Senate Select Committee on Community Standards Relevant to the Supply of Services Utilising Electronic Technologies

Public Seminar on the Regulation of Bulletin Board Systems

4 April 1995

Background to the Technology and the Issues

Roger Clarke, Reader in Information Systems
Department of Commerce
Australian National University
Roger.Clarke@anu.edu.au
© Australian National University, 1995
Overheads

Bulletin Board System (BBS)

a 'facility' which enables 'computer-readable materials' to be stored by one person at one point in time, and 'accessed' by another person at a later point in time

Computer-Readable Materials include:

unformatted text
formatted text
tables of numerical data
executable code (programs)
unstructured 'bit-map' images (akin to photographs)
structured graphics (akin to technical drawings and business presentation graphics)
sounds (including voice)
video ('moving pictures', i.e. successive still images which are largely a result of taking pictures of the real world)
animation (successive still images which are largely man-made in origin)
synchronised sound and video or animation
compound or multi-media documents comprising any two or more of the above

The Two-Phase Use of Bulletin Board Systems

Some Basics About BBS

A BBS Operator is the organisation, unincorporated body, or individual responsible for the provision of the service

The person who performs the work may be referred to variously as:

a systems administrator or 'sysadmin'
a 'sysop'

The motivation(s) for a BBS Operator may include:

service to the general community
service to a specific community
hobby
profit

Functions commonly performed:

hardware and software
management of the storage-space
backup and recovery
dissemination of location, purposes, modus operandi
(possibly) registration, fee collection

Functions generally not performed:

monitoring of the materials posted
management of the materials
verification of identities and characteristics

The Diversity of BBS

Various Classes

newsgroups
electronic conferences or discussion groups
on-line databases
on-line shared community noticeboards

Differences

'physical' accessibility
'logical' accessibility
capacity
basis of operation
additional services

Proliferation and Popularisation
Geographical Reach

The Quickly-Growing Sophistication of BBS

Access Alternatives

Dial-up using the PSTN and Austpac
Magnetic Media (diskettes, tapes) and CD-ROMs
Telecommunications Services Providers
- - corporations with their own wide-area networks
  - newer Internet-connection providers
- - professional and industry associations
Workplace gateways to Telecomms Providers
- - universities
- - corporations
- - government agencies
- - schools

The Volume of Materials
The Number of BBSs
Navigation Intermediaries
Storage Intermediaries

Some Key Regulatory Issues

The Objects of Regulation
- Materials
- Acts and Actors:
  - The Origination and Originator of the Material
  - The Posting and Poster of the Material
  - Services Providers:
  - The Storing and the Storer (BBS Operator)
  - The Transmitting and Transmitter (the Telecommunications Carrier)
  - The Fetching and Fetcher of the Material

Practicalities of Regulation
- Capacity of the Regulated Parties to Comply
- Classification of Materials
- Evidence
- Jurisdiction

Risk Management Alternatives
- Controls
  - Preventative
  - Detective
  - Investigative
- Pre- versus Post-Regulation
- Costs and Negative Impacts of Pre-Regulation
- Education

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Last Amended: 15 October 1995

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