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Phone companies and state attorneys general join forces to fight robocalls
US consumers receive as many as 350,000 unwanted calls every three minutes, according to the FCC. Despite multiple efforts to end the onslaught, an estimated 4.7 billion robocalls hit American phones in July alone. Now, attorneys general from all 50 states and the District of Columbia are teaming up with 12 carriers in a united effort to prevent and block the spam calls.
Here’s how AG Barr is going to get encryption 'backdoors'
If you heard the reverberation of a few thousand heads exploding last week, it was the sound of information security professionals reacting to US Attorney General Barr saying that Big Tech "can and must" put backdoors into encryption. In his speech for a cybersecurity conference at Fordham University, Barr warned tech companies that time was running out for them to develop ways for the government to break encryption. FBI Director Christopher Wray agreed with him.
Charter will expand broadband network so it can stay in New York
Charter Communications has agreed to a settlement with the New York's Department of Public Service that will allow the internet service provider to continue operating within the state. As a part of the agreement, Charter will have to kick back $12 million to New York, which will be used to expand broadband services to underserved areas. Charter will also have to expand its high-speed broadband service to 145,000 residences and businesses in upstate New York by September 30, 2021.
UK Facebook and Twitter users warned over sharing court case information
In an effort to ensure UK courts can conduct fair trials, the UK Attorney General's Office (AGO) will soon start advising Facebook and Twitter users about the dangers of commenting on legal cases. In a world of super-injunctions and tweeted court cases, users have often shared sensitive legal information, believing they are entitled to free speech online. However, Facebook and Twitter posts are subject to the same laws that apply to newspapers and TV media, meaning a status update or a tweet about a case or defendant could go viral, potentially influencing a jury or revealing the names of victims. By publishing guidance, the UK Attorney General will "help stop people from inadvertently breaking the law," reducing the chances of prosecution for contempt and possible imprisonment. Advisories will be delivered via the @AGO_UK Twitter feed and website, giving those who commit contempt of court less wriggle room if they choose to plead ignorance.
Over 2,100 sex offenders discovered and banned from online games
New York Attorney General Eric T. Schniderman says that five gaming companies, including NCSoft and THQ, have agreed to purge the accounts of over 2100 registered sex offenders from their services. Earlier this year, over 3500 accounts were purged from major online game services run by Microsoft, Apple, Blizzard, EA, and others, and this latest drive adds more to that total (including some from Sony, which agreed to the initial purge but wasn't able to remove the accounts until now).The goal here is to keep registered sex offenders (who are required by law to register their email addresses, screen names, and other online information) away from children who might be playing on these platforms, and prevent them from contacting potential prey anonymously. Operation: Game Over, as this drive is being called, is the first instance of using this registration information to keep predators off of gaming networks. Hopefully, says Schniderman, it will help "block sex offenders from using gaming systems as a vehicle to prey on underage victims."
Operation: Game Over bans sex offenders from online games in New York
The New York State attorney general has announced a widespread, sweeping purge of sex offenders from online games, Forbes reports. Working with companies such as Microsoft, Disney, and Blizzard, New York State, which requires sex offenders to register their emails, is using those emails to remove accounts and ban players from services. Going by the name Operation: Game Over, the effort has already banned more than 3,700 accounts from a variety of online games and web spaces. Eric Schniderman, New York's attorney general, was happy with the cooperation from these big companies and online portals. As virtual worlds grow and more and more people enter online games, keeping tabs on children and predators is an increasingly worrisome topic. By using the existing sex offenders registry, the state can start with whatever information it already has as it moves to expand the program. Read the full story on Forbes.
Report: Sony subpoenaed by New York Attorney General
According to a report published by Bloomberg, an anonymous source have revealed the latest entity to whom Sony Corp. must answer regarding last month's PlayStation Network security breach: New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman. The source says Schneiderman has subpoenaed Sony to gather information about the breach, specifically regarding Sony's six-day delay in telling PSN users about the exposure. The reported request sounds a heck of a lot like the inquiry filed by the United States House of Representatives Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade, which a Sony representative has already responded to. We suggest they save time with a quick copy/paste, and then get back to making it so we can play Portal 2 online again. Papa's got an itch for science.
South Australian Attorney General wants to remove MA15+ games rating
Australia's Standing Committee of Attorneys-General are in the process of actively discussing the implementation of a (long overdue) R18+ rating for games in the territory, following the approval of said rating by the nation's federal cabinet earlier this month. However, South Australian AG John Rau recently introduced a thought-provoking idea to the committee: Should the R18+ rating be adopted, Rau believes that the MA15+ rating currently used by the Australian Classification Board should be removed altogether. Rau, who replaced longtime anti-R18+ advocate Michael Atkinson earlier this year, explained to Gamespot, "My reason for wanting to get rid of MA15+ if an R18+ is passed is that it will provide a crisper delineation between adults-only games and games that are for children." He later added, "if MA15+ comes out of the mix altogether, I think parents will have a clearer idea what games are for children, and what games are for adults." Should the MA15+ rating be repealed, the next-lowest rating used by the ACB would be M, which the board applies to games which "contain material that requires a mature perspective, but is still not enough to be deemed too strong for younger viewers." There's no age restriction applied to these games at Australian retailers, making it roughly equivalent to the Teen classification used by the ESRB. Rau's got a compelling argument, here -- but it won't make much of a difference if the Committee fails to approve the R18+ rating in the first place. C'mon, guys! We believe in you!
Australian federal cabinet approves R18+ games rating, passing along to AGs
Australian gamers who are also grown-ass adults are now one huge step closer to getting their hands on mature games currently deemed too perverse to be released in their homeland. Australia's federal cabinet recently approved the R18+ rating for video games which has eluded the country for many years, resulting in the outright banning of games like Aliens vs. Predator or the censoring of titles like Left 4 Dead 2. Members of the cabinet explained to News.com.au that the new rating was actually created in response to the too-mature games that slipped under the MA15+ rating, exposing 15-year-olds to content that they really need three extra years under their belt to digest. Whatever the reason, we certainly hope the long-overdue measure will be approved by the nation's Attorneys General when the delegates meet later this week. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]
California AG and developers sound off over bill facing Supreme Court
In a statement released by the International Game Developer's Association recently, the group called California's controversial game bill "oppressive censorship, singling out one form of expression based only on popular myth and biased research." The response came just days after the US Supreme Court decided to allow California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's appeal to review the bill on a federal scale, though it's been ruled unconstitutional multiple times in his state (not to mention the similar bills in other states that have also been shot down repeatedly). We reached out to the California Attorney General's office to find out why it's pursuing a bill that's been plagued by overrulings, and were told, "All of those courts held that it is up to the US Supreme Court to decide whether extremely violent material can be treated the same as sexually explicit material under the First Amendment when it comes to minors. This means that we had to ask the Supreme Court to extend the law, something the lower courts were not willing to do." We further pressed for why it's targeting video games over films, television, and other entertainment mediums. A representative responded, "There is a growing body of social science that has identified violent video games as being especially harmful to children given the interactive nature of video games, and the FTC conducted investigations that showed it was easier for minors to buy Mature-rated video games than it was to get into R-rated movies." However, the IGDA's statement contends "Violence is conveyed in explicit ways on television, in print media, via the Internet, and in film. All of these platforms constitute speech protected by the First Amendment of the United States Constitution." The piece also states the association's position that it remains staunchly against "censorship of expressive media in all forms" but points out that it's especially against politicians using that censorship "for political gain." The appeal could see its first hearing as early as this October, when the Supreme Court begins its next term. [Via GamePolitics]
Retailer-backed pro-R18+ petition draws over 72K signatures in Australia
[Destructoid] Though new South Australian Attorney General John Rau seems to be straddling the fence on the prospect of introducing an R18+ rating for mature games in the land down under, a large force of gamers are attempting to pull him over to their side. A petition started by electronics retailer GAME six weeks ago has garnered over 72,000 signatures in support of the new rating, which would ostensibly reduce the number of games that are censored or outright banned in the region. EB Games and special interest group Grow Up Australia have started a similar petition, gathering over 46,000 signatures for the cause. GAME plans to bring its petition before the Standing Committee of Attorneys-General meeting on May 7, though it's not certain that the R18+ issue will be on the agenda. If it is, however, the petition will be difficult to ignore -- according to GamePolitics' calculations, it's well on its way to becoming the largest petition in the nation's history.
New Australian AG backpedals on R+18 rating
Remember those fuzzy, triumphant feelings we felt when new South Australian Attorney General John Rau supposedly voiced his unswerving support for adopting an R18+ rating for violent video games in the region? Yeah, those feelings have officially been depleted -- in a recent interview with GameSpot, Rau stated that he "can neither support nor wisely argue against a position if I am not aware of the relevant factors." No, it's not like Rau's adopted the staunch anti-violent game stance of his predecessor, controversial AG Michael Atkinson. However, considering Gamers4Croydon president Chris Prior said Rau's stance on the issue was that it would be "just common sense to introduce" the mature rating to the territory, his actual, noncommittal stance is a little disappointing. We're not sure our delicate emotions can take much more of this back-and-forth. [Via GamePolitics]
Replacement Australian attorney general open to R18+
It was a happy day for many gamers when Australian attorney general Michael Atkinson stepped down. As the biggest hurdle in pursuit of a R18+ rating in the country, he obviously wasn't very popular with gamers sick and tired of playing edited titles or, more importantly, not being able to play at all. His successor, John Rau, is apparently more hip to the cause. Gamers4Croydon party president Chris Prior, who recently met with Rau, told news.com.au that Rau called the current lack of a R18+ rating "absurd." He further added that Rau said "it was really just common sense to introduce it, considering the vast majority of adult content is already available under the MA15+ classification." If that doesn't fill our brethren down under with the warm fuzzies, we don't know what will. [Via Kotaku]
Australian mature game detractor Michael Atkinson stepping down
South Austrailian Attorney General Michael Atkinson, the gentleman almost single-handedly responsible for preventing the nation from adopting an R18+ rating for games, is stepping down from the front bench. The controversial figure will remain on the Australian parliament until the 2014 elections, but is stepping down from his position to bring in some fresh blood from the Labor party. "I think there are talented people on the Labor backbench who deserve a go," Atkinson explained. There's no telling whether the new A.G. will share Atkinson's position on the outright banning of mature games, but judging by the cornucopia of tips we received from overjoyed Aussies last night, there's plenty of room for hope.
Aussie ratings board to discuss an R 18+ rating at April meeting
A meeting in April might bring an end to the Australian video game bans that many gamers there believe to be overly repressive. Local Aussie website Adelaide Now says that the Australian National Classification Scheme could finally take a look at the ratings issue when it meets in April of this year. One widely-supported solution would be to establish an R 18+ classification for games over there -- currently, any games that don't match up to the MA 15+ rating are automatically banned, which leads to story after story of games that are rated for 18+ instead smashed with the banhammer down under. The one spoiler is South Australian Attorney General Michael Atkinson, who not only opposes the R 18+ rating, but hasn't gotten a very good impression of angry Australian gamers. He'll be at the meeting in April and will have veto power on any measures proposed, so unless he has a change of mind (or gamers who are organizing politically against Atkinson can oust him in an upcoming March election), the meeting in April could end in the same old disappointments for Australian gamers. [Via GamePolitics]
Australian Attorney General offers insight into Aliens vs. Predator classification refusal
We've heard from Australian Attorney General Michael Atkinson in the past on why he thinks certain games shouldn't be available to Australian consumers. And when he was asked recently by ABC why the upcoming Aliens vs. Predator was refused classification in his country (read: banned), he echoed previous sentiments on the interactivity of games having a stronger affect on people than other mediums. "I accept that 98 percent, 99 percent of gamers will tell the difference between fantasy and reality, but the 1 to 2 percent could go on to be motivated by these games to commit horrible acts of violence," Atkinson said. When the subject of AvP comes up, though, Atkinson put on his game reviewer cap and offered, "You don't need to be playing a game in which you impale, decapitate and dismember people." So, what're you thinking, Mr. Atkinson -- 5.0/10 maybe? 4.7/10? We're all ears. [Via GamesIndustry.biz]
Australian AG: MMOs like WoW must be classified
The good folks over at the OC (don't call it that) Register's Blizzard blog have gotten some more information about that recent flap with many MMOs being unrated and thus legally unable to be sold there. They talked to Daniel Gleeson of the Australian Attorney General's department, and he said that yes, the MMO games like World of Warcraft will have to be rated to be sold in the country. But he also reiterated what we'd heard a little while after Massively posted their story: that games were still being sold on store shelves, regardless of the actual legal tangles.The Blizzard Blog also spoke with the IEAA, the classification board down there for games, and they were told the same thing that Massively was: while the board thought that MMOs did not require a rating, it has since become clear that they do. The difference, says the AG guy, is that the IEAA believed that "games" like WoW were actually services, not games, and thus didn't fall into the classification system.But now it's clear to everyone that they do, so we'll expect to see the IEAA pass out a rating for World of Warcraft and the other MMOs on sale down there, and then this will all be over. It's interesting to note that ratings may be a very cultural thing -- here in America, ratings are pretty strictly issued by the ESRB, partially because the videogame industry is worried about governement intervention in the system (if the industry can't police themselves, angry parents may ask the government to step in). But in Australia, the government obviously seems largely unconcerned about the ratings. Then again, Aussies aren't completely laid back about everything having to do with MMOs.
