Google had to turn over a 12TB database of every YouTube video ever watched-complete with user IDs and IP addresses.

On the official YouTube blog, the company said that it was "pleased to report that Viacom, MTV and other litigants have backed off their original demand for all users' viewing histories, and we will not be providing that information.... We remain committed to protecting your privacy and we'll continue to fight for your right to share and broadcast your work on YouTube."

"Great!" wrote one poster. "So when are you going to let us OPT OUT of info collection? You dodged a bullet today, but what happens the next time? What happens if the government decides to start spying on us thanks to your data collecting?"

Now comes a study noting that more experienced internet users tend to check their email less frequently than newer internet users. The folks behind the report suggest that experienced internet users have reached the point at which they don't want email controlling them any more -- but it makes you wonder if the real answer is that many are using other forms of communication instead of email, decreasing the importance of email.

Security researcher and author Kris Kaspersky plans to demonstrate how an attacker can target flaws in Intel's microprocessors to remotely attack a computer using JavaScript or TCP/IP packets, regardless of what operating system the computer is running.

The demonstrated attack will be made against fully patched computers running a range of operating systems, including Windows XP, Vista, Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2008, Linux and BSD, Kaspersky said, adding that the demonstration of an attack against a Mac is also a possibility.

Using a combination of legal threats and public shaming, Cuomo was able to get three ISPs to drop access to the entire alt.* hierarchy of Usenet, a move that encouraged California to request similar measures.

Cuomo's new web site signifies that he's clearly not done yet. It includes contact information for 20 ISPs that presumably operate in New York, and text of a letter to send to them to urge that they sign on to the campaign.

Regardless of how you feel about Cuomo's efforts or the implementation of his agreements by the ISPs, it's difficult to interpret the new site as anything more than an effort in self promotion.

The rapid shift of focus from an identifiable problem to a high-publicity campaign seems as likely to produce cynicism as it is to lead to progress on the underlying issue.

It beggars belief that anyone would think that they'd first hear of World War III through a spam email. But hackers are relying on such credulous fools in an attempt to spread a new Trojan.

The tactic is far from the first time hackers used rising tensions between Iran and the West as the theme for malware-based attacks. Iraq's controversial decision to continue building a nuclear plant was used to bait attacks designed to spread a series of Trojans back in 2005, Sophos reports.

The US federal Communications Commission is likely to punish Comcast for breaking net neutrality laws.

FCC Chairman Kevin Martin told AP that the commission had adopted a set of principles that protects consumers' access to the Internet and Comcast's actions violated them.

Martin will order Comcast to stop its practice of blocking, provide details to the extent and manner in which the practice has been used and to disclose to consumers details on future plans for managing its network going forward.

Florida attorney Jack Thompson, who made a career of denouncing, intimidating and harrassing gaming publishers and aficionados has been recommended for permanent disbarment by the referee who presided over his state bar trial.

"Over a very extended period of time involving a number of totally unrelated cases and individuals, the Respondent has demonstrated a pattern of conduct to strike out harshly, extensively, repeatedly and willfully to simply try to bring as much difficulty, distraction and anguish to those he considers in opposition to his causes. He does not proceed within the guidelines of appropriate professional behavior, but rather uses other means available to intimidate, harass, or bring public disrepute to those whom he perceives oppose him.

This Court makes the following recommendations for John Bruce Thompson:

A. Permanent disbarment, with no leave to reapply for admission.
B. Disciplinary costs currently totaling $43,675.35."

Now that the bill has become law, it seems that the protests are only getting much, much louder, going beyond the initial group of bloggers complaining to the mainstream press, and including large companies like Google and Telia moving servers out of Sweden to protect their users.

Amazingly, the politicians who approved this bill are staying largely silent, despite the growing clamor about it.

While it's unclear what will happen here, this is just the latest in a long line of recent efforts to bring together people to call attention to questionable political moves that politicians in the past have been able to sneak through with little public scrutiny.

A senior government official with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has expressed great interest in a so-called safety bracelet that would serve as a stun device, similar to that of a police Taser®.

Every airline passenger would be tracked by a government-funded GPS, containing personal, private and confidential information, and that it would shock the customer worse than an electronic dog collar if he/she got out of line?

Not only could it be used as a physical restraining device, but also as a method of interrogation, according to the same aforementioned letter from Mr. Ruwaldt.

Why are tax dollars being spent on something like this? Is this a police state or is it America?

Pioneer has developed a 16-layer read-only optical disc with a capacity of 400 gigabytes.

The laminated disks, which are effectively 16 layers of 25GB each sandwiched together, could go into mass production soon.

Pioneer will present the details of this research at the International Symposium on Optical Memory and Optical Data Storage 2008 to be held in Hawaii from July 13.