May 2010

Radio stations have become the latest front in an unrelenting war that is a struggle as much for Somalia's identity as its territory.

Three weeks ago, a hard-line militia, Hezb-i-Islami, ordered stations in Mogadishu to stop playing music, declaring it un-Islamic. Radio Xurmo complied; the Islamists have killed Somali journalists for less cause. The station is located in a sliver of the capital controlled by Somalia's U.S.-backed transitional government. Silencing the music sent a loud message that the government was too weak to face down the Islamists. So the government ordered Radio Xurmo and other stations in its territory to play music -- or shut down. The next day, a Hezb-i-Islami leader called the station's director and warned that if the music did not stop, the militia would bomb the station. "The government cannot protect us," said Mohammed, one of the station's 11 employees. "The Islamists have the ability to kill anyone, anywhere." In Somalia's oral culture, music has shaped society for centuries. Singers crooned about family values, ancient rituals and past empires. Collectively, music helped forge a national identity, if superficially, in a region dominated by clans. And ever since Somalia plunged into anarchy after the central government fell in 1991, its people have relied on music to escape and to preserve their morale.

The privacy legislation proposed by reps Rick Boucher (D-VA) and Cliff Stearns (R-FL) isn't particularly long, and compared to laws in other countries, it's not particularly strict. But it does provide a decent privacy baseline in the US, providing limited protection for "covered information" and much tougher protection for "sensitive information." The bill makes a key distinction between the two kinds of data: covered information collection is "opt-out," while sensitive information collection would become "opt-in" only.

According to the bill, covered information includes:

• The first name or initial and last name
• A postal address
• A telephone or fax number
• An e-mail address
• Unique biometric data, including a fingerprint or retina scan
• A Social Security number, tax identification number, passport number, driver's license number, or any other government-issued identification number
• A financial account number, or credit or debit card number, and any required security code, access code, or password that is necessary to permit access to an individual's financial account
• Any unique persistent identifier, such as a customer number, unique pseudonym or user alias, Internet Protocol address, or other unique identifier, where such identifier is used to collect, store, or identify information about a specific individual or a computer

Companies and websites that disclose their data collection practices can harvest this data on the assumption that, by using the site, one has agreed to such collection. But they are required to provide an opt-out option that would stop all such data collection and prevent the company from using even previously acquired data.

Sensitive information can't even be collected and stored in the first place without an explicit opt-in assent. The bill defines sensitive information as:

• Medical records, including medical history, mental or physical condition, or medical treatment or diagnosis by a health care professional
• Race or ethnicity
• Religious beliefs
• Sexual orientation
• Financial records and other financial information associated with a financial account, including balances and other financial information
• Precise geolocation information

When it comes to that last one, the bill states that "a user's express opt-in consent to an application provider that relies on a platform offered by a commercial mobile service provider shall satisfy the requirements of this subsection."

Aggregate and anonymous information can be collected without any privacy policy at all.

The Federal Communications Commission has asked the Federal-State Joint Board on Universal Service to review the Commission's eligibility, verification, and outreach rules for the Lifeline and Link Up universal service programs, which currently provide discounts on telephone service for low-income customers.

Specifically, any changes to these aspects of the Lifeline and Link Up programs that may be necessary, given significant technological and marketplace changes since the current rules were adopted, based on consideration of:

1) the combination of federal and state rules that govern which customers are eligible to receive discounts through the Lifeline and Link Up programs;

2) best practices among states for effective and efficient verification of customer eligibility, both at initial customer sign-up and periodically thereafter;

3) appropriateness of various outreach and enrollment programs; and

4) the potential expansion of the low-income program to broadband, as recommended in the National Broadband Plan.

The FCC requests that the Joint Board complete the review and make recommendations to the FCC within six months.

Chairman Robert Clayton, III of the Missouri Public Service Commission, and Chairman Carlito Caliboso of the Hawaii Public Utilities Commission have been added to the Federal-State Joint Conference on Advanced Services.

The Joint Conference was convened in 1999 as part of the FCC's efforts to ensure that advanced services are deployed as rapidly as possible to all Americans and it serves as a forum for an ongoing dialogue among the FCC, state regulators, and local and regional entities regarding the deployment of advanced telecommunications capabilities. The Joint Conference is comprised of representatives from state public utility commissions and from the Federal Communications Commission.