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Internet Restrictions to Increase, IOP Speaker Says

And Zitttrain said that tracking and identification efforts will be easier with the advent of new protective measures by groups such as the Internet Engineering Task Force, which works to develop new standards and protocols for the Internet.

Engraining identification numbers into newly manufactured computers will make regulation even easier.

"It is branded like a young calf with a unique number," Zittrain said of a new computer.

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This number can then be used to identify which computers have visited certain websites, putting a clear mark on the actions of users.

"This allows the network to get smarter," Zittrain said.

Internet consultant Paul Vixie is already working to regulate the sending of junk mail--known as spam--to user inboxes, creating lists of senders who should be blocked.

E-mail providers such as Hotmail and AOL use Vixie's blacklists to protect users of their networks from unwanted mail.

"Paul is the sheriff, judge, jury and executioner of the Internet," Zittrain said.

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