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UK Porn Filter Will Censor Other Content Too, ISPs Reveal

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Re: UK Porn Filter Will Censor Other Content Too, ISPs Reveal

#71

Post by TeMPOraL »

adrow wrote: post #20
pasbesoin wrote: post #5

As I've been saying for years, the Great Firewall of China is -- or was -- the prototype. Look at its early history: Built with "Western" technology and consulting. Did you think all these firms were creating a one-off? And, the following observation is perhaps stretching the interpretation a bit (or not), but I find it somewhat ironic that, after all this, it is a Chinese company that is pushing this implementation…

So you could call this one the China Firewall of Great Britain.

Or Hadrian's Firewall, per https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6107385.

Re: UK Porn Filter Will Censor Other Content Too, ISPs Reveal

#72

Post by pavanred »

This is probably a long shot but I was wondering if eventually this censoring functionality can be used to draw boundaries over the internet. Once you have the infrastructure in place to censor then there's very little needed to do extend the filters to censor other content.

For instance, nationalize the internet, perhaps block services from companies from other countries or tax such services to promote indigenous companies that provide similar services. The reasoning can be why not promote local businesses and provide them incentives by taxing or levying duties on services from other countries instead of letting a company from some other country making all the profits.

edit : typo

Re: UK Porn Filter Will Censor Other Content Too, ISPs Reveal

#74

Post by buro9 »

HN users in the UK should note: The default blocked items includes "web forums", potentially including HN.

You would have to opt-in to viewing such content as the default has you opted-out along with porn, violent material, extremist and terrorist related content.

Re: UK Porn Filter Will Censor Other Content Too, ISPs Reveal

#77

Post by InclinedPlane »

diminoten wrote: post #64

The Internet interprets censorship as damage and routes around it. $5/month VPN subscriptions will come with routers, pre-configured.

This is very, very wrongheaded.

The internet as a transmission protocol is robust and redundant. And if it were used as a sort of replacement for the telephone system then that would be enough. But the architecture of the way the internet is today used in practice is far more centralized. If the web worked the way bittorrent does then perhaps your comment would be accurate, but it doesn't, so we have a "web" that is not strong due to its massive interconnectivity but rather weak because each part of it, content-wise, lives in comparative isolation and is easy to cut off (for now).

Re: UK Porn Filter Will Censor Other Content Too, ISPs Reveal

#78

Post by iamben »

daxelrod wrote: post #40
Nursie wrote: post #24

Well DUH! Some of the politicians like to say it'll be the same sort of system that's on mobile phones here. These have two characteristics - 1. The filter is full of holes 2. What's blocked is pretty arbitrary For instance, I was at a music festival last year (Beautiful Days), and access to the online site map and festival schedule was blocked as 'adult' content. The festival itself was full of kids and teenagers (b…

Wait, is there already a government-imposed web filter on mobile phones in the UK? And you can't opt out? When did this happen? What were the justifications given when it was put into place? Does it also apply to GSM tablets and devices tethered to your mobile?

It's been in place a while (but I'm not sure it's government imposed). I've moaned about it a bunch - I have no idea why O2 feel the need to block http://www.whatthefuckshouldimakefordinner.com/ for instance. Is it because there's a 'fuck' in the URL? Ridiculous.

Re: UK Porn Filter Will Censor Other Content Too, ISPs Reveal

#79

Post by grabhive »

InclinedPlane wrote: post #23

This deserves a lot more of a response but for now I'll just leave this: Liberty is about the ability of the individual to do things that others disapprove of. You don't need liberty if everyone else approves of your actions. As a corollary, the exercise of liberty does not require a justification, because it's a liberty, practicality or "usefulness" or what-have-you play no part in it. It's onerous to require someon…

Extraordinarily well said.

Re: UK Porn Filter Will Censor Other Content Too, ISPs Reveal

#80

Post by anonymous »

markbao wrote: post #65

The terrifying reality of censorship, as told through the lens of that of China: "I knew of some Chinese migrants to Australia who watched a Tiananmen 10-year anniversary documentary, and apparently tears just streamed down their faces. They had no clue that it ever happened ."

Do you have any source for this? Google shows nothing and Duck Duck Go only points me to a reddit thread with that exact same comment and no source.

I mean just about the specific case, I know that the Tiananmen square incident is unknown to almost all Chinese.

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