Posted by: Michael Disabato
I’ve been following the progress (such as is visible) of an anti-counterfeiting trade agreement (ACTA) designed to combat the problem of counterfeit products ranging from designer clothes to downloadable music. Countries including the U.S., Japan, Canada, South Korea and Australia, and the European Union trading block, have been negotiating in secret, and it now appears the treaty is nearly ready to sign. There is only one problem with this treaty. It has been done in secret with no input from Congress or those whom it will affect.
Leaks from the talks indicate that Customs and Border Protection (CBP) personnel will be given the authority to seize laptops, iPods, and digital storage devices whenever they feel like it to look for illegal music and videos. I see several problems with this:
1 - Seizure without a warrant violates the Constitution’s protections spelled out in the Fourth Amendment.
2 - There is no way to tell which files were legitimately placed on your machine from those illegally downloaded.
3 - While searching for music and videos, there is nothing to keep CBP agents from grabbing your Quicken files or other personal and business data.
4 - This treaty can be approved at an executive level without Senate concurrence.
It’s time we get this discussion out in the open. The Bush and Obama administrations have hidden it behind the National Security veil. Right now, I can’t think of a single reason how counterfeit Rolex’s and illegal MP3s constitute a threat to national security (economic concerns notwithstanding.
This treaty places your employees and your confidential business data at risk. Contact your representatives and get this thing into the open where it can be debated and defanged.
If you think network neutrality discussions were going to be bad, wait until this hits the news.
Michael
Comments