited data retention time and lack of uniformity among retention from company to company significantly hinders law enforcement's ability to identify predators when they come across child pornography'. They want any stored logs available to be used to prosecute any type of crime."

Okay so, I want to collect and prosecute the bad guys and evil-doers as much as anyone else. I have no use for drug dealers, child molesters, murderers, or anyone else that would create heinous crimes against humanity for that matter. However, I also know that in our Constitution our personal belongings are not to be searched or seized without our permission. And no government official, or police are allowed to enter your home and look at your personal belongings, personal journal, or anything else that you own.

So then, why is it okay to command ISPs, and cloud computing companies to save data and information that is personal, even when you've deleted it, or don't wish that information to be collected? Yes, I don't doubt that it could help solve crimes, and it would be nice to solve crimes, I really believe that. But certainly not at the expense of personal freedom, this is the United States of America still. And if the National Sheriff's Association is able to lobby such a law into existence, one could ask exactly how they are helping the American people or protecting them?

After all, The National Sheriff's Association is supposed to be protecting people, and protecting their rights, and they are even swear to uphold the law and constitution, so may I ask why they are lobbying to take away rights from citizens and go against the law of the land? I find this fascinating. I also find it quite troubling, and if you love freedom and liberty you to understand. Indeed I hope you will please consider all this and think on it.

Lance Winslow is a retired Founder of a Nationwide Franchise Chain, and now runs the Online Think Tank. Lance Winslow believes writing 24,000 articles by July 24, 2011 is going to be difficult because all the letters on his keyboard are now worn off now..

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Website Privacy Policy: Are There Different Web Privacy Policy Requirements in the US and Australia?

ByVanessa Emilio

Yes, every country has different laws and regulations governing website privacy and consumer protection. However, there are some countries that have yet to adopt any privacy regulations.

Although there are different requirements under US and Australian law, a privacy policy can be made to satisfy the requirements of both countries. Australia is seen as having very strict privacy policy regulations in comparison to many other countries and in many instances, a strong privacy policy under Australian law will likely be valid and be regarded favourably by other countries with respect to privacy law and compliance with local regulation.

Despite this, if you have a website business which provides goods or services to other countries, you should be familiar with all aspects of the laws of other jurisdictions in relation to privacy regulations. To meet the requirements under US law, for example, and under the laws of other countries such as the UK, there will need to be some additions or amendments made to an Australian privacy policy statement. If these extra requirements are left out for a website that is selling goods and services in the US, a lack of compliant privacy policy with US requirements could cause problems for website owners who operate or sell products or services in the US and there are penalties and sanctions for such activity. In addition, the website could be shut down for non-compliance.

When comparing the requirements of Australia and the US, a key additional US requirement needed for a privacy policy valid under Australian law to comply with US law relates to the collection of information of children under 13 years of age. To meet the US privacy requirement, a website needs to ensure they will not collect information from children under 13 years. If the website is not targeted at children under 13 visiting or does not wish to have children viewing the site, the website the privacy policy must explicitly state this.

For a US website privacy to meet Australian privacy requirements, it is a bit more complex as Australian privacy laws are more detailed in their focus. Australian privacy regulations are quite strict on such detail as, for example, how websites collect, store and disclose personal information, focusing on website cookies. US law currently is not as strict as Australian law which means that if a US website wants to ensure their privacy policy is compliant with Australian standards, there are a number of additional requirements that need to be considered to meet Australian privacy regulations. In addition, Australian law has industry specific requirements that healthcare providers, financial services, medical, legal, credit providers and other specialised professionals must be aware of-all which need to be considered depending on the type of website you are choosing to set up.

In summary, with the differing requirements from country to country it is possible to have a policy that covers multiple jurisdictions. However, when considering the privacy policy to include on a website, the owner will need to ensure they are aware of unique and potentially unexpected features of the laws of each jurisdiction that they may be seen to provide services or products to, so that they ensure they have a compliant privacy policy.

Want to know more? Click here for Free information on Website Privacy Policy. Australian legal agreements and forms from http://Legal123.com.au.

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The Birth of Internet Crime

Tuesday, 24 April 2012 0 comments
ByAaron T Hicks

The birth of the internet has transformed the world as we know it. It has clearly grown to astronomic proportions since it became a household name in the mid 1990's. If you were born before 1980, you have watched the world change from using rotary telephones to iPhones. These days nearly everything can be controlled by the touch of a button.

Bills can be paid online, movie tickets can be purchased online, you can talk to your loved ones online, and you can take a complete college course - without having to step foot on campus. The possibilities of the internet are endless - and technology is changing more rapidly than we can learn to understand it.

Today, teens and individuals in their twenties are grasping and exploiting computer technology like never before. Children are already known for their marked ability to learn and assimilate information at a very young age - absorbing and utilizing the internet and computer systems are no different than learning how to build a tree fort. For some families, their 13-year-old can build an entire computer system as his father built a model car the generation before.

With the advent of the internet, came an entirely new way to commit crimes. The terms internet crime, cybercrime and computer crime are used interchangeably. Simply put, internet crime or cybercrime is a form of crime where the internet or computers are used as a medium to commit crime.

Internet crimes are vast and expansive and can include anything from downloading illegal music files to stealing someone's identity. Cybercrime can also include stealing millions of dollars from online bank accounts to distribution child pornography. One of the most common forms of internet crimes involves identity theft which is commonly done through phishing and pharming. These methods set up fake websites (that appear legitimate) to lure unsuspecting victims. People are asked to give out personal information such as name, address, phone numbers and bank accounts. Criminals then take this information and "steal" the person's identity.

Internet crimes are not limited to targeting the consumer; cybercrimes have gone so far as to take on global proportions. Cybercrimes can also encompass criminal activities such as espionage, financial theft, and sabotage. In May 2010, the Pentagon established the new U.S. Cyber Command, which is headed by the director of the National Security Agency (NSA), to defend American military networks. It also serves to attack the computer systems of other countries.

Due to the fact that criminal activities have spread at a rate that law enforcement has had difficulty keeping up, entire task forces have been developed to crack down on internet and cybercrimes. There is a method called electronic discovery, or e-discovery, which is a type of cyber forensics. Electronic discovery is a process employed by law enforcement where they can obtain, secure, search and process any electronic data for use as evidence in a legal investigation. Electronic discovery can involve just a single computer or it can incorporate an entire computer network.

When you are facing allegations for internet or cybercrimes, it is essential that you seek the advice of a highly skilled attorney who you can trust. When your future is at stake - you need somebody who is familiar with both computer technology and the criminal justice system. You are urged to contact an experienced criminal defense lawyer who can help you learn more about what steps you can take to protect your legal rights and your future.

At the Law Offices of Aaron T. Hicks, we are a criminal defense firm that is devoted to serving clients in San Diego and the surrounding areas. We have successfully defended all types of criminal charges including internet crimes. We understand the difficulties that you are presently facing, and make it our mission to thoroughly investigate every aspect of the charges against you. When your future and your freedom are in the hands of the prosecution, you can't afford to have less than a competent defense attorney. Contact a San Diego criminal defense attorney from our firm for a free initial consultation today at (619) 519-7400!

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Email Disclaimers: Will an Email Disclaimer Protect Me If I Accidentally Send an Email by Mistake?

ByVanessa Emilio

Yes, a well written email disclaimer will protect the sender from a number of things including potential legal action.

The main purpose of an email disclaimer is to protect the sender or the senders' company from unintended consequences of an email being sent in error. This may include protecting any confidentiality of the content, use of or reliance on the information contained in the email.

A disclaimer may protect the sender or even protect the company that the sender works for, in a number of instances. For example, an employee may send an email which does not necessarily represent the views of the company but is only representative of the employee's view yet the inclusion of an email disclaimer may protect the company against claims for this email content.

A second example where a disclaimer may provide protection is in the instance where an email containing an offer, is sent accidentally to an unintended party. This disclaimer may protect a person or company from unintentionally entering into a contract. A potential problematic example of this is sending a job offer in an email accidentally to the wrong person or candidate. Both an employee misrepresenting an employer's wishes and accidentally entering into a contract by such offer via email can occur together in one email.

The final example of usage of a disclaimer is an email sent in error which contains confidential and sensitive company information. In this instance, an email disclaimer may protect this information from being used by the unintended recipient and may, at minimum, dissuade them from using the information to their advantage or even to the company's disadvantage.

With emails steadily becoming the norm for various communication for everyone these days but in particular for company communication, it is advisable for companies of all sizes to adopt some form of an email disclaimer as a best business practice to manage their risk appropriately. It is an essential part of doing business and will absolutely help minimize risk to both the sender and the company. Something that can't be ignored in this day and age with increasing online risk. It helps protect email communications as well as the sender and company from misuse of information contained in any email whether sent in error or otherwise. With this in mind, it is well worth considering applying the above to your online business operations as part of everyday practice to minimise any risk.

Want to know more? Click here for Free information on Email Disclaimer. Australian legal agreements and forms from http://Legal123.com.au.

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Men Victims Of The Internet

Monday, 23 April 2012 0 comments

I am sorry to be indiscreet about this sensitive subject but it looks as if this terrible matter is starting to become an issue for a growing number of men of all different economic and academic backgrounds, who get caught in what appears to be a sting operation which could potentially scar them for life. I have seen families falling apart, and men having to move to a different town and even acquire a new identity. Chances are that this is the first time you are hearing about this issue and that what is to follow as you read on, has no direct relevance to you at all. In fact, you might even be a woman and this story is about men being groomed online.

If, as I expect, this subject is completely foreign to you, please do pass this note to other men you know and care about. You could be doing them a big favour.

We hear a lot about young girls being groomed on the internet by older men. This is of course one of the most disturbing subjects concerning internet use. What we do not hear about however, and what you are just about to discover as you read on, is the ease by which men, of all ages, are being groomed by women over the internet, having their photos, videos and personal details stolen and then spread over websites of a certain nature all over the world.

In short, there are some free forums on the internet for people to chat about anything and everything. Naturally these forums tend to be regarded as 'meeting places' where people talk to strangers, exchange ideas and look for relationships, virtual or otherwise. You can normally join up one of these forums for free and start chatting immediately.

Online chatting for many people is just another way to relax from the day's chores by having a relaxing conversation with other online chatters. Most online chat places are friendly places but at times, as you will find out, they could turn out be very dangerous. Male users of chat rooms should particularly be aware that some of the most popular chat rooms are being a host to some very dangerous predators who use chat rooms to make threats and to extort money from male users.

These dangerous predators I am talking about, are believed to be women who have conspired to groom men and then blackmail them.

So this is how it works:

The predator would start a pleasant chat with their victim, and convince them to move the conversation to another chat site to make it more difficult to track their identity. They will then persuade their victim to perform compromising acts, totally naked, in front of a webcam.

Unbeknownst to their victims, the predator will capture the video, save it to their computer, edit it and then post it on hundreds of websites, the nature of which is obvious.

But there is still worse to come. The way the operation appears to be working is this: initially the woman will hunt for her victim. She will try several men before finding one who appears to be naive so far as internet usage is concerned. The predator women do not look for perverts or men who are regular visitors to certain type of websites, as these men tend to be far more suspicious and much more discrete.

They hunt for an easy prey instead. Their typical victim will be a school teacher, a dentist or a police officer. The initial conversation will be very innocent. It tends to be about work, family, location and so on. Suspecting of nothing, the victim will often divulge their children's names and the name of the company they work for. Naturally, once they have given this sort of information, the men become even more trusting.

It is a psychological thing that sharing personal information accelerates the feelings of trust that we feel about our partner to the conversation. Then the woman speaks about herself and surprise surprise it transpires she and her victim have a lot in common.

They both might be a bit lonely, they both could have some marital difficulties to resolve and they both are likely to be craving for love and affection. Neither of them of course will contemplate having an extra marital affair mainly because of their loyalty to their family.

At the suggestion of the woman predator, the conversation will then move to a private chat programme such as Yahoo Messenger or MSN Messenger. This will break the 'continuity of evidence'. Whilst on the public chat, the parties can relatively easily be traced through their account registration details. This will be almost an impossible task with a private chat programme. The move from one chat programme to another will also break the link between the grooming and the shocking action which will follow.

The conversation will continue on the private chat programme and will turn more and more personal until it becomes purely suggestive.

Eventually the victim will be encouraged to perform a compromising act on himself, on camera so that the predator, whose job is almost done can "watch, participate and enjoy". Once the compromising act is concluded, the chat will come to its abrupt end, by the predator simply switching off the programme at her end.

What happens next is very interesting and is probably beyond most people's comprehension.

Following the video conversation which was fully recorded by the female predator onto her computer, she will compile several video clips and will give them titles such as 'John Smith From 91 Cleveland Lane Road, London, A GP and Child Molester Fxxxg Himself In Front of School Children' as well as other similarly colourful commentary. She will then post these videos on to several websites including YouTube and distribute them to countless other websites all over the world. The victim will wake up in the morning to a new reality.

He will first find an interesting email in his mail box from an unknown email address with a short note by his predator and a video attachment. Having watched the horrific video, most victims will immediately carry out an internet search against their own name only to discover that their worst fears have been materialised. By this time, the links which contain the videos have gathered so much popularity, especially following their distribution to the entire world by blogs and emails, that sometimes almost the entire first page of a Google search could be full of links to these videos, each time with a different title and commentary. A total nightmare.

If the victim is married, he will now need to speak to his wife and explain how he allowed this situation to happen. This you can imagine, would be quite a challenging task in itself. It could be a matter of time before his employers will find out, the kids, other family members, the neighbours, business associates or even some thugs who would believe that he is really a child molester or a paedophile. At this stage the victims normally seek legal advice.

They want to know what would happen if, or rather when, certain people discover these videos, in particular their employers. With most employers, it is a sackable offence to bring their organisation into disrepute. Naturally, when we speak to the victims, many of them are in a state of extreme shock. Before we deal with any other issue which troubles them, we, as defamation lawyers give priority to the immediate removal of the videos from the several video hosting websites.

This could be done fairly quickly but of course the sooner we act the better, because as time goes by, the number of links tend to increase and so does the popularity of the videos, as well as the number of people who copy these videos onto their personal computer and could potentially redistribute them in the future. The removal of these videos does not however, guarantee that they will not reappear in the future. It is important that the victims sign up for a monitoring system which operates 24/7 to give early warnings of any future distribution of their compromising videos.

Potentially, these videos can reappear on the internet at any time in the years to come. In any event, with the internet, it is all about speed so the priority is to have these videos removed from video hosts sites as quickly as possible.

I cannot tell for sure what is the precise motive behind the action of the predator woman, but having lately seen so many of these cases I have no doubt that there is indeed a system behind this operation and I am almost convinced that the female predators do this for money. In legal terms, all the victims in such cases have a cause of action in the courts, particularly for breach of privacy.

Although legal action could eventually lead us to the predator's identity this would be very costly and will bring further unwanted attention to the matter, and with it, further reputational damage to the victims. In cases such as this, any publicity is bad publicity.

The police are unlikely to be willing or able to intervene, mainly because of lack or resources and due to the fact that victims choose not to lodge a formal complaint. I will leave it for your imagination to picture the devastation this could cause someone. I have seen male victims changing their name and moving to a different town in order to avoid detection. I also witnessed families falling apart and men feeling suicidal following their involvement as victims in this sting.

Legally, little can be done to go back in time. No level of compensation will persuade any man in his right mind to pursue such a matter through the courts. Sometimes keeping your head down is the best advice to follow. What is left, is for us to spread the word, inform the public and educate people to be more vigilant whilst chatting on the internet. You have to remember that the vast majority of the men who find their lives falling apart as a result of being groomed, are innocent victims who were perhaps guilty of being nave or even a bit reckless, but are certainly not sexual offenders or perverts and do not deserve the potential life sentence which they may have to serve day in and day out.

Most people would agree that it is important to educate both adults and children about some of the dangers of internet chat. These are the dark sides of our new global society and they are not likely to simply disappear. It is only by having people such as yourself passing on this information to others that we can make the internet a safer place for both ourselves and to the next generation.

Yair Cohen is a leading UK online defamation and internet solicitor. Yair is a partner with the niche internet law firm Bains Cohen. The firm is renowned for its innovative approach to resolving client's online reputation problems and for the exceptional level of client and customer care that it practices.

Yair Cohen is believed to be the first lawyer in the United Kingdom to have obtained court injunctions against Google, YouTube and other main internet service providers to force the companies to remove defamatory content from various blogs and websites.

Yair's main strength is in his superior knowledge and understanding of the law in the context of the new realities which the internet presents. The secret to his success in removing defamatory websites is in his unique ability to combine vast amounts of technical knowledge with a unique and creative way of applying it to the law and to business reality.

Visit Bains Cohen Solicitors http://www.bainscohen.com
Visit Yair Cohen's blog http://www.yaircohenuk.com

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100 Year Old Defamation Law Gets 21st Century Make Over by a New Breed of Defamation Lawyers

Defamation law in England is reported to have been created as early as in 1307. Since then, the substance of English defamation law has not changed much. However, since the rapid expansion of the internet as the medium of choice for many individuals to air their views, many traditional defamation solicitors are finding it difficult to apply the traditional defamation law rules to modern defamation cases which mainly involve the use of the internet and email to disseminate information.

This in turn has led to the creation of a new breed of defamation solicitors who recognise the fact that traditional defamation legal solutions might not always be compatible with modern online defamation.

Many of the old-fashioned legal tools have hardly evolved over the past 100 years and they are being practiced by traditional defamation solicitors whose knowledge and understanding of the internet is probably, generally speaking, not greater than that of the average person on the street. After all, solicitors normally learn the practical aspects of their work from their supervising solicitor in the law firm and these tend to be very senior lawyers indeed, who might find the internet world a little bit too difficult to comprehend.

The experience of many of the traditional online defamation solicitors is mainly based on old-fashioned defamation cases, which in the majority of cases, relate to traditional publications such as books, newspapers and letters. Online defamation is a different illness altogether. Treat it with traditional text-book defamation medicine and you are likely to make a bad problem even worse.

This is why, with all the best intentions, old-fashioned defamation advice in relation to online defamation can sometimes backfire, in the sense that even if the case is won at court, the defamation still remains online and can even increase in volume.

So what has changed? Why might traditional defamation legal solutions not be compatible with modern online defamation?

The causes of defamation have changed

Some of the root causes of online defamation cases are very different in nature to the causes of traditional defamation. Online defamation is occasionally inflicted maliciously but sometimes it comes as a result of ignorance, strong emotional feelings, disgruntlement, self-righteousness or due to financial reasons.

Compare this with the main causes of traditional defamation, which are more or less confined to erroneous beliefs or innocent misconceptions and you will see why online defamation incidents must be treated in a different way altogether.

It is obvious, isn't it, that before one attempts to resolve a problem, one must first fully identify and understand the causes of it and if these causes are not deeply understood, then one might find oneself in the place of a patient with a sore eye who goes to receive treatment from the most expensive and highly prestigious brain surgeon in town. With respect, brain surgeons know very little about sore eyes and the last thing you would want the brain surgeon to do, is to open your brain up to try and administer medicine to your sore eye. In such a case, one can expect nothing but general deterioration in one's health with the original sore eye now constituting the least of one's problems.

Some players who are involved in defamation cases have been replaced

Over the past 100 years or so, the law of defamation has been developed by expert judges over countless court cases, mainly involving newspapers and book publishers. Broadly speaking, the playing teams who developed our defamation laws used to be very well read and highly experienced judges, a small number of newspaper publishing groups and a few highly paid lawyers, largely based in the City of London.

Pick up a text-book on defamation law in England and you will see that the same names of the parties involved in many of the defamation cases are repeated over and over again. The composition of the parties involved in defamation cases used to be almost set in stone and this is why reading a traditional defamation law text-book could feel like a Dj vu. You read time and time again about the same judges, the same lawyers and the same defendants. It used to be a small world.... Now this has all changed.

When appearing in court on matters of online defamation, the players can hardly recognise one another any longer. As a result of the dramatic increase in defamation cases, the number of Judges who are sitting on such matters has increased. And because of the different nature of the modern online defamation, a new breed of defamation solicitor has started to emerge.

This new breed of online defamation solicitor is very different to the traditional defamation solicitor, who used to almost exclusively occupy the court rooms. The modern online defamation solicitors are highly technically skilled, are incredibly internet savvy and they tend to possess vast knowledge of IT related matters.

Modern online defamation solicitors pay a great deal of attention to the psychological aspects of online defamation. They build psychological profiles of offenders and some of them are even NLP trained, which means they can tailor an individual approach to each act of online defamation by analysing the personalities of the offenders and by then dealing with each and every one of them in a personalised and highly effective manner.

The modern defamation solicitors are increasingly entrepreneurial like in their approach to the problem at hand. They approach online defamation issues from legal, technical and entrepreneurial angles and their solutions are not necessarily confined to local legal issues but are much more versatile. They tend to focus on obtaining successful results and workable solutions for their clients, who primarily, want their reputational problem to disappear rather than seek damages.

This refreshing approach which is often taken by the modern online defamation solicitors is pretty much in line with the latest technical developments and is reflective of their client's needs. They understand the fact that winning a defamation case through the courts, may not be sufficient on its own, for their client's on-going online defamation problems to completely disappear or even not to reoccur soon after the legal battle was won. This is another reason why modern online defamation solicitors spend so much of their time researching and genuinely trying to understand some of the underlying roots of each specific online defamation issue.

The use of personalisation by modern defamation solicitors, together with their ability to effectively communicate technical issues to their clients, makes it easier for them to find effective solutions to online defamation issues. And because of their deep routed understanding of the law as well as of technical matters, they are managing to develop personal relationships with key people in the social medial organisations and within the internet world, relationships which help them to affect the removal of websites, posts and comments with relative ease.

The ability to speak the same language and to effectively communicate with internet service providers is probably the most important asset of a modern online defamation solicitor because the reality is, that it is much cheaper and more cost-effective to facilitate the removal of material off the internet via dialogue than through legal action.

Lastly, many of the defendants who are now involved in online defamation cases are different in nature from their predecessors. In the past, most defendants in defamation law cases were editors of major newspaper titles, whilst currently defendants in online defamation cases are, generally speaking, normal people like your neighbour across the road who possesses very limited legal skills and experience. They sometimes appear in court in person, without a lawyer to represent them but with a lot of passion instead. The defamation courts now allow litigants in person to even use video links, whenever regular travel to the court room is not practical for them.

The Size of the Defamation Field has increased

Traditionally, the playing field where defamation was created was very small in size. Newspapers, text-books and letters, mainly published in the UK used to provide the main source of defamation cases. The old players in defamation law cases were therefore acting within some sort of comfort zone, limited both in size and in scope. This allowed the traditional defamation law solicitors to develop expertise within a very limited field of the defamation law.

This has now changed because the scope of defamation law has been widening. An opportunity to defame exists almost everywhere you look: on websites, blogs, forums, social media, emails and other online forums. Furthermore, defamation can now be initiated from anywhere in the world and be transmitted instantly worldwide. Defamation law is no longer a local or a national matter. Very often it involves cross jurisdictional issues which means the modern online defamation solicitor must have a sound knowledge of multi-national laws.

Modern online defamation solicitors spend hours upon hours researching, studying and investigating their playing field and they must, in addition to having a sound understanding of the law, be vested with specific knowledge of how the online world works and operates. They must be able to speak the language, be fluent in the jargon and fully understand the way things work on the internet, as well as the mechanics which cause online defamation to be created and then spread across. And to enable them to keep up with the rapid changes that are occurring on the internet, modern online defamation solicitors must now possess a rare combination of skills, which include legal, analytical and technical and they must maintain these skills constantly afresh.

It is not surprising therefore that some of the old-fashioned defamation solicitors, who for many years had been successfully scoring time and time again within a 'Mini Football field', are finding it difficult now to keep up with this rapidly changing area of law.

The Training which is required is not traditional at all

Whilst traditional defamation solicitors have almost always enjoyed the benefit of being trained up by their firm's experienced defamation law partner (hence the reason why lawyers from other, smaller practices have in the past found it difficult to enter this field of law), much of the knowledge and skills of the modern online defamation solicitors have been acquired independently and by sharing experiences with colleagues all over the world.

In other words, internet law and online defamation law are not subjects which are taught at law schools. They can only be mastered by constant usage and by plenty of practical experience.

One of the reasons why many modern defamation solicitors acquire their unique skills independently, is that there was no one around to teach them these skills, because these skills are not traditionally associated with solicitors' work. They are not listed in legal text-books and are highly technical. In fact, many of the special skills that effective online defamation solicitors must possess, are not necessarily legal skills but are skills which did not really exist up until very recently.

These skills are not written (yet) into text-books and neither are they taught on legal courses. Knowing your law well is one thing, but understanding the magic that makes pages appear on or disappear off the internet is a completely different matter so it is not surprising at all that some traditional defamation solicitors are finding it a bit difficult to adapt and participate in this new arena.

Traditional defamation solicitors are lawyers not IT specialists, not SEO gurus, not detectives and very often not NLP trained. And because one can only teach what one knows, trainee solicitors in some traditional, corporate like law firms might not receive the opportunity to enhance skills which are not strictly speaking, regarded as legal skills. Training in large law firms is normally confined to the legal matters and legal matters alone. Modern online defamation solicitors, on the other hand, have always enjoyed the freedom to learn, to study and to pursue knowledge, without the constraints that sometimes exist within old-fashioned law firms, whose focus tends to be directed more on the production of billable hours almost from day one.

This is why modern online defamation solicitors can offer their clients much more than traditional thinking and traditional legal genius. They possess skills, which are not normally associated with traditional corporate-like, old- fashioned defamation solicitors. And furthermore, it is important to note that most victims of online defamation, regardless of the size of their organisations, are looking for an online defamation solicitor with technical, psychological, investigative and inter personal skills in addition to the traditional legal abilities.

Goodbye Damages Hello Damage Limitation or The Trophy is not gold plated any longer

Wining a defamation case for a client is without a doubt considered to be the ultimate result for most defamation solicitors. This is one of the reasons why highly expensive and emotionally charged legal proceedings on behalf of lucrative clients, have been the bread and butter of some of the old-fashioned defamation law firms. But this has now also changed.

Many victims of online defamation are now measuring success by using a different formula altogether.

Because of the immediate and potentially disastrous consequences of online defamation to their businesses, (regardless of size), victims of online defamation, tend to measure success in relation to the speed by which their business can be brought back to normal operation. Most victims of online defamation have little or no time at all for highly expensive and everlasting defamation trials. By the time their defamation trial comes to an end, there might be nothing left of their business reputation. It is no longer about damages: it is now about damage limitation.

Court actions for defamation could constitute a serious distraction for the entrepreneur who invariably understands that a lawyer, with even the greatest possible advocacy skills, cannot bring him his business reputation back following a successful defamation trial. Court actions for defamation are considered by most entrepreneurs as 'last resort' options.

This is why modern online defamation solicitors tend to commit their various special skills to help solving their client's immediate online defamation issues, whenever possible, outside the court room and it is now clear that what many victims of online defamation consider to be a good result is not only the fast disappearance of defamatory comments from the internet, but also the learning which follows from a successfully defeated online reputation attack and the help and support which they receive from their internet lawyer, which helps them build up new systems and processes to prevent or at least minimise future online reputation attacks on their business.

It is very possible that the above developments in English defamation law will lead to an overhaul change to the way defamation law in England is being practiced and this change will perhaps result in significant amendments of the law of defamation in England.

Yair Cohen is a leading UK online defamation and internet solicitor. Yair is a partner with the niche internet law firm Bains Cohen. The firm is renowned for its innovative approach to resolving client's online reputation problems and for the exceptional level of client and customer care that it practices.

Yair Cohen is believed to be the first lawyer in the United Kingdom to have obtained court injunctions against Google, YouTube and other main internet service providers to force the companies to remove defamatory content from various blogs and websites. Yair's main strength is in his superior knowledge and understanding of the law in the context of the new realities which the internet presents. The secret to his success in removing defamatory websites is in his unique ability to combine vast amounts of technical knowledge with a unique and creative way of applying it to the law and to business reality.

Visit Yair Cohen's blog http://www.yaircohenuk.com

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Computer Crimes and Federal Offenses

Sunday, 22 April 2012 0 comments
ByGuy Womack

If you are under investigation for a computer crime, or if you have already been arrested for such an offense, you are probably under a great deal of stress. Computer crimes involve a wide range of activities that are otherwise illegal. When people use a computer or the internet to further commit such crimes, then they are categorized as computer or internet crimes.

These days, nearly every aspect of our society is digitalized. People can download movies, apply for a credit card, transfer balances between accounts, and pay their bills all with the touch of a button. The expanding functions of the internet have opened a whole new world to criminal outlets and activities. Criminals are finding new ways to break the law at a pace that law enforcement is struggling to keep up with. Because computers have such a large impact on society as a whole, federal prosecutors waste no time or expense in securing criminal convictions against the individuals who commit such crimes. In fact, the federal government has entire task forces devoted to tracking down and arresting people who commit these types of crimes.

What categorizes a computer or internet crime? One common aspect of computer crimes involves financial fraud and money laundering schemes. Other financial crimes committed via the internet include credit and debit card fraud, hacking and identity theft.

Computer crimes also involve harassment, spamming, phishing, and sex crimes against children. People who possess child pornography on their home or work computer, and people who distribute child pornography via the internet are in violation of the law. Unfortunately, internet crimes involving children can oftentimes be a case of mistaken identity. Perhaps you were not aware that the images were of minors, or perhaps someone else used your computer. Revealing the truth of what actually happened will be dependent upon the highly investigative tactics of an experienced defense attorney.

Because these crimes typically cross state lines, they are often classified as federal offenses. If you are under investigation for a federal crime, you could have a large government entity assisting your local law enforcement agency. This means that the prosecution will have unlimited manpower and means to pursue a conviction. If you want to effectively protect your legal rights, you are going to need the assistance of a seasoned federal criminal defense attorney on your side. Your lawyer will have a wealth of proven defense tools at their disposal. The last thing you would want to do is hire an inexperienced or apprehensive lawyer when you are fighting to preserve your reputation and your freedom. If you are under investigation for a computer crime, don't hesitate to contact a federal criminal defense attorney immediately.

The Law Offices of Guy L. Womack & Associates, P.C. is conveniently located in North Houston, Texas. Their firm has been providing their clients with outstanding defense representation for all sorts of federal and state criminal offenses. Whether your case is going to military, state or federal court, they have the knowledge, experience and tools necessary to protect your legal rights. A member from their legal team is prepared to meet with you in person for a free consultation. They would like to provide you with both sound advice and potential defense strategies that may aid in your defense. Their goal is to help their clients obtain the best possible outcome in the charges against them. They will search for any mitigating circumstances that might get the charges against you reduced or dropped entirely. You are urged to contact a Houston federal criminal defense lawyer from their firm at (800) 990-8762 today.

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The Practice of Law and the Internet

ByBrent L Johnson

The internet has changed many industries including the way that lawyers practice their trade. While this might not be the first industry to come to mind in terms of how it uses the internet, the World Wide Web has had a huge influence on the practice of law.

Thanks to the internet, geography is no longer an issue. Even having a website can draw in hundreds or thousands of clients that the firm would not have had if it hadn't been for a foray into the internet. There are many examples of firms which have been able to expand into foreign countries and thrive there all thanks to the doors that the internet has opened. In addition, it is now easier than ever to communicate with lawyers who are half a world away. Thanks to email and instant messaging, lawyers can work together no matter where they are located.

The internet has also led to the proliferation of electronic publishing. Now lawyers and firms can print such things as bulletins and have them distributed all over the world. Many of these bulletins have become very popular, but if they were a traditional paper publication the cost associated with them would be too high. However, thanks to the internet, firms can publish papers and have them read in all corners of the world.

Lawyers frequently need to talk to each other when dealing with a large case and thanks to the internet, they no longer have to be in the same room with each other. This has led to a lowering of travel costs as teams of lawyers can discuss the case over Skype or another similar program. Video conferencing is now the wave of the future and can be done much easier than trying to get everyone in the same room at the same time.

Lawyers need information in order to win cases and that has also been made much easier thanks to the internet. Instead of having to haul around reams of paper or huge law books, lawyers can now find the information they need by simply logging onto the internet. Lawsuits, judgments, phone numbers, liens and other records are easily accessed and can make prepping for a case much easier. In addition, all team members will have access to the same information no matter where they are located.

The practice of law also involves a lot of paperwork and lawyers can now easily access the forms they need on a wide variety of websites. In addition, even regular people can go to websites and create their own legally binding documents such as articles of incorporation for a business or a last will and testament. This has also cut down on the number of fees that can be charged and opened the law to more people than ever before.

The internet will continue to change the way we live our lives and how we operate in the world of law and justice. It will be interesting to see how it continues to affect the practice of law in the future.

MyBlueDish is an informative website on Satellite Internet and High Speed Internet Service.

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Importance of A Litigation Lawyer

Saturday, 21 April 2012 0 comments
ByLubna Jahangiri

A legal litigation lawyer is primarily concerned with providing officially authorized proficiency desired to determine the resolution to a special kind of legal disagreement that primarily do not fall under the category of criminal offences. The conflict can range from among small individual units to among large corporations. For instance, when two neighbors come across a difference of opinion pertaining to any topic like property boundaries, and if they are unable to resolve their disparity outside the legal court, only then the role of a civil becomes essential. Each side would hire a lawyer to support each of their positions before a judge or the jury.

A second prominent situation that calls for the essential role of this lawyers is when Businessmen from time to time come across a difference of opinion regarding some legal concord on contract conditions to an extent that it calls for an authority or the procedure of a lawsuit to resolve the differentiation. A litigation lawyer will usually have the required awareness of the contract and the law, which would give him the ability to construe the diverse contractual sections so he or she can help the authority in reaching a conclusion desirable to the party involved. Also, where there is a compromise on the contractual clauses, the lawyer may be capable of helping the entities involved in rectifying the differences of opinions without actually going for a legal lawsuit. But when the easier way out is not conceivable, both parties can appoint litigation lawyers who will have the required knowledge to deal with the case proceedings effectively to a desirable conclusion.

Another important property specific to the litigation lawyers, which is made most evident when going through the local phone book for the contact of a litigation lawyer, is that a person will notice that there are lawyers with specialties in various fields out there. Every lawyer of this category chooses to specialize in some special kinds of cases, for illustration, whenever an operative feels the impression that there has been percipience or discrimination of particular sort at his work place, he will easily be able to find a litigation lawyer who concentrates in that individual field of law. Federal, state and local laws can be very diverse and complicated and the way they administer behavior in the workplace. Therefore, it can be rather difficult to understand, so hiring a skillful and knowledgeable expert can assist the employee get the reimbursement he merits.

With all the arguments presented above, one conclusion that can be evidently drawn is that a litigation lawyer clearly possesses a very momentous domicile in any society. Given the latest trend, common among people of many countries suing one another clearly acts as empirical evidence of the importance of litigation lawyers in a country. Unquestionably this is the very motivation why so many lawyers out there have constricted their practices to specialisms rather than going for "general" practice.

Miss Lubna K. Jahangiri is one of the most qualified law consultant and experienced business and corporate lawyer in the State of California.

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Internet Law and Social Media in the UK

The internet is often deemed to be like the Wild West. It is viewed as a lawless region where people can act outside the laws of the land. This is not the case. The jail sentences handed down to a number of individuals who tweeted or posted Facebook messages about the riots in England in August clearly illustrate that there laws governing what can be posted online carry real consequences. Breaking the law online is as serious as breaking the law offline.

The law that the social media users broke was the Serious Crime Act 2007. Although the law was not set up to cover the use of social media, the use of social media was much lower in 2007 than it is now, the law of the land applies online to the same degree that it does off line.

The Serious Crime Act 2007 states that either "intentionally encouraging or assisting an offence" or "encouraging or assisting an offence believing it will be committed" is viewed as being as serious as carrying out the act itself. So if you post a Facebook message encouraging people to riot and loot then it viewed the same in the eyes of the law as if you were rioting and looting yourself.

Defamation and Libel Online

Defamation and libel laws apply to the online world in the same way that they apply to more traditional forms of print media, TV and radio. If you slander someone online without being able to prove it then you can be open to being sued for libel.

You may think that something you post about an individual of company may well be lost in the billions of webpages in cyberspace. This is not the case as many individuals and companies actively police what is said about them online. Many will issue civil proceedings if they feel the statements are defamatory.

The cyber smearing does not have to take place on a website you own for you to be open to being sued. If you have smeared someone using social media, message boards, forums, review sites, auction sites or email then you are open to being pursued for libel damages.

You also do not need to be the originator of the rumour. If you simply repeat the allegations then you can be sued. It is very foolish to just repeat allegations without double checking that they are true. A re-tweet of somebody else's link to a post about a rumour can place you in line for being sued. It is also worth noting that you cannot defame someone using their nickname and thing you are safe if the nickname is well known by the public.

Attempting to hide behind an anonymous username is also no protection from the law.

Difference between Slander and Libel

A landmark ruling in August 2008 by Mr Justice Eady drew a distinction between de Defamatory comments on internet bulletin boards and forums and those published within articles on websites. The Judge stated that those on internet bulletin boards were more likely to be slander and not libel.

Currently the UK is looking at reforming its libel laws and this will take into account both online and offline forms.

Tony Heywood

Steps Involved In Formation Of Corporations And The Importance Of Business Lawyers

Friday, 20 April 2012 0 comments
ByLubna Jahangiri

Corporation is a distinct and legal and separate entity from the persons who have created it. Of all the business organizations, corporation is the most common form, and its owners are not responsible to pay for its liabilities. Corporations can be classified as: profit corporations, non-profit corporations, public corporations, private corporations, professional corporations, publicly-held corporations and closely-held corporation.

In this article we are going to comprehensively outline the formation of corporations and the importance of the role commercial and real estate lawyers play in this formation. It follows a procedure which includes the following steps: First of all, a name is to be decided for your corporation which should not be the same as any other registered corporations. The name should end with a corporation designation like 'corporation', 'limited' or 'incorporated'. However, some of the restricted words cannot be used such as 'federal', 'national' etc. To avoid any complications you need to contact the corporation's office and get a name registered. Since this process can get a little technical most individuals prefer appointing a business lawyer.

The second step is to appoint a board of directors, who make the financial decisions for the corporation and finalise the policies. They also appoint different officers and decide their salaries, make approvals for loans to be taken and other major decisions such as issuing stocks. They are appointed by the owners of the corporations before the beginning of the business.

The next step for the formation of a corporation is to file the 'articles of incorporation' with the corporation filing office. These are to be created and signed by the owners of the corporation. A member of the board of directors is appointed as the 'agent' so that public can contact the corporation through this 'agent'.

The formation of a corporation also requires you to create the bylaws, also known as the internal laws for your corporation which deal with daily decisions. For this, usually a lawyer is appointed who drafts them out for you. Another important step is the signing of an agreement, for the transfer of ownership of the corporation, after the owner becomes disabled, dies, retires or decides to leave the corporation.

The final step is obtaining required permits and licenses for your business. The most important being the business license, which is your tax registration certificate. You also need an employer identification number and a permit from the local planning board for your business. All these tasks can be performed efficiently by a business attorney.

If you are thinking about starting a corporation then you should get in touch with Miss Lubna K. Jahangiri, her real estate and commercial law firm is located in the State of California. Her expertise and knowledge in business law can make the procedure of forming a corporation convenient and hassle free for you; the vast knowledge she processes can act as a sole source of guidance throughout the procedure. The second pertinent advantage of consulting Miss Lubna is the reasonable fee she charges. The unmatched quality of her services along with a very affordable fee makes her the perfect choice for formation of your corporation.

Miss Lubna K. Jahangiri is one of the most qualified law consultant and experienced business and corporate lawyer in the State of California.

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