Post Tech by Cecilia Kang

The Circuit: TechNet CEO Ramsey steps down

By Hayley Tsukayama

TechNet head steps down: Rey Ramsey, chief executive of TechNet, announced that he is stepping down from the bipartisan political group of Silicon Valley executives after three years to pursue an "exciting private sector endeavor."

Ramsey, formerly chief executive of the technology nonprofit One Economy, was named chief executive of TechNet in 2009. Alix Burns, the president of Bay Bridge Strategies and former vice president of TechNet, will be the group's acting chief executive while the organization's executive council searches for a new leader.

CFTC struggles to keep up with technology: The recent hack of the Associated Press Twitter account, and subsequent market hiccup, highlighted one of the changes facing the Commodity Futures Trading Commission as it tries to outline how it should cope with changing technology. The technology is moving too fast.

The Washington Post reported that the CFTC has been working for years on a paper discussing these challenges but has trouble dealing with the shifting landscape and addressing new issues such as the place of social media.

The CFTC said it will discuss the AP Twitter hack in a meeting of its technology advisory committee Tuesday.

Cybercrime: The Washington Post reported on the debate about whether the federal government is pursuing cybercrime too harshly. Several recent cases, including those of Andrew "Weev" Auernheimer, Aaron Swartz and Matthew Keys, have been magnets for critics of the Justice Department who say the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act is too broad and that its punishments are too severe.

The Justice Department, the report said, argues that the fraud law is not tough enough, and officials support proposals that could place computer crimes under federal racketeering laws and stiffen some sentences.

Nielsen to track online TV viewers: Nielsen announced Tuesday that it will begin tracking online TV viewers for several major networks in addition to its traditional viewership numbers. ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX and AOL are among the networks included in the pilot program, which will provide overnight audience data for online video using a methodology similar to its current method for evaluating online advertising ratings.

"Together, Nielsen Digital Program Ratings and Nielsen Online Campaign Ratings offer a more holistic view of the online and TV audience for both programming content and associated ad campaigns," the firm said in a release.