Access Control
& Security Systems

Efforts to bolster Internet security will not lead to increased government scrutiny of individuals' online habits, the White House says.

"The administration is not considering a proposal to monitor what individuals do on the Internet," a spokesman for the Department of Homeland Security told Reuters. High-tech companies, meanwhile, said they would resist government efforts to get involved in the day-to-day operation of the global computer network.

In a set of preliminary guidelines released in September, the White House said high-tech companies that keep an eye on the Internet should combine their efforts and work with the government to better defend against computer viruses, worms and other cyber-attacks.

White House cyber-security czar Richard Clarke assured high-tech firms the government only wanted them to set up an "early warning system" to keep an eye on the health of the Internet.

This month in Access Control

• Targeting The Customer
• Electronic Pedigrees
• One Hero Among Many
• Who? What? When? Where? Why?
• More from September's issue