A Loathsome Sequel to the DMCA

Cryptome has helpfully posted the text of the Security Systems Standards and Certification Act (SSSCA) which may actually be MORE odious than the Digital Millennium Copyright Act.

It appears to require that computer manufacturers install government-approved filtering software on their equipment in a hamhanded attempt to prevent the exchange of private or copyrighted material:

The SSSCA and existing law work hand in hand to steer the market toward using only computer systems where copy protection is enabled. First, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act created the legal framework that punished people who bypassed copy protection -- and now, the SSSCA is intended to compel Americans to buy only systems with copy protection on by default . . .

More from Wired, with thanks to the always helpful Politech. There is also an informative thread on the SSSCA over at Slashdot.