Iran is apparently proactively censoring selected Internet sites. Reports out of that country claim that the government there is blocking access to Google, Yahoo, and Gmail, It is also preventing access to sites using the secure Https protocol, effectively preventing any online banking services.
Legislators are currently drafting a bill that aims to impose export restrictions on software that can be used by foreign governments to monitor citizens or censor Internet content. Republican Representative Chris Smith, the bill's sponsor, suggests such legislation is necessary to help prevent certain governments from using American-produced software to quash political dissent.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) has published a commentary critical of new voluntary censorship measures adopted by two of Australia’s largest ISPs, Optus and Telstra. Optus and Telstra have taken the decision to block a list of websites that depict child abuse provided by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA). While most people would support the blocking of child porn websites, critics have argued that there is no transparency in the selection of URLs to be blocked and no accountability required of the regulatory bodies that develop the lists.
Chinese Internet search giant Baidu has been sued in the US by a group of free speech advocates for censoring Chinese freedom of speech websites. The group of eight New York residents has also included the Chinese government in its complaint. The group claims that as the Baidu site can be utilized in the US, that it violates the US Constitution by reportedly colluding with the Chinese government to omit search results.
Apple has rejected a "magazine" app from Danish publisher Mediaprovider because the content was exclusively about Android, the rival mobile OS to Apple's own iOS -- reinforcing charges that Apple's censorship is heavy-handed, arbitrary and in some cases hypocritical -- in fact, a magazine app from the Netherlands called Androidworld Reader is already available on the App Store. While the App Store features dozens of magazines that have some discussion of other mobile operating systems in them -- Wired's popular iPad app being a prime example -- the fact that Android Magasinet is devoted exclusively to Google's smartphone OS was cited as the deciding factor, says publisher Brian Dixen.
Google, Microsoft and Yahoo are among the founding members of a new anti-censorship group called the Global Network Initiative, reports indicate. The organization also has the backing of investor, human rights and press freedom groups, such as the Center for Democracy and Technology. The GNI is specifically aimed at forming a consistent approach to dealing with countries that block free speech on the Internet, such as China. Many governments around the world filter search results, or simply prevent citizens from accessing certain websites.
Apple has banned the comic book iPhone app Murderdrome, its creators claim. This adds to a growing list of titles that have been banned from the App Store for one reason or another, including Tetris clone Tris, lightsaber emulator PhoneSaber, and the "bling" app I Am Rich. Apple has used a variety of reasons for each pull, this time the iPhone SDK's assertion that content cannot offend Apple's "reasonable" sensibilities.
Access to Apple's iTunes Store is once again available in China, although some content is no longer visible, according to SFGate. The service was apparently blocked by the Chinese regime last week; a controversial pro-Tibet album, however, is still unavailable to shoppers in the country. The album is suspected as the main reason for the earlier blockage of iTunes.
Several activist groups have submitted a petition to the FCC regarding SMS blocking, filings indicate. The problem, says a coalition include Public Knowledge, Educause and six other groups, is that cellular networks are sometimes blocking bulk text messages without legitimate pretext, hurting operations. One recent example comes from September, when Verizon refused to provide short codes to NARAL Pro-Choice America; although the group only wanted to send out opt-in alerts, Verizon said it would not allow "highly controversial" texts on its network.
