Re: can a random number be subject to a takedown?]

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: Daniel Weitzner <djweitzner () csail mit edu>
Date: May 2, 2007 11:59:48 AM EDT
To: dave () farber net
Cc: ip () v2 listbox com
Subject: Re: [IP] can a random number be subject to a takedown?]

for IP if you like...

With great respect and sympathy for those who are opposed to  
overbroad copyright laws such as the DMCA, asking the question  
whether a random number can be banned misses the point. This is a bit  
like asking whether a basic chemical element, carbon, can be banned  
to regulated in the name of protecting against climate change, or the  
iron in handguns for the purpose of reducing gun violence. Laws  
depend on context and intent, not just abstract qualities.

To me, the thousands of Digg users who re-submitted the 'number'  
after it was taken down are the interesting part of the story. If  
they each felt the need to express that number for some reason other  
than to liberate information on DVDs, then my guess is they'd have a  
great First Amendment defense against any DMCA action, but if their  
intent is to enable circumvention of copy protection techniques, then  
it seems pretty obvious that they've violated the law. Should they  
proceed with civil disobedience nonetheless? I guess you'd have to  
consult Thoreau (http://thoreau.eserver.org/civil.html) and ask  
whether resisting overbroad copyright laws in the moral equivalent of  
opposing British tyranny in India (Gandhi), racism in the US (MLK) or  
slavery in the US (Thoreau).

Danny


On May 2, 2007, at 11:24 AM, David Farber wrote:

> Begin forwarded message:
>
> From: John Kemp <john.kemp () mac com>
> Date: May 2, 2007 11:22:36 AM EDT
> To: David Farber <dave () farber net>
> Subject: [Fwd: can a random number be subject to a takedown?]
>
> For IP perhaps?
>
> http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/6615047.stm
>
> Regards,
>
> - John
>
> From: "Perry E. Metzger" <perry () piermont com>
> Date: May 1, 2007 3:53:32 PM EDT
> To: cryptography () metzdowd com
> Subject: can a random number be subject to a takedown?
>
>
>
> A lot of sites have been getting DMCA takedowns for the HD-DVD
> processing key that got leaked recently.
>
> My question to the assembled: are cryptographic keys really subject to
> DMCA subject to takedown requests? I suspect they are not
> copyrightable under the criterion from the phone directory
> precedent.
>
> -- Perry E. Metzger             perry () piermont com
>
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