S3480 PCNAA: Protecting Cyberspace as a National Asset Act
- S3480 PCNAA on GovTrack
- Google News Results
- Liberty Search
Lieberman tells Web users to ‘relax’ about ‘kill switch’ – David Edwards – June 20 2010
Right now China, the government, can disconnect parts of its Internet in case of war and we need to have that here too. We need this capacity in a time of war. We need the capacity for the president to say, ‘Internet service provider, we’ve got to disconnect the American Internet from all traffic coming in from another foreign country, or we have to put a patch on this part of it’. — Joe Liebermann
Internet ‘kill switch’ proposed for US – Declan McCullagh – June 15 2010
A new US Senate Bill would grant the President far-reaching emergency powers to seize control of, or even shut down, portions of the internet.
The legislation says that companies such as broadband providers, search engines or software firms that the US Government selects “shall immediately comply with any emergency measure or action developed” by the Department of Homeland Security. Anyone failing to comply would be fined.
That emergency authority would allow the Federal Government to “preserve those networks and assets and our country and protect our people,” Joe Lieberman, the primary sponsor of the measure and the chairman of the Homeland Security committee, told reporters on Thursday.
The Internet “Kill Switch” – Abraham J – June 18 2010
This essentially gives the president a “kill switch” on the internet during times of emergency… Not only does Lieberman’s bill extend presidential powers, it also creates a new agency inside the Homeland Security Department called the National Center for Cybersecurity and Communications.
The Lieberman bill is titled the Protecting Cyberspace as a National Asset Act, or PCNAA. The bill would require private companies to share information with the federal government, but it would also grant immunity to the government.
Another attempt to take over the Web – Adam de Angeli – June 21 2010
The bill has two sponsors in the Senate: Democrat Thomas Carper (Delaware) and Republican Susan Collins (Maine). It appears they are going to move forward: there is a hearing scheduled for June 24.
Meanwhile in the House, Jane Harman (D-California) plans to introduce the bill next week. This is significant because Harman is the chair of the Homeland Security Intelligence subcommittee that would handle the bill. Worse, the Homeland Security committee’s ranking member, Peter King (R-New York) also supports the bill, as does Homeland Security Cyber Subcommittee chair, Yvette Clarke (D-New York).
FCC Moves to Regulate the Internet – Dennis Behreandt – June 18 2010
Currently, as an information service, the FCC can exercise only “ancillary” authority, which does not allow it to regulate the Internet directly. If the Internet is reclassified, the agency would gain greater regulatory control.
The introduction of a new Senate bill, S.3480, dubbed the “Protecting Cyberspace as a National Asset Act of 2010,” is sparking concerns about a massive power grab over the Internet under the guise of “national security.”
Senators introduce bill that would allow US to disconnect the Internet – John Byrne – June 18 2010
a bill ..that would allow the President to effectively disconnect the internet by emergency decree…The Protecting Cyberspace as a National Asset Act would allow the President to disconnect Internet networks and force private websites to comply with broad cybersecurity measures…Future US presidents would have their Internet “kill switch” powers renewed indefinitely.
New round in FCC broadband fight – By Kim Hart & Tony Romm
The agency is expected to vote Thursday to begin a public comment period on Chairman Julius Genachowski’s proposed “third way” fix, which for the first time would apply to broadband providers a series of rules that have long governed phone companies.
The effort — known legally as “partial reclassification” but referred to by some critics as the “nuclear option” — is the FCC’s attempt to clarify its ability to regulate Internet providers after a federal court earlier this year found the agency lacked the explicit authority to sanction Comcast for its network management practices.
Commissar Joe Lieberman – Lew Rockwell – June 18 2010
The totalitarian senator Joe Lieberman wants the US dictator-in-chief to be able to “seize” and even “shut down” the internet in a national emergency. What sort of emergency? Well, for example, if people are getting news that the government does not want them to have, about some planned Middle East war of aggression, or a putsch in DC.
UPDATE from Scott Evans:
It’s always heartening to hear that yet another of the beltway criminals is completely ignorant of how the internet works. I strikes me as hilarious to hear politicians, particularly the current marionette occupying 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, bloviate about “shutting down” the internet, an organism that is the very definition of the word “decentralized” and thus beyond ANY politician or nation’s control.
It’s the Government’s Internet, they just let us use it – Liberty Maven – June 11 2010
I wish this surprised me. I wish I didn’t just nod and say, “of course”, when I read this.
It appears that “national security” ranks right up there with the Constitution’s Commerce Clause as the top two excuses given by the U.S. government to bend you over and forcibly extract freedom from your nether-region.
Apparently, our elected masters aren’t happy with just killing humans in no-win wars. Now they want to be able to “kill” the Internet, whatever that means.
3 Reasons The FCC Shouldn’t “Touch” The Internets – Reason TV – June 18 2010
CNET has three informative articles: 1 2 3
Who else but Joe Lieberman would introduce a bill to give the President the power to shut down the Internet with the flick of a switch? I’m afraid of the answer to that question, and you should be, too. However, it’s hardly surprising America’s premier authoritarian warmonger – author of a bill that would strip American citizenship from anyone even vaguely suspected of “terrorism” – would come up with a scheme like this…
This bill is the culmination of years of yelping about the likelihood of a “cyber-9/11,” a devastating attack on the national infrastructure via the Internet. If such an event is so likely, then why hasn’t it happened already? Because the likelihood of it ever happening is nearly nil.
In: Legislation Watch · Tagged with: Internet Freedom, Legislation Watch, PCNAA
