Evan Mahaneys Leprechaun Talk

As the usually gleeful, wisecracking Wee Ones gathered at my keyboard, I noticed that not many were smiling. That meant something heavy was coming down. It came almost immediately from Mr. Footuriste, our resident futurist who is really miscast for the role of looking into the future. He's a total pessimist. Nonetheless, he stepped forward and poked me in the cuticle of my nail, then intoned, "We have grave news for your readers. Their civil liberties and privacy are in more danger now than they have been since the days of the Inquisition."

For a bunch of little people, the Leprechauns take privacy issues quite seriously. If I didn't know better I would think they belonged to the ACLU - that group of activists in the U.S. who put civil liberties nearly above family relations.

I asked Mr. Footuriste the obvious question. Why was the privacy issue more pressing now than the last time the Leprechauns brought the subject up, about a year ago? Mr. Footuriste wasted no time in answering that question. "It's simple," he said, "all the times before it was mainly governments that were infringing on computer user's freedom. Now it is big business AND the governments. While they may not be working together, they are at least working in tandem."

Unique Identifiers Threaten Privacy

The formidable Ms. Keptic, who is ordinarily one of our more skeptical Leprechauns about believing Internet chat, started quoting some to specialists in the field of privacy protection. "Listen to what an organization called the Center for Democracy and Technology said regarding Intel's new Pentium III chip: 'At its core, the Pentium III PSN establishes a system that supports the wide spread tracking and monitoring of individuals' online behavior. It stands to undermine consumers' efforts to control the use of their information. Our experience warns that without real consumer control and policies limiting their use, unique identifiers threaten privacy.'

"The statement was made by Jerry Berman, Executive Director at the Center for Democracy and Technology, on behalf of his Democracy and Technology Group and two other organizations, the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse and the Consumer Action and Private Citizen group. In addition to these three organizations weighing in, you will find the ever-present ACLU devoting a whole web page to privacy rights. And though their name sounds a little scruffy, there's an organization called Junkbusters Corp. and another organization called the Electronic Privacy Information Center. All of these groups are convinced that citizens around the world are losing their right to privacy."

The Leprechauns brought me to realize exactly how dangerous both government and big business encroachment was. Two things in the news in the last month have heightened awareness of the problem. The first was Intel with their chip that has what amounts to a serial number that can be used to test all sorts of things about a computer user's habits, like what he/she likes, dislikes or considers a secret. Whatever the computer has seen, someone else can obtain and sell it to a marketing company.

In early March it was learned that there is a unique number in each Windows 98 program that will allow Microsoft, or someone with their key information, to download information about a user's computer into a Microsoft database. Microsoft admits there is a unique number in every operating system run - but they deny they are using it to download material.

In the United States the US Senate is again holding hearings to impose filters on all school libraries. All in all, if one listens to the Leprechauns or surfs out on the net, you will find dozens and dozens of instances where either businesses or governments are trying to learn everyone's secrets.

Ms. Thunder is kind of tank-like in both attitude and physical stature. She minced no words when she said, "Tell your readers that governments on both sides of the Atlantic may not be in cahoots with the marketing hucksters who want to gather information by using Microsoft or Intel or any other entry way into your computer. But they are not doing anything to prevent this entryway either. Governments know that if the tunnel into the personal computer exists - governments can figure out a way to use it. Quite simply, O Lover of Lazy Daisy Cake, every computer owner in the world needs to start raising Cain."

I was about to ask how when she puffed herself up and demanded that I take down some URL addresses. "I'm telling everyone to go visit one of these sites. There are plenty more available in every country in the world. But these three have the most links to other sites and these three are the major leaders in fighting off government and private sector invasion of computers." The sites she recommends are:

http://offshoretrust.nu/bbalert/intel-boycott.html (This is the Junkbuster site)

http://www.cdt.org/ (This is the Center for Democracy and Technology site)

Mr. Footuriste spoke up, knowing I wanted to move on to another subject, to say, "As for trends, this is an ongoing trend that will continue until all computers are vulnerable to Big Brother as in government and Big Sister as in private databases." It was a chilling thought to end with.

Adults Sites and IPOs

After several years of meeting at the keyboard, the Leprechauns know the routine pretty well. They know they aren't supposed to show up without something that portends a trend - a look at the future.

They went from being almost overly serious about privacy of the computer to being giddy and giggly about the next trend. In that many governments are trying to figure out a way to put the smut and porn sites out of business, legally or illegally, the startling news they relayed does have a slight connection to the privacy issue.

Mr. Barrister, our own member of the bar, brought us the news that "A group of sharp attorneys and Wall Street bankers have brought a little respectability to 'adult businesses.'" As Mr. Barrister finished the sentence I know my mouth was gaping open. I had no idea where he was going and suggested he fill in the gaps.

"You see, a 28-year-old entrepreneur from Bethesda, MD, near Washington DC, plans to offer a public stock offering on an Adult Internet site. The site is to be called Efox.net. It's actually up now but is not very, ah, revealing. The site owner is J.R. Preston and he plans to raise $7.5 million by going public with his stock. You see, he says the Internet stocks are getting a lot of play lately so that makes two highly popular issues involved in one company.

"Mr. Preston says he plans to have his site concentrate on, and I quote, 'The heterosexual man's favorite pursuits: ladies, automobiles, sports, and stocks.'" I stopped Mr. Barrister saying he was beginning to sound like a commercial. He replied, "No, not at all. But what trend I'm seeing here follows a major trend we have seen with Internet business in the last 90-days. IPOs, those amazing Initial Public Offering stock sales, have exploded all over the web. Now you can expect a lot of rather strange IPOs to come from the fringe areas, like adult sites. I think you will be amazed, O lover of Pumpkin Raisin Cake, how well these fringe IPOs do."

And it was Ms. Keptic, the cynic from the female corps of the Leprechauns who had the final say at our meeting. She ended it all by saying, "Mr. Preston's IPO will do well as will several other adult sites that will go public. Years ago the great American showman and owner of Barnum & Bailey's Circus said it all by saying 'There's a sucker born every minute - and two to take his money.'"

Phrases That Need Translating

Intel spokesman Tom Waldrop discussing the Intel serial number built into each Pentium III chip said:

"We certainly believe that we have not done anything deceptive or illegal."

Translation: We have done nothing illegal and we won't be bullied by a few privacy nuts.

Junkbusters President, Jason Catlett, discussing the unique "tattoo" number in all Windows 98 software that can be used to download data about the user said:

"Microsoft has already caused millions of privacy land mines to be strewn across cyberspace, and consumers are inadvertently adding more every minute. Microsoft created this problem, and they must take responsibility for fixing it."

Translation: "Microsoft has already caused millions of privacy land mines to be strewn across cyberspace and they don't care and are going to continue to deny any potential loss of privacy.

Microsoft's senior vice president, Joachim Kempin, testifying in federal court and specifically talking about monopoly power said:

"I look at the competitors [for] Windows 95 or 98, but when it comes to value propositions, [they] just don't come close to [Windows]. Meaning I believe that the competitors are basically selling inferior type products."

Translation: I know one definition of monopoly is when you can ignore competition - but Microsoft is different . . . . .

A news release from a consortium of 14 major computer-industry companies said:

"International Business Machines Corporation, Motorola, Sun Microsystems, Lucent and 10 other companies have agreed to create a new set of standards based on Sun's Java programming language to interconnect a next generation of smart devices ranging from computers and cell phones to washing machines and dishwashers. . ."

Translation: Watch out Microsoft, we're going to upset your apple cart by developing a new generation computer that doesn't need an operating system.