In what should serve as a warning to anyone thinking about new Internet regulations, a study by a Santa Clara University law professor examines what he sees as the worst Internet laws ever enacted.
According to Professor Eric Goldman, bad laws are often characterized by poor or ambiguous drafting, unintended consequences, attempts to use legislation to manufacture markets or change consumer behavior, and good old fashioned bait-and-switch – publicly declaring that a law is intended to accomplish a goal it was never really designed to reach.
Meanwhile, while no new laws or regulations are up for near term consideration, the Justice Department has formed a new high level task force to take a fresh look at ways to fight identity fraud, especially on the Internet.