From: sbarber@panix.com (Steve Barber) Newsgroups: comp.org.eff.talk Subject: Exon Amendment text Date: 9 Sep 1994 12:29:26 -0500 Organization: UTexas Mail-to-News Gateway Lines: 505 Sender: nobody@cs.utexas.edu Distribution: inet NNTP-Posting-Host: news.cs.utexas.edu [ Here is the text of the Exon "Communications Decency" amendment to the Communications Act of 1994 (S. 1822) currently winding its way through Congress. Whether you think its effects would be good or bad, it's worth getting familiar with what the text actually says. Included here is the amendment text, Sen. Exon's introductory speech, and an article placed in the Cong. Record to bolster his position. -Steve Barber] CONGRESSIONAL RECORD -- Senate Tuesday, July 26, 1994 (Legislative day of Wednesday, July 20, 1994) 103rd Congress 2nd Session 140 Cong Rec S 9745 REFERENCE: Vol. 140 No. 99 TITLE: COMMUNICATIONS ACT OF 1994 EXON AMENDMENT NO. 2404 SPEAKER: MR. EXON (Ordered referred to the Committee on Commerce. ) Mr. EXON submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by him to the bill (S. 1822) to foster the further development of the Nation's telecommunications infrastructure and protection of the public interest, and for other purposes; as follows: On page 104, below line 12, add the following: TITLE VIII-OBSCENE, HARASSING, AND WRONGFUL UTILIZATION OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS FACILITIES SEC. 801. OBSCENE OR HARASSING USE OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS FACILITIES UNDER THE COMMUNICATIONS ACT OF 1934. (a) Expansion of Offenses. -Section 223 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 223) is amended- (1) in subsection (a)(1)- (A) by striking out "telephone" in the matter above subparagraph (A) and inserting in lieu thereof "telecommunications device"; (B) by striking out "makes any comment, request, suggestion or proposal" in subparagraph (A) and inserting in lieu thereof "makes, transmits, or otherwise makes available any comment, request, suggestion, proposal, image, or other communication; (C) by striking out subparagraph (B) and inserting in lieu thereof the following new subparagraph (B): "(B) makes a telephone call or utilizes a telecommunications device, whether or not conversation or communication ensues, without disclosing his identity and with intent to annoy, abuse, threaten, or harass any person at the called number or who receives the communication;" and (D) by striking out subparagraph (D) and inserting in lieu thereof the following new subparagraph (D): "(D) makes repeated telephone calls or repeatedly initiates communication with a telecommunications device, during which conversation or communication ensues, solely to harass any person at the called number or who receives the communication,"; (2) in subsection (a)(2), by striking out "telephone facility" and inserting in lieu thereof "telecommunications facility"; (3) in subsection (b)(1)- (A) in subparagraph (A)- (i) by striking out "telephone," and inserting in lieu thereof "telecommunications device,"; and (ii) by inserting "or initiated the communication" after "placed the call"; and (B) in subparagraph (B), by striking out "telephone facility" and inserting in lieu thereof "telecommunications facility"; and (4) in subsection (b)(2)- (A) in subparagraph (A)- (i) by striking out "by means of telephone, makes" and inserting in lieu thereof "by means of telephone or telecommunications device, makes, transmits, or makes available"; and (ii) by inserting "or initiated the communication" after "placed the call"; and (B) in subparagraph (B), by striking out "telephone facility" and inserting in lieu thereof "telecommunications facility". (b) Expansion of Penalties. -Such section, as amended by subsection (a) of this section, is further amended- (1) by striking out "$ 50,000'' each place it appears and inserting in lieu thereof "$ 100,000'' and (2) by striking out "six months" each place it appears and inserting in lieu thereof "2 years". (c) Prohibition on Provision of Access. -Subsection (c)(1) of such action is amended by striking out "telephone" and inserting in lieu thereof "telecommunications device". (d) Conforming Amendment. -The section head of such section is amended to read as follows: "OBSCENE OR HARASSING UTILIZATION OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS DEVICES AND FACILITIES IN THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA OR IN INTERSTATE OR FOREIGN COMMUNICATIONS". SEC. 802. OBSCENE PROGRAMMING ON CABLE TELEVISION. Section 639 of the Communications Act of 1943 (47 U.S.C. 559) is amended by striking out "$ 10,000'' and inserting in lieu thereof "$ 100,000''. SEC. 803. BROADCASTING OBSCENE OF LANGUAGE ON RADIO. Section 1464 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by striking out "$ 10,000'' and inserting in lieu thereof "$ 100,000''. SEC. 804. INTERCEPTION AND DISCLOSURE OF ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONS. Section 2511 of title 18, United States Code, is amended- (1) in paragraph (1)- (A) by striking out "wire, oral, or electronic communication" each place it appears and inserting in lieu thereof "wire, oral, electronic, or digital communication"; and (B) in the matter designated as item (b), by striking out "oral communication" in the matter above clause (i) and inserting in lieu thereof "communication"; and (2) in paragraph (2)(a), by striking out "wire or electronic communication service" each place it appears (other than in the second sentence) and inserting in lieu thereof "wire, electronic, or digital communication service". SEC. 805. ADDITIONAL PROHIBITION ON BILLING FOR TOLL-FREE TELEPHONE CALLS. Section 228(c)(6) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 228(c)(6)) is amended- (1) by striking out "or" at the end of subparagraph (C); (2) by striking out the period at the end of subparagraph (D) and inserting in lieu thereof "; or"; and (3) by adding at the end thereof the following: "(E) the calling party being assessed, by virtue of being asked to connect or otherwise transfer to a pay-per-call service, a charge for the call.". SEC. 806. SCRAMBLING OF CABLE CHANNELS FOR NONSUBSCRIBERS. Part IV of title VI of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 551 et seq.,) is amended by adding at the end the following: "SEC. 640. SCRAMBLING OF CABLE CHANNELS FOR NONSUBSCRIBERS. "(a) Requirement. -In providing video programming unsuitable for children to any subscriber through a cable system, a cable operator shall fully scramble the video and audio portion of each channel such programming that the subscriber does not subscribe it. "(b) Definition. -In this section the term 'to scramble', in the case of any video programming, means to rearrange the content of the signal of the programming so that the programming cannot be apprehended by persons unauthorized to apprehend the programming.". Mr. EXON. Mr. President, I rise to file an amendment to S. 1822, the Communications Act of 1994. I expect the Senate Commerce Committee to take this legislation up next week. I intend to offer this amendment at that time. Simply put, this Communications Decency amendment modernizes the anti-harassment, decency, and anti-obscenity provisions of the Communications Act of 1934. When these provisions were originally drafted, they were couched in the context of telephone technology. These critical public protections must be updated for the digital world of the future. Before too long a host of new telecommunications devices will be used by citizens to communicate with each other. Telephones may one day be relegated to museums next to telegraphs. Conversation is being replaced with communication and electrical transmissions are being replaced with digital transmissions. As the Congress rewrites the Communications Act, it is necessary and appropriate to update these important public protections. Anticipating this exciting future of communications, the Communications Decency amendment I introduce today will keep pace with the coming change. References to telephones in the current law are replaced with references to telecommunications device. The amendment also increases the maximum penalties connected with the decency provisions of the Communications Act to $ 100,000 and 2 years imprisonment. The provision requires cable providers of adult pay-per-view programming to fully scramble the audio and video portions of the programming to homes which do not subscribe to the particular program. Unsuspecting families should not be assaulted with audio of indecent programming or partially scrambled video. The amendment also prevents individuals and companies engaged in the pay-per-call services from by-passing number blocking by connecting individuals to pay-per-call services via a toll-free number. These measures will help assure that the information superhighway does not turn into a red light district. It will help protect children from being exposed to obscene, lewd, or indecent messages. This legislation also protects against harassment. Recent reports of electronic stalking by individuals who use computer communications to leave threatening and harassing messages sent chills through the users of new technologies. Recent stories about the misuse of the internet and 800 numbers also demand action. I ask that two stories related to the misuse of the information technologies be included at the end of my remarks as illustrations of the type of activities this amendment attempts to address. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that an article be printed in the Record. There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows: (From the Los Angeles Times, July 12, 1994) Info Superhighway Veers into Pornographic Ditch Dramatically illustrating the security problems posed by the rapid growth of the Internet computer network, one of the nation's three nuclear-weapons lab has confirmed that computer hackers were using its computers to store and distribute hard-core pornography. Officials at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in Livermore, Calif., which has highly sophisticated security procedures, said Monday that the incident was among the most serious breaches of computer security ever at the lab, which lies east of San Francisco. The offending computer was shut down after lab officials were alerted by a reporter who was investigating Internet hacking. The computer contained more than 1,000 pornographic images. It was believed to be the largest cache of illegal hard-core pornography ever found on a computer network. While hackers once devoted their efforts to disrupting computer systems at large organizations or stealing electronic information, they have now developed ways of seizing control of Internet-linked computers and using them to store and distribute pornography, stolen computer software and other illicit information. The Internet, a "network of networks" originally designed to connect computers at universities and government research labs, has grown dramatically in size and technical sophistication in recent years. It is now used by many businesses and individual computer users and is often viewed as the prototype for the "information superhighway" of the future. But the Internet has an underside, where so-called pirates with code names such as "Mr. Smut," "Acidflux" and "The Cowboy" traffic in illegal or illegally-obtained electronic information. The structure of the Internet means that such pirates can carry out their crimes from almost anywhere in the world. Tracing them is nearly impossible. The FBI late last week confirmed that it was investigating software piracy on the Internet. A reporter discovered a number of sites at prominent institutions that were being used to distribute stolen software, including one in the office of the president of the University of California, Berkeley, and another at Lawrence Berkeley National laboratory. Pirates also have their own "chat" lines, a series of channels within a service called the Internet Relay Chat. An elaborate pecking order determines who will be allowed to take part in these conversations-newcomers can often wangle their way in if they have a particularly hot piece of software to offer. Sandy Merola, deputy director of information and computing at the Berkeley lab, said the pirate site was shut down last week after the Times investigation revealed its existence. Merola said the Department of Energy, which oversees lab operations, as well as the FBI, had been notified of the incident. At Lawrence Livermore, officials said Monday that they believed at least one lab employee was involved in the pornography ring, along with an undetermined number of outside collaborators. Chuck Cole, deputy associate director of computing at the lab, said that unauthorized graphical images had been found on a Livermore computer. He confirmed that they were pornographic. The employee has been placed on "investigatory leave" and his security badge confiscated while an investigation is undertaken, the lab said. It was unclear whether the pornographic images were being sold or how many people had gained access to them. The pictures were sufficiently graphic that they would probably be considered obscene by the courts, and therefore transmitting them over the Internet would be illegal. The massive amount of storage capacity used in the Livermore scheme shows how Internet hacking could be quite profitable. Seizing control of large and sophisticated computer systems at universities or government laboratories can save unscrupulous entrepreneurs large sums of money. One computer expert said there might be more to the incident than met the eye. The expert suggested that the hardcore pornography may be a cover for an ultra sophisticated espionage program, in which a "sniffer" program combs through other Livermore computers, encodes the passwords and accounts it finds, and then hides them within the pornographic images, perhaps to be down-loaded later by foreign agents. But Cole said there was no possibility of a computer intruder gaining access to classified data at Livermore Labs. 800- Number Maneuver Evades Phone-Sex Rules (By Henry J. Cordes) Lincoln.--Scanning his Ralston church's phone bill recently, the Rev. Michael Thomas found $ 160 in calls to a phone-sex service. Thomas said he was appalled that someone would make such calls from Messiah Lutheran Church. None were authorized. He said he was more appalled that the calls were possible. Calls to a phone-sex service had troubled Messiah Lutheran before, prompting the church to block all calls to 900 toll numbers-the once typical avenue to phone-sex services. Now it appeared someone had skirted the block, Thomas said, by calling a toll-free 800 number and then asking to be transferred to a phone-sex line with a big per-minute charge. "I'm outraged that there is this loophole in the system." Thomas said. Thomas isn't the only one. The Nebraska Public Service Commission has received dozens of similar complaints in recent months. Dwight Wininger, the commission's executive secretary, said many "purveyors of adult entertainment" that provide phone sex, psychic predictions and conversation have started using 800 numbers with reversible charges to peddle their services. Wininger said the companies may see 800 numbers as a way to get around phone blocks and the regulations that the federal government and some states have put on 900 toll calling. "We beat back the first wave, and now they're coming back with 800 numbers." Wininger said. "Here's how the Public Service Commission says the new tactic works: A caller dials a toll-free 800 number and reaches an operator, who gives the caller an "identification number." The caller may be asked to punch in the number then, or to hang up and dial the 800 number again. Either way, the phone-sex service uses the identification number as permission to reverse charges. If people want to dial 800 numbers on their phones and use the services, that's their business, Wininger said. The problem is that many who call are using phones they're not authorized to use. Boys Town has been billed for $ 92 worth of calls and the Omaha School District for $ 68, even though both block 900 calls. One Omaha woman reported to the commission that her son had rung up calls to 800 numbers costing $ 1,384. Hotels are especially vulnerable, PSC officials said. Guests can gain access to phone-sex lines by calling 800 numbers from their rooms and be gone long before the bill arrives. A guest at the American Family Inn in Bellevue recently rang up three calls to an 800 phone-sex service. The bills totaled $ 156. "It's very, very scary," said John Hobbs, the hotel's manager. "It makes you think of not allowing 800 calls to leave the hotel." The Ben Franklin Motel near Papillion also has complained to the commission about 800 calls. Gene Hand, head of the commission's telecommunications division, said many people may be surprised that they can be charged for a call to an 800 number. Federal regulations allow for charges on 800 calls if the caller has a "presubscription or other arrangement." Hand said adult entertainment companies apparently believe that the identification number they provide constitutes subscribing to the service. To talk to the "sexy hot dream girls" provided by one 800 service, a reporter received a four-digit number from an operator. After calling the 800 number back and repeating the four-digit number, the caller was connected to the service. On another service, a recorded voice said that to "talk to one of our hot babes," the caller needed to dial the last four numbers of the phone from which the call was placed. Hand said public utility regulators across the country are considering pushing the Federal Communications Commission to change rules to bar all billing on 800 calls. For people who find unauthorized 800 calls on their phone bills, local phone companies have been good about waiving charges, Hand said. Hand said the Public Service Commission will not permit phone service to be disconnected for failing to pay for unauthorized calls to the services. He said Nebraskans who need help can call the commission at 800-526-0017. "And that is toll-free," he said. Closing Loophole on Telephone Dirty Talk More power to the Nebraska Public Service Commission if it asks the Federal Communications Commission to bar companies from billings customers who dial 800 numbers. Phone-sex services have been moving to 800 numbers to get around blocks on 900 toll calls. Concerned parents and others who don't want their phones used to dial Phone-a-Bimbo and the like can have their phones fixed so calls to the 900 prefix are blocked. Now the people who run the talk-sex lines have found a loophole in the federal regulations governing 800 numbers, which people assume are toll-free. If callers give an operator an identification number that shows they are "subscribers" to the service in question, they can be billed for an 800 call. The process is quick and easy. And it allows the "subscriber" to call the phone-sex line from any telephone. So even though parents and business people might have 900 numbers blocked, their phones can still be used for expensive dirty talk. That shouldn't be. Phone-sex and similar "services" ought to be restricted to the 900 prefix, where people know what they are getting and can block if they don't want access. The integrity of the 800 system is especially important in Omaha, where a thriving telemarketing industry relies on public trust in 800 service. Gene Hand, head of the Nebraska Public Service Commission's telecommunications division, said that public utility regulators may ask the FCC to plug the loophole in the 800 service regulations. That can't happen soon enough.