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An Anonymous Coward writes:

United States Senators McCain and Burr have proposed that the FBI's use of National Security Letters should be expanded to include rummaging through email, web browsing, and other electronic communications. The proposed rider would also make permanent the surveillance of suspected potential terrorists with no ties to terrorist groups.

A vote is expected today, Wednesday, June 22. Fight for the Future has set up a site for U.S. residents to contact their senators by phone about this issue.

takyon: See also:

EFF Urges Senate Not to Expand FBI's Controversial National Security Letter Authority
We Made the Message Loud and Clear: Stop the Rule 41 Updates
DOJ Insists That Rule 41 Change Is Not Important, Nothing To See Here, Move On Annoying Privacy Activist People

Original Submission

An Anonymous Coward writes:

A suspected Islamic terrorist opened fire at a gay nightclub in Florida, killing 50 people and wounding another 53 before he was killed by police. While authorities continue to investigate to determine whether this man had ties to ISIS, the terror organization has not been quiet in praising the attack. This comes three days after ISIS announced they would attack somewhere in Florida. Today's attack marks the largest act of terrorism on US soil since 9/11.

takyon: The gunman reportedly called 911 emergency services to pledge allegiance to ISIS. The President will hold a briefing momentarily. Compare this article to the original submission.

Original Submission   Late submission by physicsmajor

takyon writes:

EgyptAir Flight MS804 has disappeared with 59 56 passengers and 10 crew onboard. It went missing soon after it entered Egyptian airspace, over the eastern Mediterranean.

Bloomberg, The Guardian, BBC.

janrinok adds:

The Guardian has a page with updated details.

martyb summarizes:

Flight MS804, an Airbus A320, was on its fifth flight of the day and traveling at 37,000 feet. It left Paris Charles de Gaulle at 11:09pm local time (21:09 UTC/22:09 BST/07:09 AEST) en route to Cairo and disappeared from radar with 66 people on board at 2:30am (00:30 GMT/01:30 BST/10:30 AEST) approximately 280km (175 miles) north of Egypt's coast — about 45 minutes before it was scheduled to land.

Of the 66 people on board, there were 56 passengers and 10 crew (two cockpit, five cabin, three security).

At 4:26am local time (two hours after the last radar contact) a signal was received from the "plane's emergency devices — possibly an emergency locator transmitter or beacon."

"EgyptAir says the captain has 6,275 flying hours, including 2,101 on the A320; the copilot has 2,766. The plane was manufactured in 2003."

Original Submission

takyon writes:

After losing the Indiana primary, Ted Cruz suspended his presidential bid, saying that "the path has been foreclosed".

Donald Trump will likely succeed on the initial ballot at the Republican National Convention, avoiding a contested convention. Bernie Sanders won a 5-6 point victory in Indiana, prolonging the Democratic side of the race.

Original Submission

takyon writes:

An unconfirmed incident near Heathrow Airport in London may fuel calls for a drone ban:

A plane approaching Heathrow Airport is believed to have hit a drone before it landed safely, the Metropolitan Police has said. The British Airways flight from Geneva was hit as it approached the London airport at about 12:50 BST with 132 passengers and five crew on board. After landing, the pilot reported an object - believed to be a drone - had struck the front of the Airbus A320. Aviation police based at Heathrow have launched an investigation. Police said no arrests have been made.

If confirmed, it is believed to be the first incident of its kind in the UK. A British Airways spokesman said: "Our aircraft landed safely, was fully examined by our engineers and it was cleared to operate its next flight." The airline will give the police "every assistance with their investigation", the spokesman added.

Also at The Guardian and Reuters.

Previously: Call for Research after Drone Near-Misses in the UK

Original Submission

takyon writes:

There is just one day left to comment about the DMCA safe harbor provisions in section 512 of Title 17:

The United States Copyright Office is undertaking a public study to evaluate the impact and effectiveness of the DMCA safe harbor provisions contained in section 512 of Title 17. On December 31, 2015, the Office issued a Notice of Inquiry seeking public input on several questions relating to that topic. See 80 FR 81862 (Dec. 31, 2015). To ensure that commenters have sufficient time to respond, the Office is extending the deadline for the submission of initial comments in response to the Notice to April 1, 2016, at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time. Please note that in light of the expected time frame for this study, the Office is unlikely to grant further extensions for these comments.

Here's a form letter, and an article about how the DMCA could change for the worse.

Previously: Internet Archive Seeks Changes in DMCA Takedown Procedures

Update: 50,000 People Protest DMCA Abuse, "Crash" Government Server

Original Submission