Australia's two biggest ISP's planning to censor internet

khaotic · Jun 22, 2011

MOST Australian internet users will have their web access censored next month after the country's two largest internet providers agreed to voluntarily block more than 500 websites from view.

Telstra and Optus confirmed they would block access to a list of child abuse websites provided by the Australian Communications and Media Authority and more compiled by unnamed international organisations from mid-year.
But internet experts have warned that the scheme is merely a "feel-good policy" that will not stop criminals from accessing obscene material online and could block websites unfairly.

The voluntary scheme was originally proposed by the Federal Government last year as part of a wider, $9.8 million scheme to encourage internet service providers to block all Refused Classification material from users as an optional service.
The Government dropped its funding for the scheme last month due to "limited interest" from the industry, but a spokesman for Communications Minister Stephen Conroy said a basic voluntary filter was still on track to be introduced by Telstra, Optus and two small ISPs.
"The ACMA will compile and manage a list of URLs of child abuse content that will include the appropriate subsection of the ACMA blacklist as well as child abuse URLs that are provided by reputable international organisations (to be blocked)," the spokesman said.
System Administrators Guild of Australia board member Donna Ashelford said blocking these website addresses should not affect internet speed, but was only a "cosmetic fix" that was easily circumvented by criminals.
"The effectiveness will be trivial because you're just blocking a single website address (and) a person can get around it by changing that address with one character," she said.
"Child abuse material is more likely to be exchanged on peer-to-peer networks and private networks anyway and is a matter for law enforcement."
Electronic Frontiers Association board member Colin Jacobs also expressed concern at the scheme, saying the Government and internet providers needed to be more upfront about websites being blocked and offer an appeals process for website owners who felt URLs had been blocked unfairly.
"There is a question about where the links are coming from and I'd like to know the answer to that," Mr Jacobs said.
"We've been waiting to hear details on this from the Government. It they turn out to be zealous with the type of material that is on the list then we'd want to have a discussion about ways to introduce more transparency."

Read more: http://www.news.com.au/technology/i...th/story-fn5j66db-1226079954138#ixzz1Q1W8lmsl
Click to expand...

How do you Aussies feel about this? I personally would be irate if the CRTC or any sole ISP tried to pull this.

Akki · Jun 22, 2011

Australia following in the footsteps of China..... eventually you won't even be able to view facebook!

Jeff · Jun 22, 2011

Never expected it would happen to Australia..

H! · Jun 22, 2011

Welcome to the nanny country....

mr_evolution · Jun 22, 2011

yay spending money on things that have barely any impact instead of providing its overcharged customers with better services

Akki · Jun 22, 2011

^ Running that monetarian world

kevin · Jun 23, 2011

lol that's a p1$$ take!

setshiro · Jun 24, 2011

Chinen said: ↑

Never expected it would happen to Australia..
Click to expand...

actually i'm not surprised since australia have strict censorship elsewhere..but they just blocking the child abuse sites not the whole internet...

H! · Jun 24, 2011

setshiro said: ↑

actually i'm not surprised since australia have strict censorship elsewhere..but they just blocking the child abuse sites not the whole internet...
Click to expand...

lol yea starts there and ends up like china ......

mr_evolution · Jun 24, 2011

they are also starting to lay fibre optic cables around, that sort of balances out

hardo azian · Jun 26, 2011

I expected this when coming to australia, but never knew when. luckily i'm not with those 2 isp's.

Australia's two biggest ISP's planning to censor internet

khaotic Fobulous

Akki ...

Jeff 神之馬壯

H! o_0"

mr_evolution ( • )( •ԅ(ˆ⌣ˆԅ)

Akki ...

kevin RAWR!

setshiro Well-Known Member

H! o_0"

mr_evolution ( • )( •ԅ(ˆ⌣ˆԅ)

hardo azian Well-Known Member