This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/16/technology/net-neutrality-inquiry-comments.html
The article has changed 5 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| New York Attorney General Expands Inquiry Into Net Neutrality Comments | New York Attorney General Expands Inquiry Into Net Neutrality Comments |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| The New York attorney general subpoenaed more than a dozen telecommunications trade groups, lobbying contractors and Washington advocacy organizations on Tuesday, seeking to determine whether the groups sought to sway a critical federal decision on internet regulation last year by submitting millions of fraudulent public comments, according to a person with knowledge of the investigation. | The New York attorney general subpoenaed more than a dozen telecommunications trade groups, lobbying contractors and Washington advocacy organizations on Tuesday, seeking to determine whether the groups sought to sway a critical federal decision on internet regulation last year by submitting millions of fraudulent public comments, according to a person with knowledge of the investigation. |
| Some of the groups played a highly public role in last year’s battle, when the Republican-appointed majority on the Federal Communications Commission voted to revoke a regulation issued under President Barack Obama that classified internet service providers as public utilities. The telecommunications industry bitterly opposed the rules — which imposed what supporters call “net neutrality” on internet providers — and enthusiastically backed their repeal under President Trump. | Some of the groups played a highly public role in last year’s battle, when the Republican-appointed majority on the Federal Communications Commission voted to revoke a regulation issued under President Barack Obama that classified internet service providers as public utilities. The telecommunications industry bitterly opposed the rules — which imposed what supporters call “net neutrality” on internet providers — and enthusiastically backed their repeal under President Trump. |
| The attorney general, Barbara D. Underwood, last year began investigating the source of more than 22 million public comments submitted to the F.C.C. during the battle. Millions of comments were provided using temporary or duplicate email addresses, others recycled identical phrases, and seven popular comments, repeated verbatim, accounted for millions more. | The attorney general, Barbara D. Underwood, last year began investigating the source of more than 22 million public comments submitted to the F.C.C. during the battle. Millions of comments were provided using temporary or duplicate email addresses, others recycled identical phrases, and seven popular comments, repeated verbatim, accounted for millions more. |
| The noise thrown up by fake or orchestrated comments appears to have favored the telecommunications industry: One study, by a researcher at Stanford, found that virtually all of the unique comments submitted to the F.C.C. — the ones most likely to be bona fide — opposed repeal. | The noise thrown up by fake or orchestrated comments appears to have favored the telecommunications industry: One study, by a researcher at Stanford, found that virtually all of the unique comments submitted to the F.C.C. — the ones most likely to be bona fide — opposed repeal. |
| In September, The New York Times sued the F.C.C. to obtain digital records that would help trace the source of the public comments. The case is continuing. | In September, The New York Times sued the F.C.C. to obtain digital records that would help trace the source of the public comments. The case is continuing. |
| Most strikingly, many comments on net neutrality were falsely submitted under the names of real people, in what amounted to mass acts of virtual identity theft. Some comments used the names of dead people. Ms. Underwood’s investigators have estimated that almost half of all of the comments — more than nine million — used stolen identities. | |
| The investigation traced comments submitted through bulk spreadsheet uploads and through the F.C.C.’s application programming interface, which allows advocates to solicit public comments on their own websites and then transmit those comments to the F.C.C.’s system. Investigators have identified four buckets of apparently fraudulent comments, each of which appears to have been associated with a particular network of advocacy organizations, trade groups and consultants. | The investigation traced comments submitted through bulk spreadsheet uploads and through the F.C.C.’s application programming interface, which allows advocates to solicit public comments on their own websites and then transmit those comments to the F.C.C.’s system. Investigators have identified four buckets of apparently fraudulent comments, each of which appears to have been associated with a particular network of advocacy organizations, trade groups and consultants. |
| “The F.C.C.’s public comment process was corrupted by millions of fake comments,” Ms. Underwood said in a statement. “The law protects New Yorkers from deception and the misuse of their identities. My office will get to the bottom of what happened and hold accountable those responsible for using stolen identities to distort public opinion on net neutrality.” | “The F.C.C.’s public comment process was corrupted by millions of fake comments,” Ms. Underwood said in a statement. “The law protects New Yorkers from deception and the misuse of their identities. My office will get to the bottom of what happened and hold accountable those responsible for using stolen identities to distort public opinion on net neutrality.” |
| The companies and groups subpoenaed on Tuesday include Broadband for America, a coalition bankrolled by cable and telecommunications companies; Century Strategies, a political consultancy founded by Ralph Reed; and MediaBridge, a conservative messaging firm whose website boasts of helping to place hundreds of thousands of comments on the F.C.C.’s net neutrality regulation during Mr. Obama’s presidency on behalf of one client. | The companies and groups subpoenaed on Tuesday include Broadband for America, a coalition bankrolled by cable and telecommunications companies; Century Strategies, a political consultancy founded by Ralph Reed; and MediaBridge, a conservative messaging firm whose website boasts of helping to place hundreds of thousands of comments on the F.C.C.’s net neutrality regulation during Mr. Obama’s presidency on behalf of one client. |
| Ms. Underwood also demanded records and communications from a collection of nonprofits, consultants and vendors her office has linked to the Center for Individual Freedom, an advocacy group set up in the 1990s by a former tobacco lobbyist, which set up efforts last year that yielded thousands of identical comments to the F.C.C. Records are also being sought from a Republican consulting firm called Vertical Strategies. | Ms. Underwood also demanded records and communications from a collection of nonprofits, consultants and vendors her office has linked to the Center for Individual Freedom, an advocacy group set up in the 1990s by a former tobacco lobbyist, which set up efforts last year that yielded thousands of identical comments to the F.C.C. Records are also being sought from a Republican consulting firm called Vertical Strategies. |
| The attorney general is also seeking records from several pro-neutrality groups, including Free Press and Fight for the Future, a group that advocates for digital rights. Those groups are chiefly funded by foundations and individuals. | The attorney general is also seeking records from several pro-neutrality groups, including Free Press and Fight for the Future, a group that advocates for digital rights. Those groups are chiefly funded by foundations and individuals. |
| The net neutrality battle thrust a spotlight onto the grimy but increasingly high-tech world of regulatory influence campaigns, where industry and advocacy groups compete for political legitimacy by trying to build a record of public support or opposition for proposed policies. | The net neutrality battle thrust a spotlight onto the grimy but increasingly high-tech world of regulatory influence campaigns, where industry and advocacy groups compete for political legitimacy by trying to build a record of public support or opposition for proposed policies. |
| Federal agencies and commissions that issue regulations are generally required to circulate them for public comment, creating a battleground for grass-roots campaigns — and the incentive to inundate agencies with millions of scripted comments that purport to come from real people. Digital messaging firms can build sophisticated campaigns that generate thousands or millions of authentic-seeming comments. Some use language software to build unique-seeming comments out of a set universe of related phrases and words. | Federal agencies and commissions that issue regulations are generally required to circulate them for public comment, creating a battleground for grass-roots campaigns — and the incentive to inundate agencies with millions of scripted comments that purport to come from real people. Digital messaging firms can build sophisticated campaigns that generate thousands or millions of authentic-seeming comments. Some use language software to build unique-seeming comments out of a set universe of related phrases and words. |
| The investigation is being spearheaded by a unit of Ms. Underwood’s office that has focused on the emerging world of online fraud, impersonation and abuse, including the theft of social media profiles to create and sell huge networks of fake accounts to commercial clients. | The investigation is being spearheaded by a unit of Ms. Underwood’s office that has focused on the emerging world of online fraud, impersonation and abuse, including the theft of social media profiles to create and sell huge networks of fake accounts to commercial clients. |