iAmErika

Tuesday, December 27, 2016

CAN-SPAM Act 2014

  • Don’t use false or misleading header information.
  • Don’t use deceptive subject lines.
  • Identify the message as an advertisement.
  • Tell recipients where you’re located.
  • Tell recipients how to opt out of receiving future email from you.
  • Honor opt-out requests promptly.
  • Monitor what others are doing on your behalf.
For more information visit the FTC Compliance Guide.

Wednesday, December 14, 2016

Revenge Porn

Innocent victims of vengeful lovers are living through a revenge porn nightmare but laws are finally catching up and abusers are being charged.  With the increase in cell phone technology and the popularity of social networking, the explosion of revenge porn has become an alarming social phenomenon.



California Governor Jerry Brown signed into law SB 255, or the "Revenge Porn" bill, on October 1, 2013. The law makes it a crime to post sexually explicit pictures or videos online of another person without his or her permission with the intent to cause emotional distress or to publicly humiliate the victim.

Detectives from the Los Angeles Police Department West Valley Division, Sex Crimes Unit detectives have arrested 32-year-old Sergio Ortiz. He was arrested for 647(j)4 A of the Penal Code - Distribute Private Image of Intimate Body Part(s) of Another. Detectives are asking for the public's help in locating additional individuals who may have been victims of Sergio Ortiz.

REVENGE PORN SUSPECT ARRESTED NR16284JH. States News Service, 12 Sept. 2016. Accessed 14 Dec. 2016.

Independant.co.ukJoanne Fitton, 39, had a brief relationship with Andrew Scott, 39, and after breaking up she quit after a topless photograph of her was sent to school governors by a man she met on an internet dating site.

"Head quits after her lover posts revenge porn." Daily Mail [London, England], 24 Oct. 2016, p. 23.  Accessed 14 Dec. 2016.

Ellie Melaugh is believed to be the first female convicted of targeting a man since so-called revenge porn legislation was introduced a year ago. The 20-year-old uploaded intimate photographs of her former boyfriend to Facebook and Twitter, and set up a fake profile on dating site Plenty of Fish. From April last year UK law made it illegal to share sexually explicit images without the subject's consent. The maximum penalty is two years' jail.

"Woman put her ex through revenge porn nightmare; First ever case of male partner being targeted." Daily Mail [London, England], 9 Apr. 2016, p. 47.  Accessed 14 Dec. 2016.

David K. Elam II was charged with stalking, aggravated identity theft, and unauthorized access to the computer of the woman, whom he had met through an online dating service. K&L Gates legal firm suit seeks money damages, asserting that he infringed on the woman's right to keep the sexually explicit videos private under federal copyright law.

Goldstein, Matthew. "Law Firm to Pursue 'Revenge Porn' Case." New York Times, 2 Apr. 2016, p. B2(L). . Accessed 14 Dec. 2016.

In 2004, New Jersey passed the nation's first such legislation. The statute makes it a crime for a person who knows "that he is not licensed or privileged to do so" to nonetheless disclose "any photograph, film, videotape, recording or any other reproduction of the image of another person whose intimate parts are exposed or who is engaged in an act of sexual penetration or sexual contact, unless that person has consented to such disclosure."

In 2014, Mary Anne Franks, a University of Miami law professor who has advocated for revenge-porn laws, was repeatedly attacked by online trolls. Goldberg, in a show of support, sent her a lipstick with the name Lady Danger. Franks said "She included a card where she'd written, 'This is what I wear when I want to feel like a warrior.'

Several years ago, Goldberg was harassed by a vengeful ex. At the time, she was working as the director of legal services at the Vera Institute, a criminal-justice nonprofit in Manhattan. The ex threatened to send intimate pictures she'd given him to her professional colleagues. "I stand before you as a lawyer but also as somebody's target," Goldberg said recently, in a speech that she gave at a conference on domestic abuse, in Albany. "When I went to the police, they told me it was not a criminal issue." She'd been frightened and embarrassed, and after the ex was served with a restraining order-he did not disseminate the pictures-she decided to start her own firm. As she put it to me, "That way, I could be the lawyer I'd needed."

TALBOT, MARGARET. "Taking Trolls To Court." New Yorker 92.40 (2016): 56. MasterFILE Premier. Web. 14 Dec. 2016.

The act of posting or distributing nude pictures or videos without the consent of the other party with the intention of humiliating them, ruin their reputation, or to blackmail them is a serious and legal problem affecting children and adults.  Often the shame is too much to bear and sometimes has tragic results, especially for children.  We accept the reality that consenting adults may be reckless to the extent of recording their intimacy for their own pleasure, but it is wrong for one of them to then use that to humiliate or blackmail the other partner.  Everyone, including Catholic priests, could be victims of this cyber crime due to technology.  If you are one of these victims, dish some attitude back, and hold them accountable. Abusers are just one click away from jail.

Wednesday, September 21, 2016

Taxonomy Vs. Folksonomy

Taxonomies are a consistent way of classifying and describing content and information that allows people to think about information in the same way. This type of system ensures that content is stored and managed in a manner that is consistent with that type of content
For example see this Taxonomic Rank image.


On the other hand, folksonomies have no classification restrictions.  They are user generated tags which provide meaning to the users.  The sharing of knowledge is greater since tagging generates communication.  The easier to understand tags also assist search and retrieval of information.
For example social networking hashtags on Twitter and Facebook, and Pinterest photosharing.

Monday, September 12, 2016

Underestimating Online Retail Sales

Why Online Retail Sales are Much Larger than the US Census Data Reports

Reliable Source: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/Papers.cfm?abstract_id=2716266

The Social Science Resource Network (SSRN) posted this article recently on February 7, 2016. 

As the SSRN is an authority source therefore the information is unbiased.  It is important when trying to determine if the online business could be larger than it is reported by the Census Bureau (another authority resource).

The information is written by experts by a private business and the universities of Chicago Law School, University College London, and  Massachusetts Institute of Technology.  It comes from an authority website SSRN and the authors are currently from an educational facility so they highly regarded by peers in the industry. 

The Social Science Resource Network (SSRN) adheres to high standards of the Spanish National Research Council.  Articles are uploaded directly on the website and rated by download popularity.  There are a lot of articles written by experts in their fields.  The website is considered a top authority by the Ranking Web of Repositories, a group belonging to the Spanish National Research Council.

The purpose of the website is to inform of the latest trends in Social Science.  It has articles posted by scientists and educators in their fields.  This article persuades people that online sales are under reported.  It links to my research because it shows that the value in sales for the website may be underestimated.  If the census bureau predicts online sales to rise by 40% by 2020 and the current figures are under-reported in the data then it gives more motivation for new competition. 

Social Science Resource Network. Spanish National Research Council, 2016. Web. 7 Apr. 2016

Research Pre-Search


Step 1. Write your topic, preferably as a question.
Step 2. Identify the 2 or 3 key words in your topic.
Step 3. Brainstorm related terms for your main words.