Authors


Adrian, Angela (Scotland, USA): No One Knows You Are A Dog: Identity and Reputation in Virtual Worlds

Al-Fedaghi, Sabah S. (Kuwait): Wresting Informational Privacy from Free Speech

Alramahi, Mohammad (UK): Internet Domain Names Interrelationship with other legal rights; Israeli and Palestinian perspectives

Chen, Jinjin and Raojuan, Li (China): Patent in Genetic Technology

Custers, Bart (Netherlands): Tapping and Data Retention in Ultrafast Communication Networks

Dayarathna, Rasika (Sweden, Sri-Lanka) and Yngström, Louise (Sweden): A methodology for bridging the gap between Lawyers and Technologist

No One Knows You Are A Dog: Identity and Reputation in Virtual Worlds by Angela Adrian, Robert Gordon University.
Angela Adrian, (BBA , Schiller, London; MIM , Schiller, London, Juris Doctorate , Loyola, Louisiana); LL.M. , Aberdeen; Attorney, State of Louisiana, U.S. District Court for Louisiana ; Solicitor, England and Wales ) is a lecturer in the Department of Law, Aberdeen Business School, Robert Gordon University. She is also the General Editor of the Journal of International Trade Law and Policy which is a forum for current issues in all aspects of international trade.
Abstract
“Virtual world” identities are becoming indistinguishable from “real” identities, just as “e-commerce” became indistinguishable from “commerce.” Control over online avatar identities has begun to have many real-world consequences.  We can use the graphical, networked screen to create vibrant, visual representations of personal identity (i.e., the avatar) separate from and independent of our offline characteristics while simultaneously creating context-specific reputations in online communities separate from and independent of our social identity in real space.

Wresting Informational Privacy from Free Speech by Sabah Al-Fedaghi, Kuwait University.


Sabah Al-Fedaghi is Associate Professor in the Computer Engineering Department, Kuwait University. He holds MS and Ph.D. degrees in Computer Science (Database Systems) from Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois and a B.S. in Computer Science from Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona. He has published articles in journals and conferences on topics in database systems, natural language processing, information systems, information privacy, information security, and information ethics.
Abstract
This paper deals with the issue of conflict between privacy rights and the rights to freedom of speech. Courts have upheld the freedom of speech to the detriment of the privacy interest. Even when the information is false, courts have been loathe to allow restrictions on the collection and dissemination of personal information. To establish a stronger case for privacy, we concentrate on a special type of privacy: personal information privacy. Two aspects are crystallized in order to focus this privacy/free speech confrontation. First, personal information is defined as processable information that refers to uniquely identifiable persons. This would exclude personal information embedded into raw data such as casual oral gossiping. Second, acting on personal information is limited to the initial phase of the personal information flow model. This model includes four phases: the creation, gathering, processing, and disclosing of personal information. We use these notions as foundation for our thesis: restrictions on the creation of personal information are necessary for free speech.

Internet Domain Names Interrelationship with other legal rights; Israeli and Palestinian perspectives by Mohammad Alramahi, The Robert Gordon University.
Mohammad Alramahi, LLB Honors (Mut’ah), LLM in IT &T Law (Strath), PhD (Manchester), is a Lecturer in Information Technology and Telecommunications law at the Department of Law, Aberdeen Business School, The Robert Gordon University.
Abstract
Rights over domain names arise from the contract that governs the relationship of the domain name registrant with the registrar (the entity that undertakes domain names registration on the Internet). Additionally, rights may also be established under Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) created and governed by statute concerned. This paper provides a comparative analysis of the domain names protection in the field of intellectual property law. Focus is centred upon the study of the Israeli and Palestinian law. The purpose of this study is to find out similarities and differences between the two legally recognised rights in a case of infringement and simultaneously between those two rights in the Israeli and Palestinian jurisdictions. In order to achieve such purpose domain name legal status and dispute treatment will be underlined. A comparison of the instrument and means of protection will be follows. The research will deal with various aspects of infringement paying particular attention to the problems of the adequacy of trademarks law to Internet domain names and the difficulties encountered in both jurisdictions.

Patent in Genetic Technology by Jinjin Chen and Li Raojuan, Xi'an Jiaotong University.
Jinjin Chen (LLB , Xi'an Jiaotong University) is a researcher and postgraduate student in Economic Law. Her main area of research is information security law.
Abstract
Genetic technology, as a newly-emerging technology, has brought profound impacts on the world. The achievement of genetic technology necessitates legal protection. Patent law protection will greatly promote science and genetic economy development. However, patent law protection also raises numerous questions and disputes. Starting from the conception of gene, this paper analyses the gene sequence, the new transgenosis varieties of the animals and plants and the gene methods. The paper then provides an overview of the Chinese legal system on the protection of genetic technology, and puts forward suggestions to fill the gap in the lacuna created by the absence of specific relevant laws in China.

Better a Sword than a Shield: The Case for Statutory Fair Dealing/Use Right as Opposed to a Defence in the Light of the Disenfranchising Effect of Digital Rights Management and Anti-Circumvention Laws by Warren Chik, Singapore Management University.















Warren Chik ( LL.M. International Business Law, University College London (Merit); LL.M. International & Comparative Law, Tulane University (Distinction); LL.B., National University of Singapore (Second Upper Honours ) is an Assistant Professor at the Singapore Management University. He is a member of the Law Reform Committee of the Singapore Academy of Law, and the Executive Director of the International Law Society of Singapore. Warrek was the Deputy Public Prosecutor, Attorney-General’s Chambers, from 1996 to 1998 and the State Counsel (International Affairs), Attorney-General’s Chambers from 1998 to 2003 . He is a recipient of various awards and scholarships such as the following: International Law Commission Scholarship, International Law Commission, United Nations, Genève, Switzerland, 1999; British FCO (Chevening) Scholarship, Foreign & Commonwealth Office, United Kingdom, 2003; Certificate of Distinction in International Commercial Arbitration, World Arbitration and Mediation Report, Juris Publishing, Inc. & Tulane Law School, 2000 ; CALI Excellence for the Future Award in International Commercial Arbitration, National CALI Institute & Tulane Law School, 2000; and the CALI Excellence for the Future Award in Transnational Commercial Litigation, National CALI Institute & Tulane Law School, 2000
Abstract
The use and abuse of technology and the relatively late entry into the scene of technology producers have thrown a spanner in the works gone into the constant recalibration of the rights of copyright holders on the one hand and the interests of individuals (not just consumers) on the other. Although some forms of technology, in particular peer-to-peer technology have empowered the exchange and re-use of works, other forms have emerged to constrain access and use of works, such as Digital Rights Management (DRM). Although self-help remedies have emerged for all parties concerned to promote their interests, often at the expense of the other, the law has remained the primary instrument of copyright regulation and in some senses an arbiter. However, inevitably politics and economics have skewed the quest for legislative equilibrium. Copyright law is a blunt instrument and has so far merely produced recent changes that are largely in favour of copyright holders. The problem lies not only in the existence of such laws but in their construction particularly where they relate to technology. It appears that the draftsmen of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), which have spawned replicates worldwide, have failed to produce laws relating to the use of DRM technology that are not broad-based but more purpose specific, unlike the tenuous but arguably yet more successful trend of maintaining balance in the use of P2P technology in the United States Supreme Court. In particular, the general and wide double protection offered by DRM and Anti-Circumvention Laws (ACL) have produced a widely acknowledged problem, namely the inadvertent (or otherwise) displacement of the US fair use exemption by preemptive preclusion. This has greater practical and policy concerns especially in jurisdictions that retain narrow purpose specific fair dealing exceptions to infringement. This is not merely an academic problem but it clearly shows the power of money politics and the disillusionment and disenfranchisement of the proletariat, who are users as well as creators in their own right, often through re-use.This paper will seek to endorse a significant reinvention and realignment of the status of the fair dealing/use carve-out through the simple powerful elevation of the exception to the status of a legal right, with all the benefits that it entails. This is not merely an exercise in semantics and the simple change in legal status of fair dealing/use will go very far in readjusting the scale and perhaps some way in offsetting the imbalances caused by the combined prohibitive effect of DRM/ACL on individual creative re-use and other fair uses. In the meantime, the existing general but unrefined DRM and ACL provisions themselves will also be critically examined and amendments suggested to temper the unfettered power to create and use Technical Protection Measures that have led to abuses such as the infamous Sony BMG CD Copy Protection scandal in 2005.
Abstract
The cyber world is an extension of the real world. It is another dimension where we can work, study and play. But people also tend to lose their inhibitions on the Internet, often while keeping their anonymity. Because of the perceived and real freedoms in the digital environment, people are emboldened to act in ways that they may not normally do in the real world. One recent phenomenon that is steadily becoming a problem in every country with a high level of electronic connectivity is the act of cyberstalking. The electronic medium is significant due to its very nature such as low cost and ease of use, potential anonymity and stealth as well as the insignificance of physical distance to the act of stalking. Hence, cyberspace affords lesser impediments to aggressive behaviour. The borderless nature of electronic communications medium, concomitant jurisdictional concerns and the unique challenges posed to computer forensics such as the collection of evidence and investigations also arise as relevant issues in this context. Cyberstalking has become a concern that has translated into law in larger jurisdictions such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Japan and even in a small country like Singapore. Existing laws relating to harassment or intimidation are fact- or relationship- specific and are inadequate to meet the needs of modern society, while nascent cyberstalking laws are substantively disparate. I will analyse and compare the cyberstalking laws of several key jurisdictions to determine the common elements and treatment and to come up with a proposed statutory solution that will take into consideration the different rights and interests of members of society in the use of digital media for social interaction. I will also briefly consider the issues of prescriptive, adjudicatory and enforcement jurisdiction in support of greater international cooperation to deal with the problem through the harmonisation of substantive laws, the coordination in procedural investigative measures and complementary recognition and enforcement laws.

Tapping and Data Retention in Ultrafast Communication Networks by Bart Custers, Tilburg University.


Bart Custers PhD MSc is senior consultant at Capgemini Netherlands and research fellow at Tilburg University. He has broad experience in the fields of privacy and risk profiling. In 2004 he received his PhD at Tilburg University for his thesis The Power of Knowledge, on the effects of data mining and risk profiling in medical data. Next to medical applications, his work also focuses on profiling in criminality, fraud and terrorism. He regularly gives lectures on these topics and writes in both scientific journals and Dutch newspapers. As a consultant he advised, among others, ABN AMRO Bank, the Dutch Police, the Dutch customs and the Ministry of Justice.
Abstract
In their fight against crime and terrorism, many governments are gathering communication data in order to gain insight into methods and activities of suspects and potential suspects. Wiretapping has been used for a long time and nowadays most countries are extending this to data retention, i.e., large-scale storage of various kinds of data available on communications. At the same time, however, efforts are being made in the field of technology to develop a new generation of communication networks, based on ultrafast optical and wireless communication. This is likely to result in a significant increase in the speed and volume of information transfer on communication networks such as the Internet. These increasing amounts of information require increasing storage and analysis capacity, for which automated solutions are being developed. In this contribution, the way in which these technological developments influence the possibilities of wiretapping and data retention is discussed and some suggestions are made on how to deal with this.

A methodology for bridging the gap between Lawyers and Technologist by Rasika Dayarathna and Louise Yngström. Stockholm University.




Rasika Dayarathna is a PhD candidate at the Department of System Science (DSV), Stockholm University/ Royal Institute of Technology in Sweden. He graduated from the University of Colombo in Sri Lanka in the field of Computer Science. After graduating, he entered the Law College of Sri Lanka for his legal studies. In 2003, he joined the University of Colombo School of Computing as a lecturer. He was awarded a SIDA/SAREC scholarship for his PhD studies in 2004. He enrolled as an Attorney-at- Law of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka in 2006. He is a member of Sri Lanka Bar Association. He has published several papers on information security, information privacy, electronic payment system for developing countries and community laws.
Abstract
Though Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has made life more comfortable, it has also increased the threats to privacy by making processing and storing of personal information more convenient and economical. Therefore, a huge demand has been created for the proper handling of personal information. Broadly speaking, information privacy protection measures can be divided into legal and technological measures. However, it has been shown that there is a gap between the technological and legal measures used to protect information privacy. This gap demands a common platform where both technologist and legal privacy advocates can engage in a healthy dialogue.This paper presents a methodology for building a platform which bridges the gap between technologists and legal privacy advocates. This platform facilitates both the parties to have a fruitful dialog. This study is an intermediate stage of building a framework for comparing information privacy protection measures.