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Deutsch: Französische Behörden wollen Nutzer zur Installation von Spyware ver...
Hadopi (the French Authority for the implementation of the 3 strikes law) did not make public the document regarding the draft specifications of the security measures for the Internet (part of the three strikes system), although the document should lay at the basis of a public consultation.
However, under the pretext that the document was a preparatory one, the authority decided to treat it as confidential. The website Numerama.com has made the document public on the basis of the right to information and having in view that a public consultation should rely on a public document and not a confidential one.
According to the document, French Internet users could soon be required to install spyware on their PCs tracking down their searching habits and analysing the applications installed on their PCs, in order to prevent "file-sharing piracy".
The three strikes law came into force in June 2010 and it is still unclear what technical measures will be used to apply the scheme. According to the leaked document, Hadopi's spyware, that could be included in an antivirus and/or parental control solution, would log Internet usage on a certain PC with a clear text log file and an encrypted log file, that could be sent to Hadopi in case of a complaint.
The log files that are supposed to be kept encrypted for a year, should include detailed information regarding the date and time when certain applications were launched and the search for keywords that are blacklisted.
There will be several types of lists such as a black list of the sites forbidden by court order, a gray list of the suspicious applications, a gray list of suspicious key-words and a white list of the sites with a legal offer.
The document states that the respective solution should have a minimum effect upon the performances of the equipment, be easy to install and use, be available under an open source licence to all operating systems and not allow transmission of data to a third party. The registration of navigation or downloading history will be forbidden. Also, the use of the software would have to be voluntary, and the account holders would have the possibility to disable the application at will.
La Quadrature du Net has condemned the proposal and its spokesman Jérémie Zimmermann stated that it was worrying that "the government may seriously consider these log functions, recording the slightest facts and gestures of the users, and extending the system to all future devices".
Hadopi decided to explain the three strikes system by distributing during weekends 20-22 and 27-29 August, 260 000 information flyers to drivers coming back from their vacation, at toll points on France's motorways.
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