Date: Mon,  8 Feb 93 07:17:51 EST
From: Rich=Gautier%SETA%DRC@S1.DRC.COM
Subject: File 7--Common Carrier Review Request

REQUEST FOR REVIEW - COMMON CARRIER STATUS BILL

Electronic mediums have increased over the years.  People have drifted
to communications using E-mail, the Internet, Online services,
Bulletin Board Services, and other services that network computers
together.

A problem that exists, however, involves the legal status of these
information services.  AT&T has long ago been proclaimed to be a
"common carrier".  Under this status, communications that occur over
their communication lines (the medium), are not held as the
responsibility of that company.  People who use that medium are held
responsible for what they say and do, and the carrier is not held
responsible for any crimes (i.e. conspiracy, planning to kill the
president, etc.).

What is needed, is a bill that updates the legal status of bulletin
board services to "common carrier" status.  This would free carriers
to have concern about how their service was operating, and free them
to stop monitoring conversations, etc. on their services.  It would
allow for a greater freedom of speech, free up restrictions (real or
implied) on the businesses, and hold individuals to a greater degree
of responsibility for their actions.

In a ruling for Compuserve in a recent court case, Compuserve was
found to be NOT responsible for child pornography that was being
passed through their online service.  They assisted in the catching of
the responsible individuals.  The individuals were easily tracked
through usage logs and other electronic means.  The users of the
medium were held responsible for their own actions.

Compuserve is not the ONLY online service out there.  Internet sites
that offer electronic mail, and bulletin board services that offer
messaging and file transfer services to its users should also be able
to claim "common carrier" status.  A bill is needed to make this clear
to the operators, and users of these services.

In order to provide the necessary responsibility levels, system usage
should also have restrictions on anonymity of messages/files.  The
system should not be allowed to carry messages or files that originate
from an unknown source.  Restrictions on "common carrier" services
should mandate that the service in question be able to identify from
which source it obtained any specific message or file.  This will
restrict "common carriers" from carrying, let us say, child
pornography, without knowing where it was obtained and without being
able to trace its source.

Restrictions should also be made to specify a requirement to notify
authorities upon any illegal traffic that may be carried over their
carrier service.  The Bulletin Board, for an example, should notify
police personnel about any illegal traffic on their board.  However,
these BBS systems should NOT be mandated to oversee all the traffic
that occurs on their systems.  Much like the telephone companies,
where traffic is only made known on occasion, BBS operators often do
not read ALL message traffic on their BBS.

I am looking for any comments that others out there may have on this
subject, and I would like to open it for discussion.  (i.e. I may be
completely off-base, and if so, I want to know about it.)

Please read this document, and reply to me personally, or through this
publication.  (RG%SETA%DRC@S1.DRC.COM)

                                    Rich Gautier

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