Misuse

Annotation programs are a great idea but not in their present form. While the ability to provide commentary is a novel idea, the implementation model for annotation some products is flawed and invasive. Annotation software from Third Voice is the most invasive of all the annotation packages.

This software allows visitors to your web site to superimpose comments on your pages. The comments are identified by small red and yellow note markers. The software works using a DHTML layer. The potential for misuse of this software is high, and has already been demonstrated. Our concerns with Third Voice Inc. and the Third Voice software include:

   1. Security. For Third Voice in particular, security breaches have occurred with each of the beta releases. While these security problems have been fixed, Third Voice has proven that their testing techniques are substandard.

          * September 13, 1999. Third Voice released it's Netscape version on September 13th. That very same day, Funk Third Voice discovered a serious security flaw which would allow others to use YOUR computer as a proxy server without you knowing it. Third Voice could not make the Netscape version run the same as the IE version because of the differences in the browsers. So they chose to set the Netscape version up to modify your proxy server settings, while neglecting to include security routines that blocked others from using your computer. Anyone who knew you were running the NS version could hide behind YOUR identity on YOUR computer, send unauthorized emails, and access anything your computer identity had access to.
            (More Information at the Funk Third Voice site)


          * July 9, 1999. Javascript was inserted into a test note by the Netfishers, allowing them to bypass security routines on the Third Voice servers and capture their own user names and passwords. Netfishers worked with Third Voice to fix the problem before it could be exploited.
            (July 9 Wired Article) (NetFisher Site)

          * July 9, 1999. Javascript imbedded in a note was used to change the content of the web page displayed to the user. The Javascript intercepted the page information retrieved from a web site, and displayed a page that had a different title and first paragraph than the page on the source server.
            (July 9 Wired Article) (Bowers Site)

   2. Privacy Too many people have been enamored with the "Let Your Voice be Heard" syndrome to realize that each time they peek or speak using Third Voice, they say more about themselves than they realize. You don't need to post a note to be tracked. Tracking starts as soon as the user logs in. The first beta release allowed users to surf and read notes without logging in. The second and third required the users to log in, even just to read notes. Part of the rationale for needing to log in is so Third Voice can track the notes that are being read. Part is to track user's surfing habits.

      From an interview with Third Voice investor Steve Jurvetson "And for advertisers, Third Voice offers yet another banner space. But this one, anticipates Jurvetson, will bring in 100 times greater advertising rates because of the pervasiveness of the medium. The information Third Voice can gather about its users' surfing and purchasing habits is far greater than any one Web site could ever gather.". It's interesting that the terms of service and privacy statement don't spell things out that clearly.

      (July 7, 1999 Salon.com Article) Also read the Say No To Third Voice analysis of TV Terms of Service and Privacy Statement

      Steve Jurvetson is with Draper Fisher Jurvetson who specialize in providing venture capital to technology startups, and who coined the phrase Viral Marketing. Viral Marketing markets products and services, not by advertising, but by "the pattern of rapid adoption through word-of-mouth networks."

   3. Cyber Trespassing We believe that Third Voice software cyber trespasses on the paid for property of commercial sites, private organizations, and private individuals. While it is true that the notes themselves do not reside on the webmaster's site, Third Voice software uses the bandwidth of the target site to display notes attached to that site. The notes are imbedded with the URL of the web page to which they are attached. Users must make a hit on that web page in order for Third Voice software to fetch the note.

      The concept of cyber trespassing has already been upheld by the courts in California. In the Superior Court of the State of California ruling on April 27, 1999 (Intel v Hamidi), the court ruled in favor of Intel, and recognized electronic trespass to chattels. "Trespass to chattels is defined as the unauthorized interference with possession of personal property which causes injury"

      "The court found that Intel's e-mail system is part of its general proprietary computer system and that Intel had been injured by diminished employee productivity and by devoting company resources toward blocking Hamidi's e-mail messages. The court rejected Hamidi's argument that his e-mail messages were protected by the First Amendment and granted summary judgment in favor of Intel. Intel Corp. v. Hamidi, No. 98AS05067 (Sup. Ct. Cal. Sacramento Cty. April 27, 1999)."
      (From the archives of Brown Raysman Millstein Felder and Steiner) (Public Legal documents)

   4. Graffiti Interviews with Third Voice executives often contain a statement such as this one from Dallas Morning News Article. ""The claims of the program being digital graffiti is absolutely wrong," says San Mai, director of product management for Third Voice, a free Web page annotation program. "The kind of graffiti we see in subways does actually alter the original work. We don't. It's not vandalism.""

      San Mai is confusing the definition of graffiti with copyright issues.

      Graffiti is defined in the Webster's Dictionary as: "an inscription or drawing made on some public surface ".

      Web pages are publicly accessible surfaces that are attached to privately owned domain names, located on server space that is rented or paid for.

      According to Webster's Dictionary, vandalism is "willful or malicious destruction or defacement of public or private property ".

      Defacement is defined as "to mar the external appearance of"

      Third Voice notes are graffiti and vandalism.