Should the "good guys" be able to use spyware? Similar questions have been raised about police hacking. The methods that law enforcement officials are allowed to use to investigate crimes vary (as does public opinion, reports say) depending on what part of the world you are in.

In the United States, the FBI recently used a secret surveillance program, a computer and internet protocol address verifier, to catch an alleged teen bomb threat suspect.

Not too long after its announcement of progress with "Operation Bot Roast", the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation has promised more steps forward in prosecutions for spam and botnet related activities in the coming months.

A Connecticut, USA judge has granted a new trial for the so-called "Spyware Teacher" Julie Amero, who was facing up to 40 years behind bars after being convicted of exposing students to pornography on a classroom computer.

According to reports, the computer that had been the subject of debate in the trial was sent to a state laboratory following the trial, and those findings may contradict the testimony that had been presented by a state computer expert.

On Tuesday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Internet Spyware Prevention Act, which you may know as I-Spy, a bill that aims to create a federal law to take on spyware. I-Spy calls for:

• making it a criminal offense for an individual to place unauthorized code on a computer and use it to obtain or transmit personal information or to impair the security protections on the system.
• fines and prisons terms of up to five years for those responsible for such acts.

The U.S. Congress has been trying for years to pass uniform legislation to curb spyware and adware.

Now, identity theft concerns are also being pushed forward, with a federally convened task force urging Congress to look towards a new national strategy for punishing identity fraud.