House Passes Anti-Spyware Bill
It emerged this week that the US House of Representatives has passed the Spy
Act, which aims to prevent firms from covertly installing spyware on the computers
of internet users. Under the terms of the legislation, which passed 399-1, taking control of a
computer from an external source, changing an internet user's homepage, or disabling
anti-virus software will be prohbited. The Act also creates a complex set of rules relating to software which transmits
any information across the internet, and will allow the Federal Trade Commission
to levy fines of up to $3 million for repeat offenders. Responding to arguments from the online business sector that the language of
the legislation was so broad that it could prevent the use of legitimate software
applications, the Energy and Commerce Committee amended the Spy Act on Monday,
prior to the vote. Similar accusations have been levelled at a version of the
bill pending in the Senate. .
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