anyone know a gutsy lawyer in Honolulu who can file class action against i.p.s for ruining our p.c.s?

Question

i feel the internet providers must be breaking the law, either cival or criminal, by passing on malware which reaks havoc with our p.c.s. I would appreciate any _positive_ feedback on this. We must have some rights left as americans. Remember ;positive feedback only. please run this by any attorney or lawschool student you can. how can i start a lobbying effert to get these actions made illegal? we can't stop co.s in other countrys to stop sending this stuff but we need to hold the isp.s in the us. responsible and accountable for failing to filter this computer wrecking content from ever reaching us. i'm considering a blog to collect and disseminate this information I suffer from dementia so i might be mistaken about all of this. i know, however that the last place our stuff comes to us from is our isp...

Answer 1

An IPS is simply the carrier of network traffic.
Wanting to make them responsible for network traffic would be like wanting to make the phone company liable to you if someone who calls you cusses at you.
Or making a satellite company or cable TV provider liable for the content of the programs aired, rather than the TV channels that air them.

For an ISP to be held liable for negligence, they would have to be engaged in unintentional conduct that falls below the standards set by law for protecting others against unreasonable risk of harm. A case could be made here, but, they would also have to breach one of a handfull of conditions.

1. You would have to show breach of duty, that they were involved in conduct that creates unusual risk of harm to others. IOW, they are the carriers, but did the actually send the malware to your computer. If you are reading an email, and the malware is part of the email, then the issue is with your email provider, and not the ISP.

2. Can you show cause in fact. IOW, is the ISP solely responsible for malware. The answer is no.

3. Can you show proximate cause. IOW, is there a potential for the ISP's be held liable if they have reason to suspect that malware is crossing their line. Here, the answer may be yes, but then there are other factors.

A. In order for the ISP to decide what to filter, they will have to look at the traffic. Are you willing to give up any of your rights to privacy for this?

B. The sheer amount of traffic that an ISP sees is staggering. To sample, sort and filter malware, would take a substantial amount of resources. Are you willing to pay a lot of extra money for your ISP connection?

In the end, the ISP will not lose any profitability, as they will pass any additional cost of equipment and law suits on to the consumers.

Since I am personally aware of many free or inexpensive ways of protecting your computer, I believe the responsibility to protect your computer is in the right place - with you, the end user.

You have the option of running a secure computer operating system, use firewall software and anti-virus software, and the choice not to visit websites that are prone to be malicious in nature, (such as porn sites).

I don't suffer from malware as I take reasonable precautions.
And frankly, I'm not the least bit interested in paying a bunch of extra money to an ISP to protect those who chose not to.