John Morris

Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia that allows users to post neutral information, has blocked several Church of Scientology IP addresses from posting content after the group allegedly posted content pushing its agenda.

The Web site, which is run by the Wikipedia Foundation and touts itself as being a free encyclopedia that anyone can edit, has taken editing tools away from the controversial religious group sometimes referred to as a brainwashing cult.

Wikipedia's action is the first of its kind, according to the U.K.-based publication, The Register, which first broke the story.

Minnesota officials are trying a novel tactic to block online gambling sites -- using a federal law that enables restrictions on phone calls used for wagering.

The state's Department of Public Safety said Wednesday it had asked 11 Internet service providers to block access to 200 online gambling sites.

The state is citing a federal law that requires "common carriers," a term that mainly applies to phone companies, to comply with requests that they block telecommunications services used for gambling.

"Proxy" servers are an everyday part of Internet surfing. But using one in a crime could soon lead to more time in the clink.

A key vote Wednesday on new federal sentencing guidelines would classify the use of proxies as evidence of "sophistication," increasing sentences by about 25 percent -- which could mean years or even decades longer behind bars, depending on the crime. It's akin to judges handing down stiffer sentences when a gun is used in a robbery.

The Supreme Court has ended a decade-long campaign to restrict Web content by refusing to hear the government's appeal of lower-court rulings that declared the Child Online Protective Act unconstitutional.

First passed in 1998, COPA restricted access by minors to any material considered harmful, including content related to sexual identity and pornography. The law was never enforced because of challenges by groups such as the American Civil Liberties Union, which said the law violated the First and Fifth amendments.

The prosecution celebrated a partial victory as Lori Drew was found guilty of three of the lesser charges she faced stemming from a MySpace hoax that resulted in a 13-year-old girl's suicide.

While most of the attention was focused on the drama that ensued because of the suicide of Megan Meier, the outcome of the landmark case may have lasting effects on how people use Web sites.

President George Bush signed two bills into law on Monday that would protect children from online predators, but one group said the bills were rushed to the White House for signature without careful consideration.

While Congress considered the nation's financial bailout plan, other significant bills protecting children were being debated, including the Protect Our Children Act of 2008 (POCA) and Keeping the Internet Devoid of Sexual Predators Act (KIDSPA).