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Legal
Status of Qualified Electronic Signatures in Europe
- -Jos
Dumortier
It
is a common misunderstanding that, in Europe, in order to
have a legally valid electronic signature, you need a "qualified"
electronic signature. The European Electronic Signatures Directive
is very clear in this respect, though, it is forbidden to
deny any legal effectiveness to an electronic signature solely
on the ground that it is not qualified, for instance like
it is not based on a qualified certificate or not created
with a secure signature-creation device. The only consequence
of using a "qualified" electronic signature is the
"automatic" application of existing legal rules
which are still referring to the handwritten signature. These
rules are progressively disappearing because modern legislation
no longer exclusively refers to information processing in
paper format. The "qualified" electronic signature
is, therefore, only a temporary concept, mainly useful for
bridging a transition period. It can, on a longer term, be
useful to have a standardized secure electronic signature
for all kinds of applications, but such a standard should
preferably not be dictated by the legal rules on the "qualified"
electronic signature.
©
2004 Jos Dumortier (www.law.kuleuven.ac.be). Reprinted with
permission.
Dumbing
Down Democracy: Trends
in Internet Regulation, Surveillance and Control in Asia
- -James
Gomez
This
paper argues that the trends in state regulation, surveillance
and control of the Internet in Asia stand to effectively reduce
political expression that has emerged over the Internet. A
variety of international media watch and human rights organizations
have noted that since September 11, 2001, a slew of anti-terrorism
laws have been adopted in Asia which place greater restrictions
on the Internet. Laws against online pornography, gambling,
hate speech and spam have been revised to cover online political
content and mobilizing. Such measures limit and reduce the
space of cyberactivists to push the democratic agenda online.
©
2004 James Gomez (www.jamesgomeznews.com). This paper was
presented at the Centre for Southeast Asian Studies Seminar
series, Monash Asia Institute, Monash University on March
11, 2004. Reprinted with permission.
Online
Pornography-Who is the Culprit and Who is the Victim?
- -S
V S M Sastry and G Usha
The
importance and the role of Information Technology has been
increasing day-by-day in our lives. This article aims at analyzing
the possible legal and techno-legal aspects of pornography
with specific reference to the recent MMS scandal. Pornography
is a global problem and those who engage in the production,
exhibition, distribution and consumption of pornography can
cause a serious negative impact on the children and the society
at large.
©
2005 IUP. All Rights Reserved.
Security
vs. Privacy: A Comparative Analysis of Canada, the United
Kingdom and the United States
- -Thomas
B Riley
Every
person in this universe is supposed to have his own privacy.
The more he interacts with the public, the more is the chance
of losing privacy and the present situation supposedly afflicting
their invaluable inalienable right to privacy. The legal issues
arising out of the transactions of privacy provide only remedies
in a legalistic way but can't provide any substitute measurements
when the so-called privacy is deprived or taken away. It is
necessary to assess both the efficacy and legitimacy of the
security measures against terrorism in the light of how privacy
is being afflicted and impacted in the process.
©
2004 Thomas B Riley (www.electronicgov.net). Reprinted with
permission.
Building
Cyberlaw Capacity for eGovernance: Technology Perspectives
- -Rogers
W'O Okot-Uma
There
is a growing feeling in the minds of people that technology
is going to present newer and wider possibilities before the
society in the modern times. Electronic Governance is a concept
that takes the man from the `known' to the `unknown'. Electronic
Governance is inclusive of Electronic Democracy, Electronic
Government and Government Electronic Business. The commonwealth
also evinced interest and committed to good governance through
the declarations made by Heads of Governments and State at
their meetings. No doubt, good governance provides a new paradigm
in Public Administration in a global way.
©
2005 IUP. All Rights Reserved.
Book
Review
Dimensions
of Cyber Crime: Encyclopedia of Cyber Laws and Crime Series
--Edited
by S R Sharma
©
2004 S R Sharma. All Rights Reserved. The IUP holds the copyright for the review. |
