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Next@CNN
Homeland Security Warns Of Windows Bug; Federal Trade Commission Combats Identity Theft; Recording Industry Cracks Down On File-Sharing
Aired August 03, 2003 - 17:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CALLEBS: NEXT@CNN begins in just a minute, after a check of the news headlines at this hour.
Voting is underway right now at the Episcopal Church convention in Minnesota on whether to appoint the church's first only gay bishop. The debate session has just expired, and now the panel is voting on the Reverend Gene Robinson as bishop-elect of New Hampshire.
The delegation is comprised of both clergy and congregants. And pending approval, the final decision will be made tomorrow by the church's bishops.
Fighting continues today in Liberia, just hours before West African peacekeeping troops are schedule to arrive. Both government troops and the rebels battling them have pledged to continue fighting until the peacekeepers deploy.
And happening right now in Washington, Verizon is hashing it out with labor unions in an endeavor to avoid a major strike. The company's three-year contract with telephone operators and technicians expired at midnight last night.
The unions are concerned about how future layoffs will be handled. Officials say contract talks are snared on job security, as well as health care issues.
We will have more news at the top of the hour. NEXT@CNN resumes right now.
SEAN CALLEBS, ANCHOR, NEXT@CNN: Well, welcome, everyone.
The Department of Homeland Security this week put out a warning about a flaw -- this is important -- a flaw that could let intruders take over your computer.
It's a problem that affects several Windows operating systems, and computer security experts say there's some real damage possible here.
Now joining us with some details about this vulnerability, Chris Rouland of Internet Security Systems. Chris, thanks very much for joining us here.
First I've got to ask you. We've heard so much about these possible warnings - now this could go wrong, this could go wrong. But you say this one is very serious.
CHRIS ROULAND, INTERNET SECURITY SYSTEMS: This is a very serious flaw that was discovered by a group of researchers out of Poland called LSD - the Last Stages of Delirium.
And if that name doesn't scare you, the DHS - Department of Homeland Security - advisories really illustrate the risk that's out there for end users.
CALLEBS: And to give people an idea, it affects Windows 2000 and ...
ROULAND: Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows 2003 server, which is very new.
CALLEBS: And how many people -- I mean, a lot of people use those things.
ROULAND: Millions of desktops are vulnerable.
CALLEBS: And what's at stake here? Could people get in, get your personal information and then begin to do the kind of damage we really only read about or hear about or dream about in our worst nightmares?
ROULAND: Criminals are actively exploiting this right now. We've seen up to 2,000 individuals actually launching attacks on individuals' home computers connected to broadband connections.
Once someone takes over your computer, they can access your online banking transactions, your credit card transactions ...
CALLEBS: And it gets ugly ...
ROULAND: Yes.
CALLEBS: ... at that point. How ...
ROULAND: They can get at everything.
CALLEBS: ... easy can that happen?
ROULAND: It's very straightforward. Any motivated individual can download software off the Internet and compromise most of the computers around the world right now.
CALLEBS: And what about Bill Gates and Microsoft? Should they bear any responsibility on this? Is there anything at this point they can do to attack some of these flaws?
ROULAND: Well, Microsoft has invested heavily in making sure their future operating systems are more secure.
This flaw had been around for quite a while. It just hadn't surfaced. It's in an older part of the operating system. They've done a very good job remediating the flaw, in that you as a Windows user can go to windowsupdate.microsoft.com and download the appropriate fixes very easily.
CALLEBS: Now, companies and Internet operators have been working for months and years trying to get people comfortable buying stuff, doing commerce online.
I mean, it seems like this could have a real chilling effect, if this is as bad as you say.
ROULAND: Well, I don't think this will end e-commerce.
I think we'll see more technologies that are introduced to protect the end user. And we need to see more user awareness of these types of issues.
And I think people need to keep in mind they have to protect themselves. There is no cyber cop out there to protect you on the Internet.
CALLEBS: Now, talk about some of the things that people can do, if they want to continue - I mean, if you go to a secured site, that you type in a credit card number, you feel comfortable you're going to get your item and not get ripped off.
But there are some basic things people can do.
ROULAND: Well, there are a couple of technology solutions, and then there are practical solutions.
Antivirus software is critical. You don't have a choice. The only choice you have is which one you're going to use.
Additionally, there's a technology called firewalls. And firewalls historically have been used by big corporations to protect themselves. However, this is a piece of software you must install on your own computer now, especially for the broadband users.
Day to day, you really need to pay close attention to your -- any type of financial transactions you're making, whether it's e-bills, whether it's your bank account or your credit cards.
CALLEBS: Shifting gears just a bit, what about another problem that was just identified on Friday - a worm that could affect your computer?
ROULAND: A worm came out from Russia on Friday called the Mimail worm. And this is really part of the new hacking generation we're seeing.
Where in the past we saw a lot of pranks taking place, this was definitely a for-profit worm.
What this is doing is actually harvesting e-mail addresses for the purposes of the SPAM. SPAM is a big business. And that's a - every e-mail address is worth a few cents.
So this worm was distributed solely with the purpose of collecting all of the e-mail addresses of your friends.
CALLEBS: Amazing. Well, Chris, you tell us that these warnings may come out. Don't get glazed over. Stay focused and do everything you can.
Chris Rouland, thanks very much for joining us here today.
ROULAND: Thank you, Sean.
CALLEBS: We appreciate it.
OK, stay with us everybody. One of the agencies that's taking the lead in dealing with ID theft is the Federal Trade Commission. And joining us from Washington is Lois Greisman.
And she'll be joining us right after we take a short commercial break. NEXT@CNN continues right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CALLEBS: Welcome back, everyone.
One of the agencies that's taking the lead in dealing with ID theft is the Federal Trade Commission.
Joining us now from Washington is Lois Greisman, Assistant Director of the agency's consumer protection division.
Thanks for joining us here today. We appreciate it.
LOIS GREISMAN, ASST DIRECTOR, CONSUMER PROTECTION DIVISION, FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION: My pleasure.
CALLEBS: Now, this isn't just financial inconvenience. It really can take over people's lives. I mean, I've just heard simply horror stories from people.
GREISMAN: There are horror stories. And it's true.
The injury is not just money out of pocket. It's also the time that individuals might have to spend repairing their good name, and actually working to make their credit histories look like they did before they were victimized.
CALLEBS: Now, what can people do once something like this happens?
I mean, I've heard someone explain it to me earlier. An individual said it was like having two full-time jobs. He worked during the day and then came home at night and try to unravel what was just a hideous mess.
GREISMAN: Well, there are a lot of things that people can do to prevent becoming victims in the first place. Some of them are very practical.
Don't leave your credit card receipt at the restaurant. Be very careful about the entities with which you deal. And in particular, don't give out personal information unless you know who they are.
Don't, for example, carry around your Social Security number in your wallet. There's just no reason for that.
CALLEBS: And also, we have a device here -- if we can get a shot of it here -- that has really become something that should be important to every home -- the shredder.
You talk about people not leaving information out. And these things somebody was kind enough to leave a couple of receipts. Now I could have their credit card information.
But, you know, something as simple as this. It works very easily.
Do you think every home should have a shredder in this day and age?
GREISMAN: It's certainly a judgment call that consumers have to make.
Equally important, though, is that businesses safeguard their documents, that they don't just throw them out in the dumpster.
Dumpster diving is real. That's something that identity thieves do do. And we've seen it done.
In terms of consumers, they've got to just use their best judgment. Many people I know do shred materials.
CALLEBS: Lois, dumpster diving is just what it sounds like. I mean, people just ...
GREISMAN: Exactly.
CALLEBS: ... go out there and root through your trash.
GREISMAN: That's exactly right.
CALLEBS: You know, to me it just seems amazing. But I guess, you know, if I ever had something do something like that and get access to my credit cards and turn my life upside-down.
There's so much that people can do, when we focus on this. Do you think that the government, other agencies, have done enough to get information out how you can protect yourself?
GREISMAN: There's a concerted effort, both at the federal and state level to deal with identity theft, both in terms of providing assistance to victims.
For example, at the Federal Trade Commission, we encourage victims to contact us, either at consumer.gov/idtheft, or through a toll-free number, 1-877-ID-THEFT.
Contact us. We take information. We provide victim assistance by way of lots of materials that we think are excellent.
We also provide assistance to businesses on what they can and should do to prevent compromises of personal information. It's not just their customers they need to be concerned about, it's also their employees.
CALLEBS: What about credit reporting agencies?
GREISMAN: Well, certainly if you're a victim, that should be one of the very first calls you place, to one of the three consumer reporting agencies. Ask them to place a fraud alert on your file.
They will send you a copy of your consumer report. Now, based on a new initiative, if you contact just one of the three, they will pass on that request for a fraud alert to the other two, and also, your request for a consumer report.
Once you receive your report, look at it very, very closely and see whether any new accounts have been opened.
CALLEBS: For once, I'm sure that people wouldn't mind credit agencies sharing information.
Lois Greisman, thanks very much for joining us. ID theft, it is real. And it can be a real mess. Hopefully, these are some steps people can take.
Thanks very much for joining us.
GREISMAN: Thank you. My pleasure.
CALLEBS: And stay with us, everyone. NEXT@CNN continues right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CALLEBS: Classic Strat sound.
Until very recently, digital music swappers shared files online with seeming impunity. That is until a landmark legal ruling earlier this year gave the recording industry the right to track them down.
Now the RIAA is serving subpoenas, demanding that Internet service providers turn over names. And digital downloaders are having to face the fact that they might just be held accountable for stealing music.
Doug Isenberg, an attorney and publisher of GigaLaw.com joins us now to help sort some of this out.
It's tough to begin on this one, because it's just so broad. But you have one of the subpoenas here. Now this ...
DOUG ISENBERG, ATTORNEY AND PUBLISHER, GIGALAW.COM: Right, exactly.
CALLEBS: ... now these are actually going out to some people.
ISENBERG: These have gone out. What this actually is is a copy of a letter that was sent by an attorney who represents the Recording Industry Association of America to SBC, which is one of many Internet service providers in the country.
And it is a request under the U.S. copyright law to provide the personally identifiable information about somebody who is allegedly sharing music files. It contains the IP address, the date and time and some of the songs that this person ...
CALLEBS: And they want the name, and they want that person now.
ISENBERG: That's exactly right. They want the name. And what the recording industry does with that name once they have it, we don't yet know.
There have been about 75 subpoenas a day issued under this process for the past month or so, since the RIAA sort of drew a line in the sand. Maybe about 1,000 subpoenas so far.
CALLEBS: Are we going to see them getting heavy-handed?
ISENBERG: I think we're really starting to see now the first wave of lawsuits - copyright infringement lawsuits - being filed against individuals. That is, people like you and me, or others who may have been sharing files on the Internet - music files - instead of lawsuits against the companies themselves.
We all heard about the Napster litigation. But now what we're seeing are lawsuits against individual people.
CALLEBS: And you tossed around some numbers earlier. Some 60 million people have swapped, shared songs?
ISENBERG: That's the estimate, that there are about 60 million people right now -- or recently -- who are engaged in music file sharing on the Internet.
CALLEBS: Let's presume for just a moment that I've done this before.
Could my name be on one of these lists somewhere? You know, a little identity somewhere saying, you know, we want to know who this guy is, why he was doing this? And we want -- and presumably, they want something in return.
ISENBERG: That's exactly right. It is possible now to actually go online. There are a number of sites.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation has created a Web site where, if you have been sharing these files on the Internet, you can type in your screen name and find out whether the music industry has actually sent a subpoena to your Internet service provider. And it may mean that you will soon be hearing from the music industry via a copyright lawsuit.
CALLEBS: Now, what's the goal here? Clearly, they aren't going to subpoena 60 million people.
ISENBERG: Yes, well it's practically impossible. Though what the music industry said about a month ago is, we are starting to prepare to file lawsuits against thousands of people.
As you say, it's obviously impossible to sue 60 million people. I think the primary tactic is to let people who are sharing music files know, you cannot continue this without ramifications, the ramifications being, you are now on notice that we may come after you with a copyright lawsuit.
CALLEBS: Doug, do you think that they are going to try and find either some people or a group, and kind of make that person or that individual or those folks and example?
ISENBERG: That's a great question.
So far, a number of the suits have been against university students. A few of the four or five ...
CALLEBS: Who don't have deep pockets.
ISENBERG: That's exactly right. They ended up settling -- the four or five of them -- for between $10,000 and $20,000 a piece, which in the scheme of ...
CALLEBS: That's more than a few pizzas.
ISENBERG: Which is not pocket change for college students, but is still not all that significant in the scheme of things.
Ultimately, it may be that the music industry is looking for a different type of defendant. And what I mean by that is, I would not be surprised to see if an attorney, for example, turns out to be one of the people actually being sued by the music industry.
Who likes us attorneys, by the way? For some reason, people think that attorneys, more than university students, may have deeper pockets. And it may be that we see a different type of defendant in these music lawsuits soon.
CALLEBS: Well, Doug, it seems like you've carved out a niche for yourself and you're going to be busy in perhaps the coming weeks and months ahead.
Once again, Doug Isenberg, an attorney and publisher of GigaLaw.com. Thanks a lot for bringing us up to date on that.
And that is all the time we have for now. But before we go, here is a peak at what's coming up on next weekend's show.
Video screens you can bend like a piece of paper. Or screens tiny enough to embed in a fanny pack. A new technology that's making the leap from sci-fi movies to real life.
That story and much more coming up next week. We hope you will join us.
Coming up next, CNN LIVE SUNDAY, with a look at the latest in California politics. Will Governor Davis survive? Or will the governorship go Hollywood?
That's followed by PEOPLE IN THE NEWS at 7:00 Eastern with profiles of Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez and a tribute to Bob Hope.
And at 8:00 Easter, CNN PRESENTS "Inside the War Room." CNN continues right after a quick break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KELLI ARENA, CNN NEWS: CNN SUNDAY just ahead, but first these headlines.
Well, they're counting the vote in Minneapolis on elevating a gay Episcopal priest to be bishop of New Hampshire.
The Reverend Gene Robinson was elected by New Hampshire Episcopalians, but a majority of delegates to the church's general convention must approve that election.
Gunfire in the West Bank. Medical services and Israel defense forces say Palestinian gunmen opened fire on cars heading for Jerusalem today. Four Israeli civilians were wounded, one of them seriously. The shooting occurred northwest of Bethlehem.
And U.S. troops stage more raids in the Sunni triangle of Iraq. Twenty people were arrested today, including one described as a targeted leader. He has yet to be identified.
And Kobe Bryant arrives unannounced, but certainly not unnoticed. The NBA star showed up last night at the 2003 Teen Choice Awards in California, where he was chosen favorite male athlete.
Bryant is charged with sexually assaulting a hotel clerk in Colorado, where CNN's Gary Tuchman will have a live report just minutes from now.
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Commission Combats Identity Theft; Recording Industry Cracks Down On File-Sharing>
Aired August 3, 2003 - 17:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CALLEBS: NEXT@CNN begins in just a minute, after a check of the news headlines at this hour.
Voting is underway right now at the Episcopal Church convention in Minnesota on whether to appoint the church's first only gay bishop. The debate session has just expired, and now the panel is voting on the Reverend Gene Robinson as bishop-elect of New Hampshire.
The delegation is comprised of both clergy and congregants. And pending approval, the final decision will be made tomorrow by the church's bishops.
Fighting continues today in Liberia, just hours before West African peacekeeping troops are schedule to arrive. Both government troops and the rebels battling them have pledged to continue fighting until the peacekeepers deploy.
And happening right now in Washington, Verizon is hashing it out with labor unions in an endeavor to avoid a major strike. The company's three-year contract with telephone operators and technicians expired at midnight last night.
The unions are concerned about how future layoffs will be handled. Officials say contract talks are snared on job security, as well as health care issues.
We will have more news at the top of the hour. NEXT@CNN resumes right now.
SEAN CALLEBS, ANCHOR, NEXT@CNN: Well, welcome, everyone.
The Department of Homeland Security this week put out a warning about a flaw -- this is important -- a flaw that could let intruders take over your computer.
It's a problem that affects several Windows operating systems, and computer security experts say there's some real damage possible here.
Now joining us with some details about this vulnerability, Chris Rouland of Internet Security Systems. Chris, thanks very much for joining us here.
First I've got to ask you. We've heard so much about these possible warnings - now this could go wrong, this could go wrong. But you say this one is very serious.
CHRIS ROULAND, INTERNET SECURITY SYSTEMS: This is a very serious flaw that was discovered by a group of researchers out of Poland called LSD - the Last Stages of Delirium.
And if that name doesn't scare you, the DHS - Department of Homeland Security - advisories really illustrate the risk that's out there for end users.
CALLEBS: And to give people an idea, it affects Windows 2000 and ...
ROULAND: Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows 2003 server, which is very new.
CALLEBS: And how many people -- I mean, a lot of people use those things.
ROULAND: Millions of desktops are vulnerable.
CALLEBS: And what's at stake here? Could people get in, get your personal information and then begin to do the kind of damage we really only read about or hear about or dream about in our worst nightmares?
ROULAND: Criminals are actively exploiting this right now. We've seen up to 2,000 individuals actually launching attacks on individuals' home computers connected to broadband connections.
Once someone takes over your computer, they can access your online banking transactions, your credit card transactions ...
CALLEBS: And it gets ugly ...
ROULAND: Yes.
CALLEBS: ... at that point. How ...
ROULAND: They can get at everything.
CALLEBS: ... easy can that happen?
ROULAND: It's very straightforward. Any motivated individual can download software off the Internet and compromise most of the computers around the world right now.
CALLEBS: And what about Bill Gates and Microsoft? Should they bear any responsibility on this? Is there anything at this point they can do to attack some of these flaws?
ROULAND: Well, Microsoft has invested heavily in making sure their future operating systems are more secure.
This flaw had been around for quite a while. It just hadn't surfaced. It's in an older part of the operating system. They've done a very good job remediating the flaw, in that you as a Windows user can go to windowsupdate.microsoft.com and download the appropriate fixes very easily.
CALLEBS: Now, companies and Internet operators have been working for months and years trying to get people comfortable buying stuff, doing commerce online.
I mean, it seems like this could have a real chilling effect, if this is as bad as you say.
ROULAND: Well, I don't think this will end e-commerce.
I think we'll see more technologies that are introduced to protect the end user. And we need to see more user awareness of these types of issues.
And I think people need to keep in mind they have to protect themselves. There is no cyber cop out there to protect you on the Internet.
CALLEBS: Now, talk about some of the things that people can do, if they want to continue - I mean, if you go to a secured site, that you type in a credit card number, you feel comfortable you're going to get your item and not get ripped off.
But there are some basic things people can do.
ROULAND: Well, there are a couple of technology solutions, and then there are practical solutions.
Antivirus software is critical. You don't have a choice. The only choice you have is which one you're going to use.
Additionally, there's a technology called firewalls. And firewalls historically have been used by big corporations to protect themselves. However, this is a piece of software you must install on your own computer now, especially for the broadband users.
Day to day, you really need to pay close attention to your -- any type of financial transactions you're making, whether it's e-bills, whether it's your bank account or your credit cards.
CALLEBS: Shifting gears just a bit, what about another problem that was just identified on Friday - a worm that could affect your computer?
ROULAND: A worm came out from Russia on Friday called the Mimail worm. And this is really part of the new hacking generation we're seeing.
Where in the past we saw a lot of pranks taking place, this was definitely a for-profit worm.
What this is doing is actually harvesting e-mail addresses for the purposes of the SPAM. SPAM is a big business. And that's a - every e-mail address is worth a few cents.
So this worm was distributed solely with the purpose of collecting all of the e-mail addresses of your friends.
CALLEBS: Amazing. Well, Chris, you tell us that these warnings may come out. Don't get glazed over. Stay focused and do everything you can.
Chris Rouland, thanks very much for joining us here today.
ROULAND: Thank you, Sean.
CALLEBS: We appreciate it.
OK, stay with us everybody. One of the agencies that's taking the lead in dealing with ID theft is the Federal Trade Commission. And joining us from Washington is Lois Greisman.
And she'll be joining us right after we take a short commercial break. NEXT@CNN continues right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CALLEBS: Welcome back, everyone.
One of the agencies that's taking the lead in dealing with ID theft is the Federal Trade Commission.
Joining us now from Washington is Lois Greisman, Assistant Director of the agency's consumer protection division.
Thanks for joining us here today. We appreciate it.
LOIS GREISMAN, ASST DIRECTOR, CONSUMER PROTECTION DIVISION, FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION: My pleasure.
CALLEBS: Now, this isn't just financial inconvenience. It really can take over people's lives. I mean, I've just heard simply horror stories from people.
GREISMAN: There are horror stories. And it's true.
The injury is not just money out of pocket. It's also the time that individuals might have to spend repairing their good name, and actually working to make their credit histories look like they did before they were victimized.
CALLEBS: Now, what can people do once something like this happens?
I mean, I've heard someone explain it to me earlier. An individual said it was like having two full-time jobs. He worked during the day and then came home at night and try to unravel what was just a hideous mess.
GREISMAN: Well, there are a lot of things that people can do to prevent becoming victims in the first place. Some of them are very practical.
Don't leave your credit card receipt at the restaurant. Be very careful about the entities with which you deal. And in particular, don't give out personal information unless you know who they are.
Don't, for example, carry around your Social Security number in your wallet. There's just no reason for that.
CALLEBS: And also, we have a device here -- if we can get a shot of it here -- that has really become something that should be important to every home -- the shredder.
You talk about people not leaving information out. And these things somebody was kind enough to leave a couple of receipts. Now I could have their credit card information.
But, you know, something as simple as this. It works very easily.
Do you think every home should have a shredder in this day and age?
GREISMAN: It's certainly a judgment call that consumers have to make.
Equally important, though, is that businesses safeguard their documents, that they don't just throw them out in the dumpster.
Dumpster diving is real. That's something that identity thieves do do. And we've seen it done.
In terms of consumers, they've got to just use their best judgment. Many people I know do shred materials.
CALLEBS: Lois, dumpster diving is just what it sounds like. I mean, people just ...
GREISMAN: Exactly.
CALLEBS: ... go out there and root through your trash.
GREISMAN: That's exactly right.
CALLEBS: You know, to me it just seems amazing. But I guess, you know, if I ever had something do something like that and get access to my credit cards and turn my life upside-down.
There's so much that people can do, when we focus on this. Do you think that the government, other agencies, have done enough to get information out how you can protect yourself?
GREISMAN: There's a concerted effort, both at the federal and state level to deal with identity theft, both in terms of providing assistance to victims.
For example, at the Federal Trade Commission, we encourage victims to contact us, either at consumer.gov/idtheft, or through a toll-free number, 1-877-ID-THEFT.
Contact us. We take information. We provide victim assistance by way of lots of materials that we think are excellent.
We also provide assistance to businesses on what they can and should do to prevent compromises of personal information. It's not just their customers they need to be concerned about, it's also their employees.
CALLEBS: What about credit reporting agencies?
GREISMAN: Well, certainly if you're a victim, that should be one of the very first calls you place, to one of the three consumer reporting agencies. Ask them to place a fraud alert on your file.
They will send you a copy of your consumer report. Now, based on a new initiative, if you contact just one of the three, they will pass on that request for a fraud alert to the other two, and also, your request for a consumer report.
Once you receive your report, look at it very, very closely and see whether any new accounts have been opened.
CALLEBS: For once, I'm sure that people wouldn't mind credit agencies sharing information.
Lois Greisman, thanks very much for joining us. ID theft, it is real. And it can be a real mess. Hopefully, these are some steps people can take.
Thanks very much for joining us.
GREISMAN: Thank you. My pleasure.
CALLEBS: And stay with us, everyone. NEXT@CNN continues right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CALLEBS: Classic Strat sound.
Until very recently, digital music swappers shared files online with seeming impunity. That is until a landmark legal ruling earlier this year gave the recording industry the right to track them down.
Now the RIAA is serving subpoenas, demanding that Internet service providers turn over names. And digital downloaders are having to face the fact that they might just be held accountable for stealing music.
Doug Isenberg, an attorney and publisher of GigaLaw.com joins us now to help sort some of this out.
It's tough to begin on this one, because it's just so broad. But you have one of the subpoenas here. Now this ...
DOUG ISENBERG, ATTORNEY AND PUBLISHER, GIGALAW.COM: Right, exactly.
CALLEBS: ... now these are actually going out to some people.
ISENBERG: These have gone out. What this actually is is a copy of a letter that was sent by an attorney who represents the Recording Industry Association of America to SBC, which is one of many Internet service providers in the country.
And it is a request under the U.S. copyright law to provide the personally identifiable information about somebody who is allegedly sharing music files. It contains the IP address, the date and time and some of the songs that this person ...
CALLEBS: And they want the name, and they want that person now.
ISENBERG: That's exactly right. They want the name. And what the recording industry does with that name once they have it, we don't yet know.
There have been about 75 subpoenas a day issued under this process for the past month or so, since the RIAA sort of drew a line in the sand. Maybe about 1,000 subpoenas so far.
CALLEBS: Are we going to see them getting heavy-handed?
ISENBERG: I think we're really starting to see now the first wave of lawsuits - copyright infringement lawsuits - being filed against individuals. That is, people like you and me, or others who may have been sharing files on the Internet - music files - instead of lawsuits against the companies themselves.
We all heard about the Napster litigation. But now what we're seeing are lawsuits against individual people.
CALLEBS: And you tossed around some numbers earlier. Some 60 million people have swapped, shared songs?
ISENBERG: That's the estimate, that there are about 60 million people right now -- or recently -- who are engaged in music file sharing on the Internet.
CALLEBS: Let's presume for just a moment that I've done this before.
Could my name be on one of these lists somewhere? You know, a little identity somewhere saying, you know, we want to know who this guy is, why he was doing this? And we want -- and presumably, they want something in return.
ISENBERG: That's exactly right. It is possible now to actually go online. There are a number of sites.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation has created a Web site where, if you have been sharing these files on the Internet, you can type in your screen name and find out whether the music industry has actually sent a subpoena to your Internet service provider. And it may mean that you will soon be hearing from the music industry via a copyright lawsuit.
CALLEBS: Now, what's the goal here? Clearly, they aren't going to subpoena 60 million people.
ISENBERG: Yes, well it's practically impossible. Though what the music industry said about a month ago is, we are starting to prepare to file lawsuits against thousands of people.
As you say, it's obviously impossible to sue 60 million people. I think the primary tactic is to let people who are sharing music files know, you cannot continue this without ramifications, the ramifications being, you are now on notice that we may come after you with a copyright lawsuit.
CALLEBS: Doug, do you think that they are going to try and find either some people or a group, and kind of make that person or that individual or those folks and example?
ISENBERG: That's a great question.
So far, a number of the suits have been against university students. A few of the four or five ...
CALLEBS: Who don't have deep pockets.
ISENBERG: That's exactly right. They ended up settling -- the four or five of them -- for between $10,000 and $20,000 a piece, which in the scheme of ...
CALLEBS: That's more than a few pizzas.
ISENBERG: Which is not pocket change for college students, but is still not all that significant in the scheme of things.
Ultimately, it may be that the music industry is looking for a different type of defendant. And what I mean by that is, I would not be surprised to see if an attorney, for example, turns out to be one of the people actually being sued by the music industry.
Who likes us attorneys, by the way? For some reason, people think that attorneys, more than university students, may have deeper pockets. And it may be that we see a different type of defendant in these music lawsuits soon.
CALLEBS: Well, Doug, it seems like you've carved out a niche for yourself and you're going to be busy in perhaps the coming weeks and months ahead.
Once again, Doug Isenberg, an attorney and publisher of GigaLaw.com. Thanks a lot for bringing us up to date on that.
And that is all the time we have for now. But before we go, here is a peak at what's coming up on next weekend's show.
Video screens you can bend like a piece of paper. Or screens tiny enough to embed in a fanny pack. A new technology that's making the leap from sci-fi movies to real life.
That story and much more coming up next week. We hope you will join us.
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KELLI ARENA, CNN NEWS: CNN SUNDAY just ahead, but first these headlines.
Well, they're counting the vote in Minneapolis on elevating a gay Episcopal priest to be bishop of New Hampshire.
The Reverend Gene Robinson was elected by New Hampshire Episcopalians, but a majority of delegates to the church's general convention must approve that election.
Gunfire in the West Bank. Medical services and Israel defense forces say Palestinian gunmen opened fire on cars heading for Jerusalem today. Four Israeli civilians were wounded, one of them seriously. The shooting occurred northwest of Bethlehem.
And U.S. troops stage more raids in the Sunni triangle of Iraq. Twenty people were arrested today, including one described as a targeted leader. He has yet to be identified.
And Kobe Bryant arrives unannounced, but certainly not unnoticed. The NBA star showed up last night at the 2003 Teen Choice Awards in California, where he was chosen favorite male athlete.
Bryant is charged with sexually assaulting a hotel clerk in Colorado, where CNN's Gary Tuchman will have a live report just minutes from now.
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Commission Combats Identity Theft; Recording Industry Cracks Down On File-Sharing>
