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To: EL KABONG!!! who wrote (7009)	7/16/1999 2:14:00 AM
From: Jeffrey S. Mitchell	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 32906

Just in case people bypassed that link, here's the best part: "We are seeing a rash of cases in which companies are abusing subpoena power to get the identities of online critics," said Shari Steele, director of legal services for the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a non-profit civil liberties organization. "People have a legal right under the First Amendment to criticize companies anonymously. It is troubling that companies are using lawsuits this way to find out who is criticizing them. And that some providers are so easily giving up the names." #reply-10532325 - Jeff

To: EL KABONG!!! who wrote (7009)	7/16/1999 2:42:00 AM
From: PCModem	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 32906

Thanks KJC! One of the best articles I've seen on the subject. Some highlights, IMHO: "The bottom line for Internet users: Don't count on those cheap shots taken under an assumed nickname remaining anonymous. "People have a legal right under the First Amendment to criticize companies anonymously. It is troubling that companies are using lawsuits this way to find out who is criticizing them. And that some providers are so easily giving up the names." Yahoo! said the company does what it can to protect posters. "We are very, very protective of user information," said Mike Riley, senior producer of Yahoo! Finance. "The only way we will reveal the identity of a user is if we are legally compelled to do so." Although no one had accurate numbers on how many suits have been filed against Internet service providers, "it happens all the time," Gray said. "There are lots and lots of these that never get on the media radar screen because a subpoena is issued, the name is turned over and retribution is taken against someone who may not even know about it." Even free-speech advocates concede that there are legitimate cases in which companies and individuals are libeled or defamed over the Internet. There are examples cited by experts of company executives being called child molesters, adulterers or embezzlers on the Internet. No special protections against libeling or defaming a person apply to the Internet, experts said. Gray said that, in general, a statement posted on the Internet or elsewhere could be considered defamatory or libelous if it was specific, made with malicious intent, was "provably false" and caused measurable harm to the target." If free speech does not include shouting "fire" in a crowded threatre unless there actually is a fire, then it should not include shouting "fire" in a crowded theatre when the lights are off, unless there actually is a fire. PCM