House passes warrantless domestic spying measure
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The House of Representatives passed  a bill on Thursday that would provide congressional  authorization for President George W. Bush's warrantless  domestic spying program but subject it to new rules.
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The U.S. House of Representatives  overwhelmingly passed a &#36;427.6 billion Pentagon funding bill on  Tuesday after rejecting a bid by Democrats to force the Bush  administration to get court orders for its domestic  surveillance program.
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The US House of Representatives passed a second spyware bill on Thursday adding more teeth to a previously passed spyware bill that included fines for offenders.
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(InfoWorld) - An antispyware bill that the U.S. House of Representatives passed this week earned praise from cybersecurity groups, but faces an uncertain future in the Senate. The bill, which would create penalties of up to five years in prison for some spyware-like behavior, is a "needed piece of legislation in order to protect consumers," said Kevin Richards, federal government relations manager for Symantec Corp. Many online identity theft schemes start with spyware on a victim's computer, he said. Though versions of the Internet Spyware Prevention Act (I-SPY) have passed through the House in the last two sessions of Congress, they stalled in the Senate. The House passed I-SPY and a second spyware bill in May 2005. But the Senate failed to act, partly because of concerns that the second proposal, called the Securely Protect Yourself Against Cyber Trespass Act or SPY Act, too broadly defined spyware. The Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee also became hung up on what approach to take for a spyware bill -- a criminal penalties approach similar to I-SPY or a broader approach attempting to define spyware technologies similar to the second House bill. Concerns over the SPY Act remain. Last month, theÂ Electronic Frontier Foundation issued an alert about the SPY Act, saying it opposes the bill because it would preempt tougher state laws against spyware and hacking. "In fact, having been massaged by lobbyists for the software and adware industries, the bill would actually make things worse, insulating adware vendors from more stringent state laws and private lawsuits," wrote EFF lawyer Fred von Lohmann. Any bills that have not passed through the House and Senate during their two-year session must be reintroduced. This year the SPY Act has been approved by the House Energy and Commerce Committee but has not faced a vote on the House floor. On the other hand,Â there seems to be less opposition to I-SPY. I-SPY has "broad support from the industry," said Geoff Gray, legislative consultant for the Cyber Security Industry Alliance, a trade group. "It concentrates on bad actions as opposed to bad technologies." I-SPY now goes to the Senate for consideration. Two champions of antispyware legislation in the Senate, Republicans George Allen of Virginia and Conrad Burns of Montana, were defeated in last November's elections. Meanwhile, supporters of the I-SPY Act say they will push for passage in the Senate. Symantec is engaging senators about the need for a spyware bill and other cybersecurity measures, Richards said. Several senators seem open to cybersecurity legislation, he said. "I think there's interest there," he said. "But senators are focused on a big plate of issues." Although Burns and Allen are gone, I-SPY has a "decent" chance of passing the Senate, added Gray. The House may have given it a better shot by not passing the more controversial SPY Act at the same time, he said. "A little steam has gone out of it on the Senate side, but maybe some of the conflict as well," Gray said. A spokesman for Representative Zoe Lofgren, one of the primary sponsors of I-SPY, said it's early to gauge the bill's chances in the Senate. The California Democrat will begin pushing for the bill in the Senate soon, the spokesman said. Representatives of tech-focused senators said their bosses are looking at antispyware legislation. "It's one of our priorities," said a spokesman for Senator John Ensign, a Nevada Republican and cosponsor of an antispyware bill in the last session of Congress. Senator Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat, is also looking into the issue, a spokeswoman said. Wyden, cosponsor of the broader antispyware bill in the Senate last Congress, is "looking into what he feels the correct course should be legislatively ... based on the way the spyware issue has evolved over the last two years," said spokeswoman Melissa Merz.
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The House approved the surveillance measure after rejecting efforts by Democrats and some Republicans to impose greater restrictions on the wiretapping authority.
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A White House-backed bill that would   enable a secret court to review President George W. Bush's   warrantless domestic spying program won approval on Wednesday   from the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee.
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The US House of Representatives on Wednesday approved new legislation drafted after the mid-April shooting rampage at Virginia Tech University that tightens background checks for potential gun owners.
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The House on Thursday passed the second bill in three days that would outlaw "spyware," irritating software that quietly monitors the activities of Internet users.    It would add penalties of up to five years in prison for people convicted of installing such programs without a computer user's permission...
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Internet Spyware Prevention Act has passed the House, but will face a tougher test in the Senate.
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The US House of Representatives cleared the way on Tuesday for passage of a sweeping overhaul of US intelligence agencies after a long wrangle and mounting pressure from families of Sept.
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On a unanimous vote the US House of Representatives Thursday approved a bill making many &quot;spyware&quot; activities illegal. Spyware can be surreptitiously loaded into a computer via the Internet and extract information
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The House voted Wednesday to fix flaws in the national gun background check system that allowed the Virginia Tech shooter to buy guns despite his mental health problems.
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The U.S. Congress has granted a temporary 15-day extension to a controversial law that allows the government to conduct telephone surveillance on suspected terrorists without first obtaining a court warrant.
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The House approved GOP-crafted legislation Friday to implement the Sept. 11 commission&#39;s recommendations and give law enforcement new powers to fight terrorism and curb illegal immigration.
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The US House of Representatives on Friday approved a Republican-written US spy agency overhaul, setting the stage for a battle with the Senate over controversial immigration measures and the new national intelligence director&#39;s power
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The U.S. House of Representatives on  Tuesday voted to crack down on deceptive "spyware" that hides  in users' computers and secretly monitors their activities.
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The House of Representatives on Tuesday approved a sweeping overhaul of U.S. intelligence agencies, ending weeks of wrangling over the Pentagon's power under the reforms demanded after the Sept. 11 attacks.