Open Rights Group goes after Ofcom

Ofcom is facing pressure from the Open Rights Group

The Open Rights Group (ORG) and consumer organisation Which? are to meet with Ofcom later today to discuss the Digital Economy Act.

Both groups have raised concerns that Ofcom is unable to tackle certain elements of the controversial legislation efficiently enough.

"It has become increasingly clear that Ofcom does not believe it is possible to deal with the issue of technical measures at this stage. They keep saying it is of no concern at the moment. We believe it is," said the ORG in a blog post.

Uncertainty about some provisions in the Digital Economy Act will make it hard for copyright owners to take evidence to court, and will cause confusion among web users who will not know whether their actions are wrong or what the consequences might be, the ORG claimed.

Another issue of concern is open Wi-Fi networks, which the ORG said is still an area of confusion because companies cannot be sure whether they should secure their networks or, if they do not, whether they can have them taken away.

"The other very worrying issue is that we still don't have an assurance that the process will not force the closure of open Wi-Fi networks," said the ORG.

"Ofcom seems to acknowledge their public benefit, and has said that it has no intention of forcing people to secure their Wi-Fi network or even to close it down. However there is a strong incentive for ISPs to send letters that would imply that users must close their network."

The way to avoid this, according to the ORG, is for Ofcom to explicitly state in the consultation that letters must inform people that they have the legal right to run an open and unsecured Wi-Fi network.