My Blog About Cyber Laws

The new EU e-privacy law comes into force on the 25th of May 2011. Once enacted in the EU member states, this directive will have a significant effect on websites that require users to accept cookies. So, what does this change mean for internet users and what are laws designed to accomplish?

New laws are aimed at 'informed consent' for users who enter a website and download cookies. Currently cookies are downloaded automatically from certain websites without a users' knowledge. The purpose of this is to allow users who frequent websites to do so quicker by storing information on a users' computer. This information is stored on the web browser without the consent of the user of the computer.

In other instances, cookies are used to track the behavior of users, not necessarily for the benefit of the user, but for purposes that may be seen as a hindrance to users such as advertising. This tracking then leads to the user receiving advertising specifically aimed at their internet use and interests. This somewhat unwelcome tracking of information of private information is what the new EU directives aim is to stop. The directive will force the EU member countries to enact laws for websites to gain the users explicit consent before they download a cookie from the website.

Many have criticized this new directive and believe that it will be detrimental to EU websites as it will divert traffic to non-EU member websites and secondly will be very difficult and costly for the EU websites to implement this directive. This has lead to many companies with websites threatening to move their sites to US based providers which would then ultimately impact EU web providers.

Although this is the first directive and internet regulation of its kind, American counterparts have had it on their agenda for some time and have been putting pressure on the industry to self-regulate before levels of distrust and malpractice compel the government to step in. If the new directive does lead to companies changing to internet providers in non-EU countries, it seems that it is likely that there would be increased pressure for other countries to conform and this could be the beginning of the first world-wide internet regulation. This directive could possibly signify changes that will in the next few years have an effect on an enormous amount of websites and internet regulation around the world.

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In our younger days, we have all done things which we ended up regretting. We have wronged people, we caused them upset. Guilty as charged. But no one can turn back the wheels of time and usually life goes on and people move on do to better and greater things.

But what if suddenly, almost out of the blue 10, 20, 30 years on, an image from the past decides to make a reappearance in our lives with the sole purpose of destroying everything that we have worked for; our family life, our business, our achievements, our good name and our reputation? You see, before the days of the internet, unless we had left behind a forgotten son or daughter we have been, relatively easily, being able to put the past behind us. It would have been almost inconceivable for someone, especially from another country to make a comeback into our lives and systematically destroy us. Now things appear to have changed, quite dramatically with shadows from the past being able to haunt us almost to the grave through the latest technology, with a click of a button.

Frank Backerfield (not his real name), a successful English entrepreneur who is very famous in the entertainment industry, has recently discovered that an image from the past has made a nasty reappearance with the sole purpose of completely destroying him. You see, when Frank was a bit younger, he used to be, let's say, something of a playboy. He used to travel around the world, telling lots of rich women that he loved them when actually he just wanted to spend some good time with them. Apparently he left a number of broken hearts on the side of expensive hotels, expecting them to foot the bills and forget about him almost as quickly as they fell in love with him. At the time, neither of the parties involved believed that they would ever meet each other again and to be frank, most of the women that he engaged with, did not have any desire to even hear his name again.

After a number of years of messing around, Frank decided he had enough and that time had arrived for him to go 'straight'. With the little bit of money that he had he started a small night club that he managed to run so well, that within a couple of years it was earning him a fortune. He then moved to open 4 more clubs in and around London until he become an established and very respected figure within the UK entertainment industry. Frank even got married to a lady from Middlesex, Clair, and they both lived in harmony with their 4 children in a lovely country home in a small village in Essex.

But then, one day, Frank received a phone call from a trusted friend, asking him if he happened to know a lady by the name of Laura Park, from Canada. The name did ring a bell but no matter how hard Frank tried to remember where he heard of this name before, he was unable to recollect specific details. The trusted friend then advised Frank to do an internet search of his name. It had been ages since Frank used the internet. Normally his wife, Clair, or one of his assistants would deal with the internet stuff for him because Frank was a very busy man who hated wasting time going online.

So Frank did a search on Google and to his astonishment he discovered that a Laura Park had written several blogs and even published a book (available on Amazon) about 'How My Life Was Changed Following My Short Encounter With The Fraudster Frank Backerfield'.

In her blogs, and in the book that she had self published, Laura Park had described her encounter with Frank some 25 years ago and how she claims he allegedly deceived her to sleep with him and to leave her ex husband and two children, just to be dumped by him within a fortnight. In her internet publications Laura Park has described Frank as a living monster; a person who must not be trusted, as a fraud and as a ruthless conman. She declared very openly her intention to destroy him and her personal commitment to turn everything Frank had ever created into ashes.

Unbeknownst to Frank, Laura Park's campaign had gone on for a number of years. She posted personal videos on YouTube, MSN and other websites which host videos. She created tens of blogs and websites and told her 'story' in every possible forum on the internet.

But it was not until Google had changed its algorithm that her blogs started to appear everywhere on the internet against the search of Frank Backerfield's name.

Initially Frank decided to ignore this campaign and to continue his focus on his business instead, but as the inquisitive telephone calls from friends, family and business associates started to increase and as the pressure from his wife, Clair started to grow, he decided that he needed to do something about this matter. His business started to suffer and he could not stand the thought of him being labelled as fraudster, in front of the whole world.

Well, fixing this was not going to be very easy. This woman clearly set herself on a mission and as it appears, was now devoting her life to destroying him no matter what. She was living outside the jurisdiction of the English Courts and was posting all her lies through websites which were located outside the UK. To add to this, the quantity of the defamatory material was so great and a major clear up was required, which was not going to be easy and would not come cheap.

way to deal with this menace was to take a very systematic approach by starting off the cleaning operation from scratch. As there was very little point in trying to persuade Laura Park to stop her campaign, it was decided to obtain injunctions against the internet service providers who hosted the material which she has posted. Once an injunction was obtained, the next step would be to enforce it across the world by using process servers and local lawyers who would serve the injunction on all the parties involved. This way, one by one the posts would be removed and the hundreds of internet links which point to these posts would become inactive and eventually be removed by the search engines' Spiders. At the same time, a defensive Search Engine Optimisation strategy would ensure that the vacuum which was left by the disabled links was filled with plenty of articles, blogs and information about Frank Backerfield.

From this point onwards, Frank Backerfield's kept an eye on his online reputation to ensure that any new postings by Laura Park about him or his company was being removed, using the injunction which has already been obtained. Frank's reputation could be completely restored within 3-4 months and will never be destroyed again in such a way.

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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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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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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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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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 are 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

An internet crime, or cybercrime, refers to any illegal practice that involves the use of a computer or network, or targets a computer or network. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, their key priorities in regards to cybercrimes are: computer intrusion, online predators, piracy, and fraud. Computer intrusion costs individuals and companies billions of dollars every year. By breaking into personal computers, laptops, and networks, hackers can disrupt and sometimes permanently damage vital computer systems. The reasons for computer intrusion vary from the theft of personal information to illegal business practices to terrorism.

Child pornography and online predators are another important focus of the FBI. The Innocent Images National Initiative is part of their Cyber Crimes Program and is dedicated to fighting the spread of child pornography online. It is against federal and state laws to make, own, sell, or distribute any pornographic materials that contain minors. Although each state is different, even the possession of one picture can lead to five years in prison. As one of the fastest growing crimes on the internet, it can be used for a number of purposes. Pedophiles view it, but others use it to prepare children for child prostitution, an act known as child grooming. 18 U.S.C. Chapter 110, Sexual Exploitation and Other Abuse of Children, states that violators can be punished by fifteen years in federal prison.

A crime that has garnered a mass amount of media attention is that of piracy: intellectual property theft. Intellectual property includes: music, books, movies, art, inventions, phrases, designs, and more. Materials that are protected by copyright or trademarks are illegal to copy or distribute without permission. Penalties for piracy vary based on the amount copies or distributed. The FBI has been working on educating the public regarding the seriousness of this crime and the fact that it is theft.

Lastly, another widespread internet crime is fraud. Fraud is a broad category of crimes that involve dishonest acts. When misrepresentation occurs on the internet, it becomes a cybercrime. The most common reason for fraud is monetary gain and can be civil or criminal in nature, depending on the law of the state. The main types of fraud are: identity theft, credit card fraud, bankruptcy fraud, and securities fraud.

If you have been accused of any type of internet crime, it is highly encouraged that you speak with a legal professional as soon as possible. As these crimes can be investigated by government agencies, you need a strong legal representative to be on your side. Time is crucial, so do not wait to get the help you need.

The Miller Law Firm has over twenty years of experience in criminal defense law. With a former assistant state prosecutor on their team, they have the skill and ability to handle even the most complex and serious criminal cases. By speaking to a Sarasota criminal attorney from their team, you could receive the strong legal representation you need to get your case dismissed. From drug crimes to DUI to sex crimes and theft crimes, they have handled hundreds of criminal cases. You deserve professional and high-quality legal defense and they could be able to help you get your life back on track and retain your freedom. To learn more about how they can help you, contact a Sarasota criminal lawyer from their firm. They are available twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, so call today or visit their website at http://www.sarasotacriminaldefenselawfirm.com.

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Getting an online business up and running is a real challenge. Once you figure the process out, it is vital that you realize that one success does not necessarily guarantee a second success with other products or services. While you should investigate other profit opportunities, isolating your risk when doing so is critical.

Blogging is all the rage these days, so let's talk about a common situation that comes up. You start a blog and develop a strong following. Your blog covers some particular niche that you establish yourself as an expert in. You start making money through affiliate product sales and leads. To protect yourself, you form a business entity to hold the site. This is an ideal and typical approach on the web.

As your blog become more and more popular, you will start receiving unsolicited joint venture offers. Most are junk, but a few catch your eye and you investigate them. One looks like a really good idea that could bring in a good bit of money. You decide to move forward with the business relationship, but how do you deal with risk?

This is where most online businesses make a huge mistake. They don't isolate their risk. They enter into a contract using the business entity that holds their original successful website. Can you see how this might be a problem down the road? An example can show you how.

Let's say the joint venture involves putting together an all-in-one software package that will help people make money online. A nice sales page site is developed and the software is put up for sale. People flock to it and buy like mad. A year later, complaints start rolling in that it doesn't work. You don't have insurance or any way to deal with the complaints. Lawsuits start coming and your partner alerts you to the fact they don't have any money and are filing bankruptcy. You are now isolated.

Now things get ugly for you. You can't file bankruptcy because the business entity you used also contains your original money making blog. Well, you can file but you will lose the blog and all your income. That is a disaster by any measure.

I'll be the first to admit that doing business on the web has a certain informality built into it. Generally, there isn't anything wrong with this, but strategies need to be put in place to isolate risk. Exposing successful sites to the potential failure of new sites is not a smart move, so make sure to isolate your risk as much as possible. Doing so might require the use of multiple business entities or other strategies.

The web used to be a place where people could, shall we say, get away with anything. Those days are long gone. Protecting yourself is a must these days, so make sure you take steps to do so.

Richard A. Chapo is an internet lawyer with SanDiegoBusinessLawFirm.com.

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As strange and shocking as it may sound yes there are certain laws that are set out by the government designed to keep us safe...from the internet? Amongst the many laws about the internet that here is a look at the top 4 strangest internet laws. In no particular order here is the first one.

Upsetting the entertainment industry
It is made up mostly by penalties for people who upset the entertainment industry through actions such as downloading and sharing content illegally. The penalties also include the three strikes rule which allows for your family to be cut off completely from the internet if anyone single member of the household is accused of copyright infringement. The worst part about this is that this can happen without needing any sort of proof or evidence or even a trial. There is also a newer rating system for the gaming industry making more games easily rated not suitable for children or peoples under 16 or 18.

There is also a fine of up to

Internet "gripe" sites have become very popular over the last three or four years, and they have taken many different forms. Some of these sites have offered students an opportunity to share random thoughts. Others have turned into a bashing forum for people to light into other people. Others still allow consumers to gripe about different businesses. Though it turns out these sites are completely legal, there are some reasons to take pause if you are posting on them. The law provides certain protections for the owners of these sites, but those protections are not ironclad. This is especially true in the changing world where internet laws are under siege.

Laws designed to shield site owners

One of the nice things about today's internet law is that site owners are relatively insulated from litigation. They have a "shield", so to speak, since the law does not allow for prosecution on the basis of simply providing a forum. The way these sites get away with this is relatively simple. They just put out the bulletin board and allow people to post thoughts on it. This puts the responsibility on the individuals doing the posting, since the law does not impute liability onto the site owner in most circumstances. Though many have tried, it is very difficult to get to a site owner based upon these principles.

Coming after site posters

Just because the site is insulated does not mean that individual posters are free to post what they want. Even anonymous posters can be held liable for their words if those words are defamatory to other people. In many instances, subpoenas have been served on the site, requiring the site owners to give up IP addresses on users. This can turn ugly for people who have been posting false statements, as they can be sued for libel as a result of their words.

Site owners and encouraging misconduct

Gripe sites have run into some trouble on the basis of "encouraging" certain kinds of postings. Though they are not civilly liable for defamation on the face, these individual site owners can be implicated if they encourage certain postings. This is where the law gets a bit murky, so site owners have to be very careful in how they craft their sites. Though they are not required to take down postings and they are not generally responsible for all defamation that takes place there, a site owner can have some liability if he is not careful.

The changing nature of internet law

Another thing to note is that the internet law is changing. The US Supreme Court and other federal courts are still relatively new to the proceedings and they are still learning how to apply the law. There is always a chance that the law could shift with judicial interpretation changing in time. This is something that site owners and internet posters alike must be aware of if they plan to test the difficult waters of internet gripe and borderline defamation.

I am an Arizona Bankruptcy Lawyer and an Internet Law Attorney

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Laws and regulations are an integral part of modern society, and they have been with us for a very long time, many centuries to be exact, giving us a guide to follow and conventions to respect. Well, the Internet has also become an integral part of modern society, and it's no wonder that many countries all around the world are trying to create Internet or Cyber laws that will govern everything we do online. One of the most important Internet laws is in fact the Internet Copyright Law, and here will be discussed how it works in some detail.

The US Internet Copyright Law
Everything created on the Internet after the date of April 1 1989 is protected under the American Internet Copyright Law. This can in many cases probably be difficult to understand, but the fact is that if you come from the USA, and you have created something and uploaded it on the World Wide Web is the last 20 years or so, this work of your is protected, and it cannot be stolen by anybody. However, this is true only in theory.

The Problems with the Internet Copyright Law
Yes, it is true that you hold all rights to your work as the original author ever since your work has seen the light of the Internet day. Yes, it is also true that you have the right to take action if someone happens to steal your original work from the Web. However, the problem arises when there is more than one country involved in this process. Namely, if you are an American, and your work has been illegally downloaded by a person from let's say Albania, there's probably nothing you'll be able to do about it. The reason for this is the fact that most countries don't have any rules or regulations regarding the Internet, so even though you might know exactly who stole your work, in many cases you will not be able to act on this fact.

Another important issue related to the Internet Copyright Law is the fact that you often cannot know who violated the law, meaning that there are ways to steal your work from the Internet without you knowing who was actually responsible. For example, modern technology can, by tracing IP addresses, tell you where the person who stole your work was, but can never tell you exactly who this person is.

The Internet Copyright Law and Plagiarism
Plagiarism is another interesting subject related to the Internet Copyright Law, as in many cases it cannot be proven. For example, if you have taken a photograph and uploaded it to the Web, and if someone took this photo without crediting you as the original author, then you can make this person remove the photo, or even sue the person. However, if you have written an original article, for instance, and uploaded it on the Internet, you cannot do anything if someone read your article and steals the idea, even though plagiarism is actually defined as using someone else's words, quotes or even ideas as their own.

You can read more Internet Articles at the ISP 1 Internet blog:

http://isp1.us/blog/

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The new EU e-privacy law comes into force on the 25th of May 2011. Once enacted in the EU member states, this directive will have a significant effect on websites that require users to accept cookies. So, what does this change mean for internet users and what are laws designed to accomplish?

New laws are aimed at 'informed consent' for users who enter a website and download cookies. Currently cookies are downloaded automatically from certain websites without a users' knowledge. The purpose of this is to allow users who frequent websites to do so quicker by storing information on a users' computer. This information is stored on the web browser without the consent of the user of the computer.

In other instances, cookies are used to track the behavior of users, not necessarily for the benefit of the user, but for purposes that may be seen as a hindrance to users such as advertising. This tracking then leads to the user receiving advertising specifically aimed at their internet use and interests. This somewhat unwelcome tracking of information of private information is what the new EU directives aim is to stop. The directive will force the EU member countries to enact laws for websites to gain the users explicit consent before they download a cookie from the website.

Many have criticized this new directive and believe that it will be detrimental to EU websites as it will divert traffic to non-EU member websites and secondly will be very difficult and costly for the EU websites to implement this directive. This has lead to many companies with websites threatening to move their sites to US based providers which would then ultimately impact EU web providers.

Although this is the first directive and internet regulation of its kind, American counterparts have had it on their agenda for some time and have been putting pressure on the industry to self-regulate before levels of distrust and malpractice compel the government to step in. If the new directive does lead to companies changing to internet providers in non-EU countries, it seems that it is likely that there would be increased pressure for other countries to conform and this could be the beginning of the first world-wide internet regulation. This directive could possibly signify changes that will in the next few years have an effect on an enormous amount of websites and internet regulation around the world.

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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In our younger days, we have all done things which we ended up regretting. We have wronged people, we caused them upset. Guilty as charged. But no one can turn back the wheels of time and usually life goes on and people move on do to better and greater things.

But what if suddenly, almost out of the blue 10, 20, 30 years on, an image from the past decides to make a reappearance in our lives with the sole purpose of destroying everything that we have worked for; our family life, our business, our achievements, our good name and our reputation? You see, before the days of the internet, unless we had left behind a forgotten son or daughter we have been, relatively easily, being able to put the past behind us. It would have been almost inconceivable for someone, especially from another country to make a comeback into our lives and systematically destroy us. Now things appear to have changed, quite dramatically with shadows from the past being able to haunt us almost to the grave through the latest technology, with a click of a button.

Frank Backerfield (not his real name), a successful English entrepreneur who is very famous in the entertainment industry, has recently discovered that an image from the past has made a nasty reappearance with the sole purpose of completely destroying him. You see, when Frank was a bit younger, he used to be, let's say, something of a playboy. He used to travel around the world, telling lots of rich women that he loved them when actually he just wanted to spend some good time with them. Apparently he left a number of broken hearts on the side of expensive hotels, expecting them to foot the bills and forget about him almost as quickly as they fell in love with him. At the time, neither of the parties involved believed that they would ever meet each other again and to be frank, most of the women that he engaged with, did not have any desire to even hear his name again.

After a number of years of messing around, Frank decided he had enough and that time had arrived for him to go 'straight'. With the little bit of money that he had he started a small night club that he managed to run so well, that within a couple of years it was earning him a fortune. He then moved to open 4 more clubs in and around London until he become an established and very respected figure within the UK entertainment industry. Frank even got married to a lady from Middlesex, Clair, and they both lived in harmony with their 4 children in a lovely country home in a small village in Essex.

But then, one day, Frank received a phone call from a trusted friend, asking him if he happened to know a lady by the name of Laura Park, from Canada. The name did ring a bell but no matter how hard Frank tried to remember where he heard of this name before, he was unable to recollect specific details. The trusted friend then advised Frank to do an internet search of his name. It had been ages since Frank used the internet. Normally his wife, Clair, or one of his assistants would deal with the internet stuff for him because Frank was a very busy man who hated wasting time going online.

So Frank did a search on Google and to his astonishment he discovered that a Laura Park had written several blogs and even published a book (available on Amazon) about 'How My Life Was Changed Following My Short Encounter With The Fraudster Frank Backerfield'.

In her blogs, and in the book that she had self published, Laura Park had described her encounter with Frank some 25 years ago and how she claims he allegedly deceived her to sleep with him and to leave her ex husband and two children, just to be dumped by him within a fortnight. In her internet publications Laura Park has described Frank as a living monster; a person who must not be trusted, as a fraud and as a ruthless conman. She declared very openly her intention to destroy him and her personal commitment to turn everything Frank had ever created into ashes.

Unbeknownst to Frank, Laura Park's campaign had gone on for a number of years. She posted personal videos on YouTube, MSN and other websites which host videos. She created tens of blogs and websites and told her 'story' in every possible forum on the internet.

But it was not until Google had changed its algorithm that her blogs started to appear everywhere on the internet against the search of Frank Backerfield's name.

Initially Frank decided to ignore this campaign and to continue his focus on his business instead, but as the inquisitive telephone calls from friends, family and business associates started to increase and as the pressure from his wife, Clair started to grow, he decided that he needed to do something about this matter. His business started to suffer and he could not stand the thought of him being labelled as fraudster, in front of the whole world.

Well, fixing this was not going to be very easy. This woman clearly set herself on a mission and as it appears, was now devoting her life to destroying him no matter what. She was living outside the jurisdiction of the English Courts and was posting all her lies through websites which were located outside the UK. To add to this, the quantity of the defamatory material was so great and a major clear up was required, which was not going to be easy and would not come cheap.

way to deal with this menace was to take a very systematic approach by starting off the cleaning operation from scratch. As there was very little point in trying to persuade Laura Park to stop her campaign, it was decided to obtain injunctions against the internet service providers who hosted the material which she has posted. Once an injunction was obtained, the next step would be to enforce it across the world by using process servers and local lawyers who would serve the injunction on all the parties involved. This way, one by one the posts would be removed and the hundreds of internet links which point to these posts would become inactive and eventually be removed by the search engines' Spiders. At the same time, a defensive Search Engine Optimisation strategy would ensure that the vacuum which was left by the disabled links was filled with plenty of articles, blogs and information about Frank Backerfield.

From this point onwards, Frank Backerfield's kept an eye on his online reputation to ensure that any new postings by Laura Park about him or his company was being removed, using the injunction which has already been obtained. Frank's reputation could be completely restored within 3-4 months and will never be destroyed again in such a way.

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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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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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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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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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

An internet crime, or cybercrime, refers to any illegal practice that involves the use of a computer or network, or targets a computer or network. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, their key priorities in regards to cybercrimes are: computer intrusion, online predators, piracy, and fraud. Computer intrusion costs individuals and companies billions of dollars every year. By breaking into personal computers, laptops, and networks, hackers can disrupt and sometimes permanently damage vital computer systems. The reasons for computer intrusion vary from the theft of personal information to illegal business practices to terrorism.

Child pornography and online predators are another important focus of the FBI. The Innocent Images National Initiative is part of their Cyber Crimes Program and is dedicated to fighting the spread of child pornography online. It is against federal and state laws to make, own, sell, or distribute any pornographic materials that contain minors. Although each state is different, even the possession of one picture can lead to five years in prison. As one of the fastest growing crimes on the internet, it can be used for a number of purposes. Pedophiles view it, but others use it to prepare children for child prostitution, an act known as child grooming. 18 U.S.C. Chapter 110, Sexual Exploitation and Other Abuse of Children, states that violators can be punished by fifteen years in federal prison.

A crime that has garnered a mass amount of media attention is that of piracy: intellectual property theft. Intellectual property includes: music, books, movies, art, inventions, phrases, designs, and more. Materials that are protected by copyright or trademarks are illegal to copy or distribute without permission. Penalties for piracy vary based on the amount copies or distributed. The FBI has been working on educating the public regarding the seriousness of this crime and the fact that it is theft.

Lastly, another widespread internet crime is fraud. Fraud is a broad category of crimes that involve dishonest acts. When misrepresentation occurs on the internet, it becomes a cybercrime. The most common reason for fraud is monetary gain and can be civil or criminal in nature, depending on the law of the state. The main types of fraud are: identity theft, credit card fraud, bankruptcy fraud, and securities fraud.

If you have been accused of any type of internet crime, it is highly encouraged that you speak with a legal professional as soon as possible. As these crimes can be investigated by government agencies, you need a strong legal representative to be on your side. Time is crucial, so do not wait to get the help you need.

The Miller Law Firm has over twenty years of experience in criminal defense law. With a former assistant state prosecutor on their team, they have the skill and ability to handle even the most complex and serious criminal cases. By speaking to a Sarasota criminal attorney from their team, you could receive the strong legal representation you need to get your case dismissed. From drug crimes to DUI to sex crimes and theft crimes, they have handled hundreds of criminal cases. You deserve professional and high-quality legal defense and they could be able to help you get your life back on track and retain your freedom. To learn more about how they can help you, contact a Sarasota criminal lawyer from their firm. They are available twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, so call today or visit their website at http://www.sarasotacriminaldefenselawfirm.com.

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Laws and regulations are an integral part of modern society, and they have been with us for a very long time, many centuries to be exact, giving us a guide to follow and conventions to respect. Well, the Internet has also become an integral part of modern society, and it's no wonder that many countries all around the world are trying to create Internet or Cyber laws that will govern everything we do online. One of the most important Internet laws is in fact the Internet Copyright Law, and here will be discussed how it works in some detail.

The US Internet Copyright Law
Everything created on the Internet after the date of April 1 1989 is protected under the American Internet Copyright Law. This can in many cases probably be difficult to understand, but the fact is that if you come from the USA, and you have created something and uploaded it on the World Wide Web is the last 20 years or so, this work of your is protected, and it cannot be stolen by anybody. However, this is true only in theory.

The Problems with the Internet Copyright Law
Yes, it is true that you hold all rights to your work as the original author ever since your work has seen the light of the Internet day. Yes, it is also true that you have the right to take action if someone happens to steal your original work from the Web. However, the problem arises when there is more than one country involved in this process. Namely, if you are an American, and your work has been illegally downloaded by a person from let's say Albania, there's probably nothing you'll be able to do about it. The reason for this is the fact that most countries don't have any rules or regulations regarding the Internet, so even though you might know exactly who stole your work, in many cases you will not be able to act on this fact.

Another important issue related to the Internet Copyright Law is the fact that you often cannot know who violated the law, meaning that there are ways to steal your work from the Internet without you knowing who was actually responsible. For example, modern technology can, by tracing IP addresses, tell you where the person who stole your work was, but can never tell you exactly who this person is.

The Internet Copyright Law and Plagiarism
Plagiarism is another interesting subject related to the Internet Copyright Law, as in many cases it cannot be proven. For example, if you have taken a photograph and uploaded it to the Web, and if someone took this photo without crediting you as the original author, then you can make this person remove the photo, or even sue the person. However, if you have written an original article, for instance, and uploaded it on the Internet, you cannot do anything if someone read your article and steals the idea, even though plagiarism is actually defined as using someone else's words, quotes or even ideas as their own.

You can read more Internet Articles at the ISP 1 Internet blog:

http://isp1.us/blog/

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