Legally Speaking - Legal Recruiter Blog

 FindLaw columnist Eric Sinrod writes regularly in this section about legal developments surrounding technology and the internet.

Lest you think the FTC is sitting back and letting rogue Internet Service Providers run wild in cyberspace, please consider the FTC’s recent shutdown of Pricewert LLC.

According to the FTC, Pricewert knowingly hosted and actively participated in the distribution of spam, child pornography, and other harmful electronic content.
Pricewert, as alleged by the FTC, was doing business under various names, including 3FN and APS Telecom, and actively recruited and colluded with criminals who sought to distribute child pornography, spyware, viruses, Trojan horses, phishing, botnet command and control servers, and pornography displaying violence, bestiality and incest.

The FTC asserted that Pricewert advertised its services “in the darkest corners of the Internet,” which included a forum for communications between criminals.

The FTC further alleged that Pricewert’s use of botnets (large computer networks that have been compromised and enslaved by a “bot herder” and that can be used for the sending of spam and the launching of denial of service attacks) included the control of more than 4,500 malicious software programs hosted by 3FN. This malware is asserted to have included programs capable of keystroke logging, password stealing, data stealing, programs with hidden backdoor remote control activity, and spam distribution programs.

The FTC filed a recent lawsuit in federal court in San Jose, California and charged that Pricewert’s distribution of illegal, malicious and harmful content and the deployment of botnets had compromised thousands of computers already and had caused substantial injuries to consumers.

The FTC promptly moved for a temporary restraining order, which was granted by the court. As a result, Pricewert’s alleged illegal activities are prohibited, at least for now, and its upstream Internet providers and data centers are required to cease providing services to Pricewert. Moreover, Pricewert’s assets have been frozen.

The case is not over, and Pricewert will have a chance to fully provide its factual version of events in support of its defense. But this case should serve as notice that the FTC can and will flex its muscles when it believes that serious wrongdoing is occurring in cyberspace.

Eric Sinrod is a partner in the San Francisco office of Duane Morris LLP (http://www.duanemorris.com) where he focuses on litigation matters of various types, including information technology and intellectual property disputes. His Web site is http://www.sinrodlaw.com and he can be reached at ejsinrod@duanemorris.com.

The Family and Medical Leave Act (”FMLA”) was amended last year to provide for two new forms of leave for eligible employees who have a family member on active duty in the armed forces. These amendments afford eligible employees the opportunity to take “military caregiver leave” to care for covered service members. The other form of leave provided is “qualifying exigency leave” for any qualifying event that arises from a family member being called to active duty or receiving notice of an impending call to active duty status.

The U.S. Department of Labor has issued detailed regulations implementing these two new forms of leave for employers with 50 or more employees. Employers are required to update their FMLA policies, post revised FMLA notices and provide for these two new additional forms of leave for their eligible employees. For an indepth discussion of these new forms of leaves, see this author’s article “Leave for Military Family Members - What Employers Need to Know” in this week’s online version of Crain’s Workforce Management and the December 10, 2008 post in this blog..

Paul Cherner is a labor and employment attorney in Chicago, IL. Visit his blog at http://hrcounselblog.com.

On May 12, 2009, the Pennsylvania Department of Aging and the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare, through its Office of Long-Term Living, announced creation of a new advisory council to focus on “quality management of in-home and community services” provided in the Commonwealth.

The DoA’s press release, entitled “Council Formed to Advise on Improving Services to Older Adults, People with Disabilities,” briefly explained the need and the objectives:
The Pennsylvania Department of Aging and the Office of Long-Term Living today announced the formation of a 15-member Quality Council that will advise on new policies and procedures to ensure quality management of in-home and community services.

“Many older citizens and those with disabilities prefer to live independently and at home — rather than in a nursing facility — so we want to make sure that the services we provide are the best that can be offered,” said Secretary of Aging John Michael Hall.

“The new council brings together experts from across Pennsylvania to help us improve on our programs.”

The Office of Long-Term Living will receive the council’s recommendations, based on its surveys, research and reports, to help provide the highest quality of assistance to the thousands of consumers who receive services in their homes. These services include attendant care, transportation, home-delivered meals for older adults, home health and personal assistance services. * * *
The new council is a mix of state employees (six members appointed from the staff of DPW’s Office of Long-Term Living) and Pennsylvania citizens (nine members).

The Press release did not identify the staff members, but did identify the public members, four of whom live in Philadelphia:
• Jack Armbruster, Erie
• Carl Bailey, Philadelphia
• Kimberly Byrd, Philadelphia
• Richard Kiel, Fayetteville
• Carol Marfisi, Philadelphia
• German Parodi, Philadelphia
• Kimberly Pirilla-Scalise, Belle Vernon
• Dorothy Robison, Lancaster
• Sue Ellen Stelevich, Kingston

Given the growing need both in rural communities and in western Pennsylvania, I wonder why there is no representative from a sparsely populated county, and no representative from Allegheny County, which have significant senior populations.

Regardless, the announcement of such a “Quality Council” monitor to provide input about independent living regulations on an advisory basis to State Government is a step forward.

As the Commonwealth’s population ages (creating demand), as federal funding diminishes (reducing nursing home services), and as new technologies evolve (supporting or monitoring services provided at home or in personal care homes), “quality control” should remain a primary concern.

Neil E. Hendershot is a practicing & teaching lawyer in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania who works daily in the legal areas covered by the PA EE&F Law Blog.