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February 2003 Volume 4, Issue 2
Editors Cherie W. Blackburn Robert W. Pearce, Jr. John C. McElwaine
1-800-237-2000 Nelson Mullins has more
than 275 attorneys firm-wide, with over 25 attorneys having
significant representation of e-commerce clients in areas including
patent, copyright and trademark protection; business planning,
securities and venture capital; and licensing, distribution and
contract preparation. Atlanta Contacts Neil Grayson Cherie
Blackburn Robert
Pearce John
McElwaine Charlotte Contact Jason
Sprenkle Myrtle Beach Contact Franklin
Daniels Columbia Contact Mark Dukes Greenville Contact Marvin
Quattlebaum William
Herlong CyberWatch is an Internet Law Group news digest published as a service to Nelson Mullins’ clients and friends. The articles are summaries of particular developments in the law and are not intended to be a solicitation or to render legal advice. This publication can be considered advertising under applicable laws.
CyberWatch
is a trademark of Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, L.L.P. |
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President Bush Signs Cyber-Warfare Directive President George W. Bush has signed a previously-secret directive that establishes rules on when and how the United States may enter into cyber-warfare against an enemy’s computer networks. Known as the National Security Presidential Directive 16, the order was signed by Bush in July 2002. Although the United States has not yet entered into cyber-warfare according to Pentagon officials, the Pentagon has developed cyber weapons that are designed to shut down an enemy’s radars, disable its electrical facilities and disrupt its phone services. Directive 16 provides rules and guidelines as to who can authorize and conduct this cyber-warfare and what enemy targets will be considered legitimate. source: WashingtonPost.com U. S. Trying E-mail to Persuade Iraqis For the last several weeks, the U. S. military has been sending e-mails to many Iraqi people, including military and government officials, urging them to disobey Saddam Hussein and to assist U. N. inspectors. The e-mails are a new addition to the standard psychological war games conducted by U. S. military teams before and during operations. The dropping of leaflets from airplanes and the broadcasting of information and news from radio sites near an enemy territory have historically been the standard methods of reaching citizens of targeted countries. The recent e-mails, however, may not have been as successful as the United States had hoped in reaching the Iraqi citizens. According to several Iraqis, when the e-mails have been sent, the Iraqi government shuts down Internet access throughout the country and deletes the e-mail messages from e-mail boxes that were considered private. One Iraqi living in Baghdad believes that the e-mails are becoming such a nuisance to Hussein that Iraq will eventually shut down its citizens’ access to the entire Internet infrastructure. source: Wired.com Mr. Johnnie Walker Loses Domain Name Dispute Guinness United Distillers, who make the well-known Johnnie Walker whiskey, have been awarded the domain name “JohnnieWalker.me.uk”. The domain was registered last year in the relatively new “.me.uk” domain space by a Mr. John Walker who claimed to be offering tutorials on developing Web content, Web marketing and search engine submission tips. Mr. Walker claimed that he had been nicknamed “Johnnie” since childhood and therefore should be allowed to use this domain name. Arbitrators, however, found on behalf of Guinness because they decided that Mr. Walker’s registration was “an abusive registration” in that it contained several references to alcoholism and to Alcoholics Anonymous, and showed an apparently intoxicated man walking across the screen. In addition, Mr. Walker had made the mistake of approaching Guinness’ parent company to determine whether the company would like to advertise on his Web site. Mr. Walker was not available for comment. source: demys.net/news Illinois Sues Wal-Mart and Target for Internet Sales Tax Beginning with Wal-Mart and Target, Illinois has started suits against several retailers alleging that they have failed to collect sales tax on items sold through their respective Internet sites. With Illinois facing a budget deficit of between $2.5 billion and $5 billion, the state says it cannot afford to overlook any potential source of revenue. The suit alleges that many companies have tried to avoid collecting sales tax on purchases through their Internet site by creating completely separate divisions. Walmart.com, Inc., for instance, says it has no facilities or property in Illinois, and thus has no obligation to collect state sales tax. Illinois doesn’t buy that argument and says that since the parent company has facilities and property in Illinois, then the sales tax should be collected. The Illinois suit alleges that Wal-Mart uses its stores and advertising within the state to funnel purchasers to its Web site and, since a return policy allows Internet buyers to return their goods to any Wal-Mart store, Illinois argues that there is no difference between the Internet and physical Wal-Mart sales operations. source: suntimes.com |
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