British and American federal lawmakers plan to meet in February to discuss spam, viruses, and other information security issues, and the FBI is backing the summit to the hilt.
Edward Gibson, an FBI special agent and assistant legal attaché to the U.S. Embassy here, said the summit will focus in particular on one area. "But for the viruses there would be no spam,” Gibson told the Computer and Internet Crime Conference. “That's why we see ever more virulent viruses."
The British lawmakers – Members of Parliament Derek Wyatt, Ian Stewart, and Ian Taylor – are traveling under the aegis of the All-Party Parliamentary Internet Group. Accompanying them will be Claire Hobson, who heads up DTI’s British telecommunications policy. Microsoft and MessageLabs are co-sponsoring the trip with the FBI.
The lawmakers will also discuss an agenda for international policy on Internet problems like zombie computers, rogue dialers, and distributed denial-of-service attacks. "Spam is still a problem but there is hope," Gibson said. "The FBI is sponsoring this event which will address the work of CAN-SPAM and ever more virulent viruses."
The problem, according to several analysts in and on the periphery of the industry, is that international spam policy and law is in a tangle, not just because some spam laws – CAN-SPAM, for example – still leave room for even a single spam entrée which pries open the way for more.
“Compliance with legislation is expensive,” information management director Michael Colao said of Dresdner Wasserstein banking company, “and it has little benefit to the companies involved. And, CAN-SPAM has been ineffective.”
