1. Monthly archive
  2. December 2020

December 2020

Chairman Pai at the FCC Quantum Internet Forum

Welcome to the Federal Communications Commission’s first-ever Forum on the Quantum Internet! Quantum networks promise to unleash this power by enabling distributed quantum computing and giving us a level of computational clout far beyond what is possible with today’s Internet. This would be an incredibly powerful tool for solving complex problems and enabling scientific discoveries. When we think about the possible benefits of the Quantum Internet, the first big advancements we are likely to see involve network security.

Europe fit for the Digital Age: European Commission proposes new rules for digital platforms

The European Commission proposed an ambitious reform of the digital space, a comprehensive set of new rules for all digital services, including social media, online market places, and other online platforms that operate in the European Union: the Digital Services Act and the Digital Markets Act. Under the Digital Services Act, binding EU-wide obligations will apply to all digital services that connect consumers to goods, services, or content, including new procedures for faster

Schools Work to Speed Up Internet in Rural Homes for Remote Learning

School districts and cities across the country are racing to bridge a digital divide that has existed for decades. At least 39 states have said they would use funds from the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (Cares) Act to help school districts close the tech gap. The fixes can be fairly simple. School-district and municipal IT departments are using technology that has been around for years, such as solar-powered antennas to transmit Wi-Fi, or wireless broadband, closer to more peoples’ homes.

The Cost Of Broadband Is Too Damned High

How much do consumers pay for internet service in the United States? The question might seem relatively simple, but the answer has stymied the federal government for years—because no agency collects this data. Throughout 2020, my organization, New America’s Open Technology Institute, published the Cost of Connectivity series to crack open the black box of internet pricing.

Scope of Russian Hack Becomes Clear: Multiple US Agencies Were Hit

The scope of a hack engineered by one of Russia’s premier intelligence agencies became clearer when some Trump administration officials acknowledged that other federal agencies — the State Department, the Department of Homeland Security, and parts of the Pentagon — had been compromised. Investigators were struggling to determine the extent to which the military, intelligence community, and nuclear laboratories were affected by the highly sophisticated attack.

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