Will soon conduct tests on system intended to have ISPs filter porn and other content deemed inappropriate for kids.
Forces around the world continue to try and get ISPs to become the gatekeepers of content. It’s been well publicized how the entertainment industry has been lobbying govts around the world with varying degrees of success to get ISPs to filter copyrighted content, but now Australia is breaking new ground with attempts to get ISPs to filter porn and “inappropriate” content as well.
The Australian govt is moving ahead with plans to have ISPs filter porn and other internet content deemed inappropriate for children despite findings that they aren’t effective and do little to fight the real threat to children – predators using social networking sites like MySpace and Facebook. It’s something that even the Australian Communications and Media Authority(ACMA) admits.
“The risks to Australian youth are primarily those associated with Web 2.0 services – potential contact by sexual predators, cyber-bullying by peers and misuse of personal information,” said the ACMA.
Coupled with a dive in the use of email, it has become even more difficult to filter content.
“Filters are currently unable to sift the content of communication between users using instant messaging or chat services,” ACMA said.
The agency concluded that education was the most effective way of addressing risks associated with illegal contact online.
The new plan to institute ISP-level filtering comes after three govt-funded studies showed that ISP-level filters would be less effective and more costly than PC-level filtering. Despite the studies, ISPs were still forced to begin offering PC filtering software to subscribers. It was only after 16-year-old Tom Wood demonstrated the ease with which they could be bypassed that plans for filtering at the ISP level were called for. Thus we have plans for testing out the new system.
The filters will be automatic, sending so-called “clean feeds” to homes, but subscribers can be exempted by contacting their ISP.
[Via Australian IT ]
Related
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- IFPI Wants ISPs to Filter Content, P2P Programs, and Websites
- Aussie Christian Lobby Wants X, R-Rated Content Filtered Too
Although I am totally against any form of censorship or filtering I like the fact you can request to be exempt from them. Still it should be the other way around you should be exempt by default.
I remember last year a kid cracked both attempts to institute this: http://www.news.com.au/story/02359922304224-200.html
Funniest story to come out of Australia in a while at that point. Either way won’t work.
@spurge
I just don’t see why once again the govt is made to be everybody’s babysitter. Its a stopgap for lazy parenting.
Actually the more I think about it the more I think this whole idea should be protested against. Once they get their start on any form of censorship it will just get out of control. I mean who gets to say what I can and can’t see? Some old religious zealot ?
Might send off some letters of complaint now I think. Even though it’s easy to get around it’s just wrong to start censoring because a small minority think something is offensive.
I just do not understand why are parents letting under aged kids surf the web unsupervised? Unfit parents just want to blame someone else for their own mistakes. Monitor your child if you are worried about “inappropriate” websites you do not want your child to accessTHATS IT~! You do not need a damn government to do it for you! Even then to much government means less freedom.
Basically it gives them the noble honor of saving the nation’s morality (how sweet) soon to be extended into the sphere of online swearing blasphemy plus irate outbursts on IRC… and to save our souls from damnation it may yet be extended to embrace copyright infringment .. alley loo yah!
Well.. I encourage all concerned about this to email your opinions about filtering.
http://www.acma.gov.au/WEB/STANDARD/pc=PC_122#Internet
Let them know Austalia isn’t Iran or China and we are supposed to be all for freedom of speech.
Even though there would be easy ways around the filtering it’s still a bad idea to go down this path.
Government officials are starting a modern day witch hunt. Once one “inappropriate” content of the internet is blocked there will be more and more organizations crying out to block other content.
Soon we will be opening our internet browsers to see the message “Thank you for paying your local ISP to provide you with the following message: ‘All content that the internet provides has been deemed inappropriate by some organization and therefore has been blocked. We appreciate your business and look forward to your next monthly payment to continue to block the internet from your personal use’”
Take the filter back to china where it belongs Kevin Rudd, Australians don’t want it!