Sunday, April 18, 2010

Beginnings of a Digital "Bill of Rights"

Creating a digital bill of rights is no easy task, and I'm sure we will have a variety of opinions, arguments, concerns about diction and syntax, etc. Nevertheless, here's a beginning...

Reproduction:

People, having legally acquired data content, have the right to,
(i) backup copies of content
(ii) translate content into comparable formats
(iii) use said content on the platform of their own choice

Speech:

The right for speech to be transmitted end-to-end and to potentially be heard shall not be unexpectedly censored without the consent of the potential recipient.

Derivative Works:

The right to participate in non-commercial, diverse, modern culture by significantly modifying, reinventing, or publishing derivative works shall not be infringed but in a manner to be proscribed by law.

Security:

The right of people to be secure against unreasonable breaches of their personal information and history shall not be violated.

The right of consumers to a respectable and reasonable expectation of treatment by information aggregators at all times shall not be violated except insofar as federal law provides exception.

Open Access and Architecture:

The right to engage in open architecture and open standards shall not be prevented.

Congress shall make no law proscribing the proliferation, locations, and depth of digital connections and networks, or prohibiting the traffic of information on such networks, except insofar as it violates codified law.

Privacy:

The right of people to freedom from surveillance in their network traffic, passwords, encryptions, and otherwise safeguarded communications, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the database to be searched, and the information to be seized.

No data monitoring device shall be installed on any device, without the consent of the owner, but in a manner to be proscribed by law.

Due Process and Compensation:

The right of the people to recourse through an honest and timely system for settling disputes with their data aggregators and their subsidiaries shall not be infringed.

Proprietary, private information shall not be taken for public use without just compensation.

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