Technology

Most of us could identify things about competitive markets we find “unfair.”  I know I could. I wish that woman on eBay who keeps outbidding me for antique telephones would just go away. And I wish the Inn at Little Washington wouldn’t charge so much for its excellent dinners.

Most of us don’t think government needs to stamp out these perfectly legitimate business practices. But the U.S. Federal Trade Commission has authority from Congress to stamp out “unfair methods of competition.” And what is “unfair” is whatever a majority of commissioners say it is. Their current target, according to recent press reports, is Google.

Today, a major cybersecurity summit is occurring in nation's capital. The all-star list of attendees includes Gen. Keith Alexander, director of the National Security Agency, Retired Gen. Michael Hayden, former director of both the NSA and Central Intelligence Agency, and former Homeland Security Secretary Gov. Tom Ridge. The roster also includes a number of technology leaders from the business community.
 
This event couldn't come at a better time. In both the public and private sectors, cybersecurity is seriously underfunded. There needs to be renewed focus on evolving the country's defenses to ward off hackers, with particular emphasis put on improving cyberresiliency -- that is, the ability not only to prevent breaches, but to withstand and recover from them when they do inevitably occur.

When I was studying at New York’s Union College in the 1970s, computer science was just beginning to emerge as one of the hottest occupations an enterprising student could pursue. Today, the hot ticket is a degree in computer science with a specialty in data analytics.   



There’s strong demand for data scientists, people who know how to deal with one of today's most popular technology topics, Big Data. That’s the huge trove of raw information that’s now available thanks to the explosion of social media, sensors and other sources. The U.S. Department of Labor forecasts that the number of analytics-based jobs will grow by more than 20 percent between now and 2018 — far outstripping most other categories. At a time when so many recent college graduates are underemployed or searching for jobs, analytics offers the promise of a great career at the cutting edge of technology, business and social change. 



As the U.S. power sector makes investments to modernize the electric grid, one of the basic building blocks is the “smart meter,” which more than half of all U.S. households are expected to receive by 2015. As is the case with any new technology, many consumers are raising questions—what do these new meters do, how will they benefit me, and are they safe? Consumers need and deserve a clear response.

One major benefit is that smart meters improve electric system reliability by providing to utilities near real-time information about electricity use, enabling the utilities to identify and respond more quickly to potential problems that can lead to power outages and act more quickly if an outage occurs. In addition, their two-way communication ability means that customers can receive more accurate information about their electricity use, enabling them to change their consumption habits in a way that lowers their bills.

The Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) protects the privacy of children online who are under the age of 13. The act also stipulates how Websites should seek parental consent when communicating with these minors. The collection of personal information when children use apps on mobile device appears to be less of a worry for companies though, which has the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) concerned.

The House of Representatives recently signed off on another five years of sweeping warrantless surveillance by the National Security Agency, voting by a wide margin to extend the controversial FISA Amendments Act of 2008. But the debate on the House floor showed that the law’s staunchest supporters either don’t understand what the law really says and does—or don’t care.

Speaking at the U.S. Cyber Command Inter-Agency Legal Conference last week, U.S. State Department Legal Advisor Harold Koh confirmed the U.S. position that international law is applicable to the cyber environment.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton made the following remarks today at the Global Infrastructure Conference in Washington, D.C.
 
Well, good morning, and again, welcome to the State Department. I want to thank Deputy Secretary Tom Nides for taking the lead on our economic statecraft agenda. I would thank him for the introduction, but if you want a good introduction, have someone who works for you do it. And Tom, I’m grateful to you for that.
 
I also want to thank all of our State Department team, whom you will be hearing from and meeting with today. Jose, thanks particularly to the Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs for putting this event together and for leading the day-to-day implementation of economic statecraft. And I appreciate the fact that we have so many representatives of the State Department, but also the Commerce Department. So in addition to Deputy Secretary Nides and Under Secretary Bob Hormats, let me also thank Commerce Under Secretary Francisco Sanchez, Commerce Assistant Secretary Nicole Lamb-Hale, and Transportation Assistant Secretary Susan Kurland.

With the announcement of the latest iPhone device this week, the House Telecommunications Subcommittee is holding a hearing today on how more efficient spectrum use by government agencies can translate into benefits for not only millions of American mobile broadband consumers, but for the economy itself. The timing for the hearing couldn’t be better, for it underscores that in a time of ever-increasing consumer demand for mobile services, the goal of freeing up underutilized federal spectrum for commercial mobile services must continue to be one of the nation’s highest technology and economic priorities.

If you’ve listened to commentators on Apple’s patent case against Samsung, you might think last month’s verdict will send us back to the days of payphones and dial-up internet. Some are claiming it will lead to higher prices and reverse the trend of innovation, and others are calling for an end to software patents.