Latest Internet censorship Stories

WASHINGTON, Feb. 22 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- As Google and the web community struggle to deal with the rising tide of international Internet censorship, a coalition of pro-democracy leaders are calling for a serious U.S. commitment to dismantle the Internet firewalls of the world's closed societies. They ask: Was Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's January 21st speech on the subject an exercise in political rhetoric or a serious call for action? The concerns of the pro-democracy groups...

Whistleblower website WikiLeaks has temporarily shut down due to financial difficulties, according to BBC News. "To concentrate on raising the funds necessary to keep us alive into 2010, we have reluctantly suspended all other operations, but will be back soon," says a post on the website.It's running costs, including staff payments, total $600,000, but so far this year it has raised just $130,000.WikiLeaks is a non-profit website and does not accept money from the government. They...

ATLANTA, Jan. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- The publicity surrounding Tiger Woods' reported treatment for sex addiction should raise public awareness of the problem's causes, including the fact that pornography is now just a click away on the Internet, according to anti-porn crusader and XXXchurch founder Craig Gross. "We don't know if Tiger Woods struggled with online pornography, but most sex addicts do. It's often where their habit starts," said Gross, whose web-based XXXchurch ministry has helped...

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called on China to investigate the recent cyberattacks on Google and other U.S. firms, and urged U.S. technology companies to oppose Internet censorship."The internet is a network that magnifies the power and potential of all others. And that's why we believe it's critical that its users are assured certain basic freedoms. Freedom of expression is first among them," said Secretary Clinton on Thursday at the Newseum. Without specifically mentioning China, she...

A new Internet filtering system being introduced in Australia would block obscene and crime-linked Web sites, but many are concerned about how it will work and if it will curtail freedoms.Australia would also become one of the strictest Internet regulators among the world's democracies if it were to adopt a mandatory screening system, as authoritarian regimes commonly impose such controls. China's plan to install filtering software on all PCs sold in the country drew international criticism...

Whistleblower website Wikileaks recently posted thousands of pager messages sent on September 11, 2001.Wikileaks posted over half a million text messages during the 24-hour period when hijacked airliners caused the deaths of 3,000 people."The archive is a completely objective record of the defining moment of our time," Wikileaks said. "We hope that its revelation will lead to a more nuanced understanding of the event and its tragic consequences."The texts include some from...

After disrupting a meeting of free-speech advocates in Egypt, the UN is being criticized for stifling debate about net censorship, BBC News reported.During a recent session at the Internet Governance Forum in Egypt, the UN security demanded the removal of a poster promoting a book by the OpenNet Initiative (ONI). The poster mentioned Internet censorship and China's Great Firewall.The UN claimed it had received complaints about the poster and that it had not been "pre-approved."Ron...

Internet censorship will be challenged at the World Trade Organization, as it can limit online trade and delivery services, a study says.A censorship case at the WTO could bring up dominion questions, as members can already censor for moral purposes, like prohibiting contact with child pornography websites.However, a WTO decision might restrict blanket censorship and force states to utilize specific filtering, says the study available on Thursday."Censorship is the most important...

In an attempt to spare Internet users the fear of random crackdowns on illegal downloading, EU lawmakers and governments have officially finished coming up with new rights for them on Thursday. According to EU Telecoms Commissioner Viviane Reding, they sealed the deal when EU governments accepted EU parliament demands to find a happy medium between a punishment for illegal downloading and a broader set of rights for internet users, reported the Associated Press.The EU had been working on the...

ATLANTA, Nov. 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Forrest Collier, CEO of InternetSafety.com, will be participating in a federal hearing in Washington, D.C. today as part of an all-day meeting by the Online Safety and Technology Working Group established under the auspices of the Federal Trade Commission to promote a safe Internet for children. The topic of the meeting is "Parental Controls, Child Protection Technologies and Content Rating Methods." Collier was invited to speak on a panel addressing the...