5/11. Rep. Joe Barton (R-TX), the Chairman of the House Commerce Committee, stated at a hearing on consumer data security that the Congress should outlaw the use of social security numbers for non-governmental purposes.

He spoke during the questioning of witnesses at a hearing of the Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade, and Consumer Protection titled "Securing Consumers' Data: Options Following Security Breaches".

Rep. Barton (at right) said that "I would like to outlaw the use of social security numbers for any purposes other than government purposes."

Rep. Cliff Stearns (R-FL), who presided at the hearing, stated that he hopes that the Subcommittee will mark up a bill within thirty days. He focused his comments and questions on a national data breach notification standard, and regulation of data aggregators.

Rep. Barton began his questions at about 12:00 NOON when most members of the Subcommittee were away for a vote on the House floor. He stopped when U.S. Capitol Police ordered an immediate evacuation an airplane breached restricted airspace around Washington DC. Outside the Rayburn House Office Building police gave orders to run to the south. About one hour later, the Subcommittee resumed its hearing, albeit with fewer members, staff, witnesses, reporters, and others in attendance.

Rep. Barton then launched into his attack on the ubiquitous use of social security numbers. Several of the witnesses may have been more discomposed by the Chairman's statements than by the emergency evacuation.

The Subcommittee heard testimony from Jennifer Barrett of Acxiom, Steven Buege of Thomson West, and Oliver Ireland and a colleague, who testified on behalf of Visa USA. Each of these rely upon social security numbers as unique identifiers. Rep. Barton said that many consumers are harmed by identity theft that is facilitated by the widespread use of social security numbers. Barrett protested that Barton's proposal would create huge problems for Acxiom's clients.

The Subcommittee also heard testimony from Daniel Burton of Entrust, which provides security services, and Daniel Solove, a professor at George Washington University Law School and author of The Digital Person: Technology And Privacy In The Information Age.

When industry witnesses advocated the importance of the social security number as a unique identifier of individuals, Rep. Barton responded that "we have had banks a lot longer than we have had the social security system".

"We have to do something", said Rep. Barton. He continued that consumer's "whole financial records, their medical records, all kinds of consumer data is just out there, without their permission. And the social security number ties that all together, and makes it easy for the criminal element. We have had testimony that organized crime is moving into identity theft. I know that there are legitimate business reasons why that is done. But, I think the time has come to tip the balance in favor of the individual privacy, and find another way to help businesses determine the identity of the people they want to give credit to."

Rep. Stearns (at left) stated at the beginning of the hearing that "we must ensure that existing federal law is not leaving open ways for certain entities to skirt the objectives of the primary laws governing this area, including the Fair Credit Reporting Act and Gramm Leach Bliley."

He also stated that "if we determine that existing law is inadequate, we need to get a clearer and more accurate assessment of the scope of the problem across all sectors, assess the current legal tools we have to attack it, and weigh the need for additional regulation and other approaches. Other non-regulatory approaches could include applying good old American technological ingenuity to buttress current consumer data security regulations."

Rep. Stearns also questioned the witnesses regarding possible elements of Congressional legislation, including a national notification of breach standard, federal preemption of state laws, government regulation of data providers, consumers' right to inspect and correct data, and remedies for negligent conduct. The witnesses all agreed that there should be federal preemption. (Professor Solove, a privacy advocate, did not return after the evacuation.) They agreed that there should be a national notification standard, without agreeing on what that standard should be. Witnesses generally dissented, dissembled or remained silent on other possible components of a data security bill.

Rep. Stearns said in closing that "we are hoping, I think, in due time here to get a bill". He added that "I am hoping that we can mark this up, perhaps, in the next thirty days."

Rep. Janice Schakowsky (D-IL) (at right), the ranking Democrat on the Subcommittee, stated at the outset that she wants the Congress to enact "comprehensive legislation". She listed components of possible legislation, including a requirement of consent from consumers for release of their information, consumers' right to access and correct their information, and data security requirements.

During the questioning of witnesses she focused on how to draft a national standard for notifying individuals of data security breaches. For example, she asked, if the rule were to be that notice must be given when there is a "significant risk of harm", how should the Congress define the term "significant risk of harm". She suggested that breaches that result in solicitations, but not identity theft or fraud, should be considered "harm".

She also questioned whether and when notice should be given when a breach by an employee or former employee has occurred. She did not reach a consensus with the witness panel on how to draft a national notification standard.

Daniel Burton of Entrust advocated the merits of encrypting data, and stated that any national notification standard should provide that breaches involving encrypted data should be exempt.

Acxiom is based in Little Rock, Arkansas. Rep. Mike Ross (D-AR) represents many Acxiom employees, and is a member of the Subcommittee. He praised Acxiom at the hearing.

Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA) used his opening statement to promote three bills sponsored by him: HR 1080, the "Information Protection and Security Act", HR 1078, the "Social Security Number Protection Act of 2005", and HR 1653, the "Safeguarding Americans From Exporting Identification Data Act".

Howard Waltzman is the Committee counsel who sat next to the Chairman throughout the hearing. He is Chief Counsel for the Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet.

There have been numerous hearings before various Congressional committees in the past several months. Many of the same witnesses, from the same companies and groups, are making the rounds of several committees, providing often repetitive testimony.

The House Commerce Committee's Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade, and Consumer Protection held its first hearing on this subject on March 15. See, prepared testimony [22 pages in PDF] of Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chairman Deborah Majoras, prepared testimony [13 pages in PDF] of Kurt Sanford (LexisNexis), prepared testimony [10 pages in PDF] of Derek Smith (ChoicePoint), prepared testimony [11 pages in PDF] of Joseph Ansanelli (Vontu, a data security company), and prepared testimony [14 pages in PDF] of Marc Rotenberg (Electronic Privacy Information Center).

On Tuesday, May 10, the Senate Commerce Committee held a hearing titled "Identity Theft/Data Broker Services". See, statements of Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK), opening statement of Sen. Daniel Inouye (D-HI), prepared testimony of Kurt Sanford (LexisNexis), prepared testimony of Douglas Curling (ChoicePoint), prepared testimony of Jennifer Barrett (Acxiom), prepared testimony of Paul Kurtz (Cyber Security Industry Alliance), prepared testimony of Marc Rotenberg (EPIC), and prepared testimony of Mari Frank (author of Safeguard Your Identity: Protect Yourself with a Personal Privacy Audit and From Victim To Victor: A Step By Step Guide For Ending the Nightmare of Identity Theft).

On Wednesday, May 4, the House Financial Services Committee (HFSC) held a hearing titled "Assessing Data Security: Preventing Breaches and Protecting Sensitive Information". See, opening statement of Rep. Michael Oxley (R-OH), opening statement of Rep. Michael Castle (R-DE), opening statement of Rep. Paul Gillmor (R-OH), opening statement of Rep. Rubčn Hinojosa (D-TX), prepared testimony of Barbara Desoer (Bank of America), prepared testimony of Eugene Foley (P/CEO of Harvard University Employees Credit Union), prepared testimony of Don McGuffey  (ChoicePoint), prepared testimony of Kurt Sanford (LexisNexis), prepared testimony of Bestor Ward (Safe Archives-Safe Shredding).

The HFSC's Subcommittee on Financial Institutions will hold a hearing titled "Enhancing Data Security: The Regulators' Perspective" at 10:00 AM on May 18.

5/11. Gary Shapiro, P/CEO of the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), wrote a letter to Rep. Joe Barton (R-TX), the Chairman of the House Commerce Committee, regarding a transition from analog television to digital television (DTV).

Shapiro, who wants a hard date for the cut off of analog transmission, said that the transition to DTV "will have little practical impact on the viewing habits of the vast majority of Americans. As 87% of American homes do not rely on over the air signals for broadcast content, the impact and even the need for televisions with tuners is increasingly questionable."

He elaborated that "The fact is that the percentage of American homes relying only on an over the air signal is low and shrinking. While the vast majority of Americans receive local and network feeds via cable and satellite (and soon via telephone line, cellular, wireless broadband and the Internet), relatively few rely exclusively on a free over the air antenna signal." (All parentheses in original.)

"Of the nearly 110 million American homes with at least one TV, 68% receive a cable signal and 22% receive a DBS signal. Our research shows that roughly 3% receive both cable and DBS. In total, 87% of American homes will have access to cable or satellite (and thus network and local feeds)." He added that "This means that if the cut off occurred today, less than 13% of the population of 110 million TV households would not have access to a broadcast signal through cable or satellite (though they could certainly start subscribing). And this number is shrinking every year."

He accused broadcasters of using "a ``Washington only´´ strategy of delaying the cut off date and seeking restrictions on cable, satellite and TV set makers (and now they are going after telephone companies who provide video signals)."

He stated that the few people who still "rely solely on free over the air broadcasting will understand that they have alternatives once a hard cut off date is set."

5/11. The Office of the Massachusetts Attorney General (OMAG) filed a complaint in state court in Massachusetts against seven individuals and two corporations alleges violation of state and federal consumer protection laws, including the federal CAN SPAM Act, in connection with a spamming operation. The Suffolk Superior Court, Judge Ralph Gants presiding, issued an emergency order. The individual defendants are Leo Kuvayev, Vladislav Khokholkov, Anna Orlova, Pavel Tkachuk, Michelle Marco, Dennis Nartikoev, and Pavel Yashin. The corporate defendants are 2K Services, Ltd., and Ecash Pay, Ltd. See, OMAG release and release. Microsoft gathered and provided evidence for the Massachusetts AG. See, Microsoft release.

5/10. The Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Office of Engineering and Technology (OET) released a public notice [2 pages in PDF] titled "OET Clarifies Emission Mask Measurements for DTV Transmitters". This item is DA 05-1321.

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business. There are no technology related items on the agenda. See, Republican Whip Notice.

The Senate will meet at 9:30 AM for morning business. It will then resume consideration of HR 3, the Transportation Equity Act.

POSTPONED. The House Judiciary Committee's Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property will hold its third hearing on the Committee Print of HR __ [52 pages in PDF], the "Patent Act of 2005". Press contact: Jeff Lungren or Terry Shawn at 202 225-2492. Location: Room 2141, Rayburn Building.

8:00 AM. The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) will host a breakfast. The speaker will be Gary Shapiro, P/CEO of the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA). The price to attend varies from $30 to $55. See, registration form [MS Word]. Location: J.W. Marriott Hotel, 1331 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.

9:30 AM. There will be a news conference. Rep. Frank Wolf (R-VA), Rep. Sherwood Boehlert (R-NY), Rep. Vern Ehlers (R-MI), Norm Augustine (former Ch/CEO of Lockheed Martin), John Engler (National Association of Manufacturers), Bill Archey (AeA), and Larry Burton (Business Roundtable) will announce an event titled "Innovation Summit" to be held in the fall of 2005. For more information, contact Joe Pouliot at 202 225-0581 or joe dot pouliot at mail dot house dot gov. Location: Room 122, Cannon Building, Capital Hill.

RESCHEDULED FOR MAY 19. 9:30 AM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will hold a meeting. The event will be webcast by the FCC. Location: FCC, 445 12th Street, SW, Room TW-C05 (Commission Meeting Room).

9:30 AM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) has scheduled an executive business meeting. The agenda lists consideration of three judicial nominees, S 852 (asbestos bill), and the Committee's rules of procedure for the 109th Congress. The SJC frequently cancels meetings without notice. The SJC rarely follows its agenda. The nominees on the agenda are Terrence Boyle (to be a Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit), William Pryor (11th Circuit), and Brett Kavanaugh (DC Circuit). See, notice. Press contact: Blain Rethmeier (Specter) at 202 224-5225, David Carle (Leahy) at 202 224-4242 or Tracy Schmaler (Leahy) at 202 224-2154. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

9:30 AM. The U.S. Court of Appeals (DC) will hear oral argument in Christopher Shays v. FEC, No. 04-5352. Judges Edwards, Henderson and Tatel will preside. Location: Prettyman Courthouse, 333 Constitution Ave., NW.

10:00 AM - 12:00 NOON. The House Science Committee will hold a hearing titled "The Future of Computer Science Research in the U.S." The witnesses will be John Marburger (Director of the President's Office of Science and Technology Policy), Anthony Tether (Director of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency), William Wulf (President of the National Academy of Engineering), and Tom Leighton (Chief Scientist of Akamai Technologies). Location: Room 2318, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM. The Senate Commerce Committee (SCC) will hold a hearing on S 967 and issues related to the broadcast of prepacked news stories produced by government agencies. The witnesses will be Jonathan Adelstein (FCC Commissioner), Austin Schlick (acting General Counsel of the FCC), Susan Poling (Government Accountability Office), Barbara Cochran (President of the Radio-Television News Directors Association), Douglas Simon (P/CEO of D S Simon Productions Inc.), and Judith Phair (P/CEO of the Public Relations Society of America). Press contact: Melanie Alvord (Stevens) 202 224-8456 or Melanie_Alvord at commerce dot senate dot gov, or Andy Davis (Inouye) at 202 224-4546 or Andy_Davis at commerce dot senate dot gov. See, notice. The hearing will be webcast by the SCC. Location: Room 253, Russell Building.

10:00 - 11:30 AM. The American Enterprise Institute (AEI) and the National Defense University (NDU) will host a panel discussion titled "Will Technology Be a Source of Chinese Influence in Asia?" The speakers will be Ernest Preeg (Manufacturers Alliance), Tai Ming Cheung (University of California San Diego), Will Martin (World Bank), Claude Barfield (AEI), and Phillip Saunders (NDU). See, notice. Location: AEI, 12th floor, 1150 17th St., NW.

10:15 AM. The American Enterprise Institute (AEI) will host a panel discussion titled "Antitrust Policy and Vertical Restraints". The speakers will include David Evans (LECG), Luke Froeb (FTC), and Michael Waldman (Cornell University). See, notice. Location: AEI, 12th floor, 1150 17th St., NW.

12:00 NOON. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will hold a meeting. The agenda includes the role of NTIA in spectrum management, the IRAC process, and the FCC-NTIA interaction with respect to license applications, rulemaking proceedings, and spectrum management policy issues at the FCC. The speakers will be Fred Wentland (NTIA), Karl Nebbia (NTIA), Julius Knapp (FCC), and other FCC officials. The Federal Communications Bar Association (FCBA) states that this is an FCBA brown bag lunch, and that attendees should RSVP to Wendy Parish at wendy@fcba.org. Location: FCC, 7th Floor South Conference Room.

12:15 - 2:00 PM. The Forum on Technology and Innovation will host a luncheon titled "Future of U.S. Manufacturing". The speakers will be Mark Bamforth (Genzyme), Gary Heiman (Standard Textile), and Mark Mills (Digital Power Group). See, notice. Location: Room 902, Hart Building, Capitol Hill.

4:00 PM. The Senate Judiciary Committee (SJC) has scheduled a hearing on the nominations of Rachel Brand to be Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Office of Legal Policy (OLP), Alice Fisher to be Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Criminal Division, and Regina Schofield to be Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Office of Justice Programs. The SJC frequently cancels meetings without notice. See, notice. Press contact: Blain Rethmeier (Specter) at 202 224-5225, David Carle (Leahy) at 202 224-4242 or Tracy Schmaler (Leahy) at 202 224-2154. Location: Room 226, Dirksen Building.

6:00 - 8:00 PM. Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Young Lawyers Committee will host an event titled "Happy Hour". For more information, contact Pam Slipakoff at pamslip at yahoo dot com. Location: Modern Brasserie, 555 8th Street, NW.

The House will meet at 10:00 AM for legislative business. There are no technology related items on the agenda. See, Republican Whip Notice.

Day one of a two day event hosted by the American Cable Association titled "Annual Washington Summit".

9:00 AM - 5:30 PM. The Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) North American Numbering Council (NANC) will meet. See, notice and agenda [2 pages in PDF]. Location: FCC, 445 12th Street, SW, Room TW-C305.

10:00 AM. The House Ways and Means Committee's Subcommittee on Trade will hold a hearing titled on the future of the World Trade Organization (WTO). See, notice. Location: Room 1100, Longworth Building.

11:30 AM - 1:00 PM. The Business Software Alliance (BSA) and Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) will host a panel discussion titled "Battling International Organized Cyber Crime". The keynote speaker will be Ralph Basham (Director of the U.S. Secret Service). The panelists will be Ed Appel (Joint Council of Information Age Crime), Bill Conner (Ch/CEO of Entrust), James Lewis (CSIS), Brian Nagel (U.S. Secret Service), Kim Peretti (Trial Attorney in the DOJ's Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section), Phil Reitinger (Microsoft), and Jody Westby (PricewaterhouseCoopers). Lunch will be served. RSVP to rsvp at bsa dot org by May 11. Press contact: Wendy Rosen at 202 530-5127 or wendyr at bsa dot org. Location: 1800 K Street, NW, B-1 conference center.

12:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Mass Media Committee will host a brown bag lunch. Location: Dow Lohnes & Albertson, 1200 New Hampshire Ave., NW, Suite 800.

Day two of a two day event hosted by the American Cable Association titled "Annual Washington Summit".

Day one of a three day event hosted by the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association (AFCEA) titled "TechNet International 2005: Network Centric Operation: Balancing Speed and Agility with Security". See, event web site and schedule. Location: Washington Convention Center.

10:00 AM - 12:00 NOON. The House Science Committee's Subcommittee on Research will hold a hearing titled "The National Nanotechnology Initiative: Review and Outlook". The witnesses will be Floyd Kvamme (Co-Chair of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology), Scott Donnelly (General Electric), John Kennedy (Clemson University's Center for Advanced Engineering Fibers and Films), John Cassady (Oregon State University), and Alain Kaloyeros (President of Albany NanoTech). For more information, contact Joe Pouliot at 202 225-0581 or joe dot pouliot at mail dot house dot gov. Location: Room 2318, Rayburn Building.

10:00 AM. The House Financial Services Committee's (HFSC) Subcommittee on Financial Institutions will hold a hearing titled "Enhancing Data Security: The Regulators' Perspective". Location: Room 2128, Rayburn Building.

12:15 PM. The Federal Communications Bar Association's (FCBA) Young Lawyer's Committee (YLC) will host a brown bag lunch to hold elections. There will be no proxy voting. Voting is limited to current YLC members. All nominations must be e-mailed to Jason Friedrich or Pam Slipakoff by May 11. For more information, contact Jason Friedrich at jason dot friedrich at dbr dot com or 202 354-1340 or Pam Slipakoff at pamslip at yahoo at com or 202 418-7705. Location: Willkie Farr & Gallagher, 1875 K Street, NW, 2d Floor.

Day two of a three day event hosted by the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association (AFCEA) titled "TechNet International 2005: Network Centric Operation: Balancing Speed and Agility with Security". See, event web site and schedule. Location: Washington Convention Center.

RESCHEDULED FROM MAY 12. 9:30 AM. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) will hold a meeting. The event will be webcast by the FCC. Location: FCC, 445 12th Street, SW, Room TW-C05 (Commission Meeting Room).

5:30 PM. The Discovery Institute and the Progress and Freedom Foundation (PFF) will host a book presentation. George Gilder will discuss his book titled The Silicon Eye: How a Silicon Valley Company Aims to Make All Current Computers, Cameras, and Cell Phones Obsolete [Amazon]. RSVP to 202 682-1201 or rsvp at dc dot discovery dot org. Location: 1015 15th St. NW, Suite 900.

Day three of a three day event hosted by the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association (AFCEA) titled "TechNet International 2005: Network Centric Operation: Balancing Speed and Agility with Security". See, event web site and schedule. Location: Washington Convention Center.

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