[free-sklyarov] -- OFFICIAL CHICAGO PROTEST INFORMATION --

[Peter A. Peterson II]

This file is also available at:

http://ufo.chicago.il.us/free-sklyarov/

The Chicago Free Sklyarov Protest: Pre-Protest Packet
by Nate Riffe <inkblot at geocities.com>
and Peter Peterson <pedro at tastytronic.net>

Contents:
        Background
        Information
        Demonstration
        What You Can Do As A Demonstrator
        Cancellation
        Contact

BACKGROUND
----------

Dmitry Sklyarov was scheduled to present a paper and the 9th annual
DefCon conference in Las Vegas on Monday, June 16.  His paper and his
presentation contained detailed explanations of flaws the encryption
used by Adobe's eBook electronic book format.  Immediately after his
presentation, FBI agents arrested Sklyarov for violating the Digital
Millennium Copyright Act of 1998.  This law makes the manufacture,
distribution, and trafficking of an access control circumvention device
illegal.  Apparently under Adobe's and the FBI's overly broad
interpretation, Sklyarov's presentation was considered a circumvention
device.

There have been prior instances of DMCA violations.  Sklyarov's is
unique in two ways.  1) This is the first arrest under the DMCA, which
recently became a criminal law.  Previous violations were handled as
civil suits, whereas Sklyarov is charged with a felony.  2) Sklyarov is
a foreign national (he is Russian), and the act he committed is not
illegal is any other nation.  His arrest under this law has become an
international incident, with stories reported in worldwide news outlets
such as the BBC.

Our complaints about the DMCA are two-fold.  First of all, it is a
glaring breech of our first ammendment rights.  Sklyarov, and a previous
violator, Dr.  Edward Felten of Princeton University, have respectively
been arrested for and barred from presenting academic results at
research conferences.  Monied interests in various industries have taken
these actions in fearful self-defense, to the detriment of science and
technology.  Secondly, the DMCA is materially harmful to society.  Under
the DMCA it is criminal to discover and openly discuss a flaw in a
security system which is designed to control access to information.  The
net effect of this provision is that flaws in such systems are
'protected' from ever being fixed.  The result is an accumulation of
security systems which don't secure anything, due to their flaws,
placing people at risk of such treacherous acts as identity theft and
fraud.  Our belief is that the proper way to handle a flaw in a security
system is not to punish the discoverer, but to publicly announce the
flaw, so that it is fixed as soon as possible.  This opposing policy is
often refered to as 'full disclosure'.

Our priorities are as follows: 1) Free Dmitry Sklyarov (even if this
requires a presidential pardon) 2) Repeal the DMCA (it is harmful to
science and society)

INFORMATION
-----------

When: Monday, June 23, 2001 from 11 AM to 1 PM Central Time Where: At
the loop post office between 100 and 200 S. Dearborn, which is across
the street from the federal building.

Where: At the public plaza across from the federal building downtown.
The address is:

        Everett McKinley Dirksen Federal Building 219 South Dearborn
        Street Suite 905 Chicago, IL 60604

        and we will be meeting near the big orange Calder statue at
        11:00 on Monday morning. This is what the statue looks like:

        http://www.a1focus.com/arch/calder.htm