CHAPTER 5: Internet Law, Social Media, and Privacy

Internet Service Provider

A business or organization that offers users access to the Internet and related services.

Typosquatting

A form of cybersquatting that relies on mistakes, such as typographical errors, made by Internet users when inputting information in to a web browser.

Distributed Network

A network that can be used by persons located (distributed) around the country or the globe to share computer files.

Cookie

A small file sent from a Web site and stored in a user's Web browser to track the user's Web browsing activities.

Cyber Tort

A tort committed via the Internet.

Meta Tags

Are key words that give Internet browsers specific information about a Web page.

Spam

Bulk, unsolicited (junk) e-mai

No

Can individuals legally post copyrighted content on their Facebook pages? Why or why not?

Online Defamation

Defamation, calumny, vilification, or traducement is the communication of a false statement that harms the reputation of an individual person, business, product, group, government, religion, or nation.

Yes

Did Boston University violate any laws when it asked Joel to provide his Facebook password? Explain.

Goodwill

In the business context, the valuable reputation of a business viewed as an intangible asset.

The Federal Trade Commission

Is an independent agency of the United States government, established in 1914 by the Federal Trade Commission Act. Its principal mission is the promotion of consumer protection and the elimination and prevention of anticompetitive business practices, such as coercive monopoly.

Trademark Dilution

Occurs when a trademark is used, without authorization, in a way that diminishes the distinctive quality of the mark. Unlike trademark infringement, a claim of dilution does not require proof that consumers are likely to be confused by a connection between the unauthorized use and the mark. For this reason, the products involved need not be similar, as the following Spotlight Case illustrates.

Reasonable Expectation of Privacy

People clearly have a reasonable expectation of privacy when they enter their personal bank- ing or credit-card information online. They also have a reasonable expectation that online companies will follow their own privacy policies. But it is probably not reasonable to expect privacy in statements made on Twitter—or photos posted on Twitter, Flickr, or Instagram, for that matter.

Stored Communications Act

Prohibits intentional and unauthorized access to stored electronic communications and sets forth criminal and civil sanctions for violators.

The Electronic Communications Privacy Act

Prohibits the intentional interception of any wire, oral, or electronic communication. It also prohibits the intentional disclosure or use of the information obtained by the interception.

Licensing

Recall that a company may permit another party to use a trademark (or other intellectual property) under a

The Right to Be Forgotten

Search engine no longer access those old court records, or irrelevant information.

Cybersquatting

The act of registering a domain name that is the same as, or confusingly similar to, the trademark of another and then offering to sell that domain name back to the trademark owner.

Cloud Computing

The delivery to users of on-demand services from third-party servers over a network.

Domain Name

The series of letters and symbols used to identify a site operator on the Internet; an Internet "address."

Peer-to-Peer Networking

The sharing of resources (such as files, hard drives, and processing styles) among multiple computers without the requirement of a central network server.

Digital Millennium Copyright Act

United States copyright law that implements two 1996 treaties of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).

Yes, copyright infringement

Was Gibb's use of portions of copyrighted songs in his own music illegal? Explain.

Copyright Infringement

What laws, if any, did Gibb violate by downloading the music and videos from the Internet?

The Communications Decency Act

Who states that "[n]o provider or user of an interactive computer service shall be treated as the publisher or speaker of any information provided by another information content provider."