Wednesday, May 18, 2005
Thursday, April 07, 2005
Microsoft System Tracks Pedophiles
April 7, 2005
Microsoft System Tracks Pedophiles
By Sean Michael Kerner
TORONTO -- In January 2003, a Toronto Police detective sent an e-mail to Microsoft Chairman and Chief Software Architect Bill Gates asking for help in the fight against child exploitation.
Today that plea was answered with the official launch of the Child Exploitation Tracking System (CETS). Development of the CETS system began in 2003 and involved the Toronto Police Service, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and other global law enforcement bodies.
CETS is a Microsoft-developed, security-enhanced database that works with existing offender tracking systems in various global jurisdictions to allow investigators to tap into the data and make connections that help them more effectively track, locate and ultimately arrest offenders.
CETS is based on Microsoft Windows and Microsoft SQL, though according to Microsoft Canada President David Hemler the system won't force authorities to migrate to Windows and/or other Microsoft products.
"The system was designed to be able to integrate with the offender management systems around the world," Hemler explained in a morning press conference. "We didn't want them to have to migrate off those systems. A lot of design went into the interoperability and open standard of this."
Police services are able to tap into the CETS system via an Internet portal over a secure connection. The system has been in active beta testing since at least October 2004, and the Toronto Police Service together with the RCMP claim it has helped in the arrest of at least four alleged criminals.
CETS was rolled out in Canada but has not yet seen time in the U.S., though the goal is to roll the system out globally. Hemler and RCMP Commissioner Giuliano Zaccardelli stressed that collaboration with the DHS was a critical aspect of the development of CETS. "One of the key design point we had is that we had great collaboration from the department of Homeland Security early on in our process up here to give us input into how they could use and how they might use it and how it might be applicable in the U.S.," Hemler said. "We're actively working with law enforcement agencies within the U.S. to take what we've learned with CETS and make it available there."
To date, Microsoft has donated the software and services behind CETS to the Toronto Police Service and Canadian authorities. Microsoft has also pledged to continue to support it both locally and on a global basis making it available for free to authorities that want to use the service.
"We've given away all of our software and service in the development of CETS, roughly $2.5 million to date; we've additionally committed $2 million around this project office to ensure that deployment within Canada and on a global basis continues and we're committed to give this software away to any police or law enforcement organizations on a worldwide basis that want it," Hemler said.
Microsoft will not directly be making any money from the CETS initiative; rather it is seen as part of the software giant's commitment to being a good citizen.
"There is no additional revenue for Microsoft," Hemler said. "What's in it for Microsoft is a safer Internet upon which we all live and work, which is a huge aspect of what we believe is important in society.
"Frankly it amounts to doing the right thing."
Microsoft System Tracks Pedophiles
By Sean Michael Kerner
TORONTO -- In January 2003, a Toronto Police detective sent an e-mail to Microsoft Chairman and Chief Software Architect Bill Gates asking for help in the fight against child exploitation.
Today that plea was answered with the official launch of the Child Exploitation Tracking System (CETS). Development of the CETS system began in 2003 and involved the Toronto Police Service, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and other global law enforcement bodies.
CETS is a Microsoft-developed, security-enhanced database that works with existing offender tracking systems in various global jurisdictions to allow investigators to tap into the data and make connections that help them more effectively track, locate and ultimately arrest offenders.
CETS is based on Microsoft Windows and Microsoft SQL, though according to Microsoft Canada President David Hemler the system won't force authorities to migrate to Windows and/or other Microsoft products.
"The system was designed to be able to integrate with the offender management systems around the world," Hemler explained in a morning press conference. "We didn't want them to have to migrate off those systems. A lot of design went into the interoperability and open standard of this."
Police services are able to tap into the CETS system via an Internet portal over a secure connection. The system has been in active beta testing since at least October 2004, and the Toronto Police Service together with the RCMP claim it has helped in the arrest of at least four alleged criminals.
CETS was rolled out in Canada but has not yet seen time in the U.S., though the goal is to roll the system out globally. Hemler and RCMP Commissioner Giuliano Zaccardelli stressed that collaboration with the DHS was a critical aspect of the development of CETS. "One of the key design point we had is that we had great collaboration from the department of Homeland Security early on in our process up here to give us input into how they could use and how they might use it and how it might be applicable in the U.S.," Hemler said. "We're actively working with law enforcement agencies within the U.S. to take what we've learned with CETS and make it available there."
To date, Microsoft has donated the software and services behind CETS to the Toronto Police Service and Canadian authorities. Microsoft has also pledged to continue to support it both locally and on a global basis making it available for free to authorities that want to use the service.
"We've given away all of our software and service in the development of CETS, roughly $2.5 million to date; we've additionally committed $2 million around this project office to ensure that deployment within Canada and on a global basis continues and we're committed to give this software away to any police or law enforcement organizations on a worldwide basis that want it," Hemler said.
Microsoft will not directly be making any money from the CETS initiative; rather it is seen as part of the software giant's commitment to being a good citizen.
"There is no additional revenue for Microsoft," Hemler said. "What's in it for Microsoft is a safer Internet upon which we all live and work, which is a huge aspect of what we believe is important in society.
"Frankly it amounts to doing the right thing."
Monday, February 10, 2003
Take Action Against Explicit Magazines in Family Stores
In May 2003, Wal-Mart stores in the United States have stopped carrying several young men's magazines (Maxim, Salon and FHM) after criticism from local consumers and family organizations.
Read the TFN about this decision here.
You can play a role in encouraging stores in Canada to limit or drop offensive magazines.
The next time you visit your local grocery store, you may want to peruse the magazines sold in the check-out line and magazine aisle to see if sexually explicit publications are available. In the magazine aisle, look for magazines marketed to men featuring scantily clad women. In the check-out line, look for magazine covers featuring topics of a sexual nature. If you identify such products, here are some suggested talking points for expressing your concerns to the store manager.
ACTION STEPS
1. Take copies of the magazine(s) you have located with you as you ask to speak to the store manager. Use the magazine(s) as an example of your concern.
2. Ask who decides what magazines are sold. Is it a local decision or a corporate one?
3. If the decision is local, ask that the store stop selling the magazine(s) in question.
4. If the decision is made at a corporate office, ask how to contact corporate officials to complain.
5. Ask the store manager if the store sells these magazines to minors. Some of the magazines may be shrink-wrapped. Does store policy set an age requirement for purchasing shrink-wrapped magazines?
When contacting a corporate office, give specific information about the particular magazine(s) you found (tell them you found magazine X at Y store in Z city). Ask them the following questions:
1. What is your corporate policy regarding the sale of sexually suggestive or explicit magazines?
2. If you sell such items, do you have restrictions on how they are marketed? (Shrink-wrapped? Above the eye level? With binder covers to block out the images?)
3. Do you sell these magazines to minors?
4. What discretion does the corporation give to local managers to stop selling such magazines?
5. How lucrative are the sales of such magazines?
6. Finally, ask the corporate office to record your information as a complaint again the magazine(s).
You can also contact the city bylaw department to ask about existing laws on displaying suggestive magazines.
Read the TFN about this decision here.
You can play a role in encouraging stores in Canada to limit or drop offensive magazines.
The next time you visit your local grocery store, you may want to peruse the magazines sold in the check-out line and magazine aisle to see if sexually explicit publications are available. In the magazine aisle, look for magazines marketed to men featuring scantily clad women. In the check-out line, look for magazine covers featuring topics of a sexual nature. If you identify such products, here are some suggested talking points for expressing your concerns to the store manager.
ACTION STEPS
1. Take copies of the magazine(s) you have located with you as you ask to speak to the store manager. Use the magazine(s) as an example of your concern.
2. Ask who decides what magazines are sold. Is it a local decision or a corporate one?
3. If the decision is local, ask that the store stop selling the magazine(s) in question.
4. If the decision is made at a corporate office, ask how to contact corporate officials to complain.
5. Ask the store manager if the store sells these magazines to minors. Some of the magazines may be shrink-wrapped. Does store policy set an age requirement for purchasing shrink-wrapped magazines?
When contacting a corporate office, give specific information about the particular magazine(s) you found (tell them you found magazine X at Y store in Z city). Ask them the following questions:
1. What is your corporate policy regarding the sale of sexually suggestive or explicit magazines?
2. If you sell such items, do you have restrictions on how they are marketed? (Shrink-wrapped? Above the eye level? With binder covers to block out the images?)
3. Do you sell these magazines to minors?
4. What discretion does the corporation give to local managers to stop selling such magazines?
5. How lucrative are the sales of such magazines?
6. Finally, ask the corporate office to record your information as a complaint again the magazine(s).
You can also contact the city bylaw department to ask about existing laws on displaying suggestive magazines.
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