The Australian government will propose to “update Australia’s telecommunication interception law, which predates the internet era,” said the government in a Tuesday news release (http://bit.ly/1srjewQ). It said the proposal is part of a new slate of counter-terrorism measures, to be introduced soon. The legislation will “increase intelligence collection and assessment to better understand the onshore and offshore threat,” the government said, not providing specifics. It did assure “these powers will also be balanced with proper oversight to protect the individual rights of Australians, including their right to privacy,” without elaborating. The Daily Telegraph reported Tuesday that the proposal will include a mandatory two-year data retention for telecom and Internet companies (http://bit.ly/1kkJCHv). But Australian Minister for Communications Malcolm Turnbull said in an interview posted to his website that such a retention timeline “hasn’t come to Cabinet yet and I'm not in a position to add to the speculation” (http://bit.ly/1zQY8L5). The U.K. government was widely criticized in recent weeks by privacy and civil rights groups for fast tracking a surveillance bill that included data retention mandates for companies (CD July 18 p16).

The Senate Finance Committee unanimously approved July 31 Robert Holleyman’s nomination to be deputy U.S. Trade Representative, said the committee in a news release the next day (http://1.usa.gov/1oWuDUh). The full Senate will now consider the nomination. Holleyman was president of BSA/The Software Alliance for more than 20 years before stepping down in 2013; his nomination hearing was last month (CD July 17 p18).

The European Commission released a set of technical standards to help users of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) smart chips comply with EU data protection standards, said an EC news release Wednesday (http://bit.ly/1kma0B8). RFID tags are often used on electronic travel passes, clothes and supermarket items, the EC said. The new guidelines require an RFID sign to be present if the chips are in use. They also will require users of RFID chips to “give consumers clear and simple information so that they understand if their personal data will be used, the type of collected data (such as name, address or date of birth, for example when registering for a travel subscription card) and for what purpose,” the EC said. “Smart tags and systems are part of everyday life now, they simplify systems and boost our economy,” said EC Vice President Neelie Kroes. “But it is important to have standards in place which ensure those benefits do not come at a cost to data protection and security of personal data."

Japan’s National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT) successfully tested a 3.7 km wireless link between two locations and a broadband link transmitting at more than 40 Mbps throughput, both using TV white spaces spectrum, the group said in a news release (http://bit.ly/1rTqVff). The tests were done in central London as a part of an Ofcom white spaces pilot. “The experiences obtained during the trials are expected to contribute to the development of TV white spaces regulations in the UK as well as other countries,” NICT said.

Fourteen alleged operators of technical support scams were ordered to pay more than $5.1 million in default judgments, in multiple judgments filed by the U.S. District Court in New York City, said an FTC news release Thursday (http://1.usa.gov/1x7aOKi). According to each of the six judgments, defendants failed to respond to the FTC’s complaints, causing the court to enter the default judgments against them. The defendants were charged with posing as major computer companies and obtaining fees from consumers to fix false malware problems on their computers, the FTC said. “The default judgments permanently ban the defendants from marketing any computer security-related technical support service,” the FTC said. “The judgments also ban them from continuing their deceptive tactics and from disclosing, selling or failing to dispose of information they obtained from victims."

In what Panasonic says is a “first” for Chinese commercial aviation, China Eastern Airlines has launched broadband Wi-Fi on flights over China using China Telecom Satellite’s aeronautical service and Panasonic Avionics’ eXConnect system, the companies said Thursday. A China Eastern Airbus A330 is the first of 27 such aircraft to have the service installed, they said. In addition to the A330s, China Eastern expects to install the service on six B767s and 20 B777s, they said. “The first aircraft has been dedicated to routes between Shanghai and Beijing, allowing government agencies to observe operation of the service before granting full regulatory approval for operation on additional domestic and international routes,” they said.

The U.K.’s four largest fixed-line ISPs have implemented measures allowing users to block Web-based content at a network level, said an Ofcom report released Tuesday (http://bit.ly/UlH1RC). The move came after the four ISPs -- BT, Sky, TalkTalk and Virgin Media -- made an agreement with the British government to provide such filtering services, said Ofcom, an independent regulator and competition authority for the U.K. communications industries.

Two British members of Parliament (MPs) are challenging the legality of the government’s Data Retention and Investigatory Powers Act (DRIP), said a new release from civil liberties advocate Liberty (http://bit.ly/1mAq900). The organization will seek the judicial review on behalf of the MPs, David Davis and Tom Watson, it said. The group said it will argue the law violates Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights and Articles 7 and 8 of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights. DRIP was unanimously approved last week by the House of Lords after passing the House of Commons with some opposition (CD July 18 p16). The bill requires Internet and phone companies to retain customer data for 12 months and starts a government review of its surveillance programs, but privacy advocates have argued other elements of the bill expand the government’s surveillance power (CD July 16 p15).

British consumers believe they can’t do without the Internet or their mobile phones, says a study released Tuesday by the U.K. regulator Ofcom (http://bit.ly/1rxPaB4). The study examined which communications services U.K. consumers consider “essential” in their day-to-day lives and whether they're affordable, particularly for low-income homes. For the purposes of the research, Ofcom defined “essential” as having four main “functions": (1) Safety and access to emergency services; (2) Communication and social inclusion; (3) Access to information, education and entertainment; and (4) Importance to economic livelihood, such as through gaining access to job opportunities and meeting the expectations set by employers. “There was broad consensus among consumers on what ‘essential’ means in relation to communications services,” Ofcom said. Overall, the study said telephone voice services and Internet access were most essential to U.K. consumers. More than six in 10 consumers rated voice services, mobile or landline, as essential, while 59 percent considered mobile voice or text services as essential, and 57 percent regarded personal Internet access as essential. The study also said certain services “are considered essential by some, but less important by others, with age being a key factor,” it said. For example, landline telephone services are considered essential by 61 percent of people aged 75 and older compared with just 12 percent of 16- to 24-year-olds, it said. However, accessing the Internet via a smartphone was considered essential to 53 percent of 16- to 24-year-olds, but to no one 75 and older, it said. As for the affordability of essential communications services, among those consumers who said they were responsible for paying the bills, 86 percent reported never having had problems meeting the costs, it said. “This is consistent with previous Ofcom research showing that consumers had benefitted from falling prices and an increase in choice and quality over the last 10 years.” Of the 14 percent who reported having problems paying for communications services, a “small minority” (2 percent) said they have been in debt or fallen behind on payments while trying to manage their telecom costs, Ofcom said. “The high take-up of essential communication services shows that, in most cases, cost is not a barrier to use.” The survey found that 95 percent of British homes own at least one mobile phone, 84 percent have a landline and 82 percent an Internet connection, it said. “But for some consumers, particularly those in low-income households, cost is a reason for not having a desired service.” Ofcom cited the particular example of broadband, with 7 percent of consumers saying they would like to have broadband but don’t because of the cost. For the study, Ofcom canvassed about 2,000 British adults in March and April.

The financial sector must improve its cybersecurity to protect both the U.S. and consumers, Treasury Secretary Jack Lew said at an Institutional Investor conference (http://1.usa.gov/1qfCjn9). “When credit card data is stolen, it disturbs lives and damages consumer confidence,” Lew said. “When trade secrets are robbed, it undercuts America’s businesses and undermines U.S. competitiveness. And successful attacks on our financial system would compromise market confidence, jeopardize the integrity of data, and pose a threat to financial stability.” Lew highlighted the Treasury Department’s work on executive order 13636 (http://1.usa.gov/1gcpbWo), and the resulting cybersecurity framework, developed in coordination with the Commerce Department and the private sector. But Congress must also do its part, Lew said. “Our laws do not do enough to foster information sharing and defend the public from digital threats,” Lew said. “We need legislation with clear rules to encourage collaboration and provide important liability protection.” The House recently passed the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (HR-624), and the Senate is now considering an analogous bill, the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act (S-2588) (CD July 9 p14). Verizon agrees with Lew on the importance of cybersecurity, said the telco on its blog (http://vz.to/1mkJQZD) after he visited its security operations center Tuesday in Ashburn, Va. (http://vz.to/1qKyJ0p).