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NET NEUTRALITY FIGHT TO END?

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The ongoing battle over the FCC’s ‘net neutrality’ rules has been bitter, and has hitherto offered no sign of abating. Several engineers at Stanford University, however, claim to have found a way out of the impasse. We don’t have to fight over this, they say. A technical fix is at hand.

The Stanford engineers say they have pioneered a technique that would enable  internet users to tell ISPs and online publishers when or if they want ‘preferential delivery’ for some data. (An ISP is an internet service provider.)

‘Net neutrality’ means ISPs must treat all data equally. They won’t be allowed to favor some content, nor to block or throttle other content.

The political battle over such net regulations has been loud and ferocious.

Professor Nick McKeown, Associate Professor Sachin Katti, and PhD Yiannia Yiakoumis say their new method, ‘Network Cookies’, could render the debate moot. An open internet and preferential delivery can coexist. The user decides what content gets favored delivery, while ISP administrators and content sources are unbiased; they throttle or speed data only in response to user preferences.

The Stanford engineering team field-tested the Network Cookies on 161 home networks connected with Google, sending boosted service requests from home routers to the ISP. The Network Cookies got heavy consumer use.

McKeown said, “…They’re simple to use and powerful. They enable you to fast-lane or zero-rate traffic from any application or website you want, not just the few, very popular applications. This is particularly important for smaller content providers– and their users, who can’t afford to establish relationships with ISPs. Second, they’re practical to deploy. They don’t overwhelm the user or bog down user devices and network operators…”

If this is all McKeown’s team says it is, then there may be no need for the Federal Government to weigh in on ‘net neutrality’ at all.

(For the best internet service, you need a reliable connection. Talk to us. We can help.) 

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SOCIAL MEDIA AND PRIVACY

If you spend much time online, your privacy is unsafe unless you take steps to protect it. What may be even more dismaying is that the rules governing online privacy are inconsistent. They inhibit only a few of the worst potential violators, leaving others free to vacuum up as much of your personal data as their technologies allow.

Last week, the Federal Communications Commission unwittingly underscored this inconsistency. Tom Wheeler, the FCC Chairman, announced a proposal for imposing strict new privacy rules on internet service providers.  From the consumer’s point of view, the proposal was a huge step forward, as ISPs would have to protect personal information, report breaches, and obtain consumer consent for personal data collection. Consumers would have to ‘opt in’ to allow collection of personal information. The new regulations would make it more difficult to use consumer data for targeted advertising.

Unfortunately, the new rules would exempt Facebook, Twitter, Google, and other browsers and social media. The American Civil Liberties Union expressed disappointment with the proposed new rules, and other consumer groups gave them only qualified endorsement. Some ISPs panned the proposal. AT&T, for example, called it discriminatory. The telecom giant objected that broadband providers would be held to stricter standards than other online companies.

Since the FCC won’t do much to protect you, you have to protect yourself when using social media. Consider using an ad blocker. Carefully review the privacy policy of any social website you visit.

You need to be vigilant to guard your privacy on any social medium. Some websites change privacy settings frequently, without notifying users. Facebook is especially notorious for this.

If you find that your privacy settings have been changed without your consent, change them back. Then send a complaint to the site administrators. This will not guarantee that the site’s policies will change, but it may help. If enough users complain, administrators may finally pay attention.

Above all else, remain alert. The best safeguard for your privacy is your own common sense.

(For the internet service that meets your needs, talk to us.)