Rep. Mary Bono Mack Introduces Informed P2P User Act To Combat Inadvertent File Sharing
On Thursday, March 5, 2009, Congresswoman Mary Bono Mack (R-CA), Congressman John Barrow (D-GA) and Congressman Joe Barton (R-TX) introduced the Informed P2P User Act (H.R. 1319) which requires peer-to-peer ("P2P") software makers to make certain changes to their software to prevent users from inadvertently sharing files from their computers. The proposed law would require both "clear and conspicuous notice" of what files the P2P software would being sharing and "informed consent" from the user, both before installation of the software and initial activation of file sharing functions. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) would be empowered under the new law to enforce violations as unfair or deceptive trade practices.
Links:
- H.R. 1319, the Informed P2P User Act is available here (.pdf) or from Rep. Mack's website here (.pdf)
- Rep. Mack's press release
