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The U.S. Senate unanimously passed the controversial ‘Combating Online Infringement and Counterfeits Act’ today, a bill that could be used to crack down on many BitTorrent sites and other file-sharing platforms. The bill would give the Department of Justice the unprecedented power to take over domain names of websites that are deemed to facilitate copyright infringement.

Juveniles caught sending sexually explicit photographs via their cell phones would not face criminal prosecution but rather intense education on the ramifications under a bill approved on Monday by the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee.

The measure (A-1561) was approved 78-0 by the Assembly in March. It now moves to the full Senate for final legislative approval.

The Massachusetts Senate today approved a bill to crack down on bullying in schools, which organizers say is a growing problem that is being exacerbated by communication over the Internet.

The Alabama Senate on Thursday night approved an Arizona-style immigration bill that would allow law enforcement officers to detain people they suspect of being in the country illegally.

Vowing to push back against Washington, the state Senate's majority Republicans on Thursday approved two states' rights measures, including a bill that would make it a crime for government officials to enforce federal regulation of economic activity that doesn't go outside the state.

The other bill would have Arizona join other states in a compact to challenge the federal health care overhaul and its mandates on individuals.

A bipartisan bill introduced in the Senate requiring all airports to use full-body scanners lacks sufficient privacy safeguards, says a prominent watchdog group.

The Electronic Privacy Information Center says the bill, introduced in the Senate by Sen. Bob Bennett (R-UT) and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), "contains particularly weak privacy provision[s] that ignore many of the problems with the devices already uncovered."

The so-called "All-Crimes DNA" bill would require anyone convicted of a felony or misdemeanor to give a DNA sample.

CISPA passes House in unexpected last-minute vote

The House of Representatives has approved Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act with a vote count of 248-168. The bill is now headed for the Senate. President Barack Obama will be able to sign or cancel it pending Senate approval.

Initially slated to vote on the bill Friday, the House of Representatives decided to pass Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA) Thursday after approving a number of amendments.

The Senate has passed legislation that includes a provision allowing airports to replace TSA screeners with private security, opening the door for the widely loathed federal agency to be marginalized from aviation security altogether.