back to article First Australian ISPs launch Interpol internet filter

While debate rages over Telstra and Optus announcing their filtering plans, CyberOne in Canberra has jumped the industry. On Friday, it started filtering its TransACT-connected clients against the Interpol blacklist. A voluntary industry code of practice for ISPs in Australia aims to disrupt the activities of child …

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  1. Steven Roper
    Mushroom

    In the worst case of Orwellian lies I've ever seen

    they call this "voluntary" filtering. Voluntary for the ISP that is. NOT voluntary for the customer if the ISP goes ahead with it. So this is the backdoor method by which they impose Conjob's filter on everyone. It's purely voluntary - if you don't like it, you can go to another ISP.

    Now watch what happens to ISPs who refuse to implement this "voluntary" filter. Such as Internode - my own ISP - who have stated that they will not be filtering their customers' internet. But for how long? How long before government officials and the do-gooder nannies start saying things like "Internode - the child pornographer's ISP of choice" and "What's the matter Internode? Are you guys really willing to let your customer access that filth?" and so on until they cave in from all the bad publicity.

    "Voluntary" my fucking arse.

  2. Peter Murphy
    WTF?

    Why are there that many "public" child porn sites to be blocked?

    That's what I don't get. We're not talking "Lolita" sites (where the models are over 18) - but sites showing actual exploitation of kids. I didn't think there were that many. In any developed country (and many of the developing ones), setting up one invites cops with guns to kick in your front door. Do not pass go, do not collect 200 dollars, go directly to jail or the gallows or the organ banks.

    Distributing child porn is almost invariably a secret activity, with both criminal and social sanctions against it. So you have peer-to-peer networks, and the occasional newsgroup hosting organisation - neither of which is covered by the filter.

    Perhaps there are little grubby anonymous sites where you have to log in with your secret user name and password to access child porn. But to OBTAIN the secret user name and password, you probably have to be part of some sordid paedophile network. Few of us are going to stumble upon http://www.herebemonsters.com and find a real kiddie porn network.

    Rather (or in addition to) blocking the site, wouldn't it be better to just close them down? And if they are hosted in some former Soviet Union republic, with the cops paid to turn a blind eye, wouldn't it be best to just block the serving ISP as well?

  3. qt101
    Facepalm

    ISP 'Voluntary" filtering OMG what next to get this passed?

    I agree with both Steven & Peter's comments above:- This is a small baby step to edge in the real thing because Filtering has been apposed so defensively by us Australians for some time now.

    And using the Child Pornography card is quite a strong start to tricking the uninformed to allow Filtering to be passed.

    I will always be in opposition for Filtering. There are other way's to stop bad guys and protect our children, without ruining it for everyone else.

    I'm all for trying to cripple these Child Pornographers and Pedophiles - but these voluntary or mandatory ISP filtering moves won't stop a thing.

    Those in the know are fully aware of the Sicko's use of P2P and VPN, Invite only sites with Password Access only, These dudes are Tech savvy; They're already Underground in their Private forums and Communities - Invite only VPN's [Virtual Private Networks] etc.

    These steps are just pushing those nasty sicko's further and further underground and no filtering is ever going to reach there.

    At least with some transparency comes arrests and seizures. And then comes the plea bargaining to hand us the ring leaders to lesson your time. 'So to speak'.

    I don't know - I just think it's crazy to push these sicko's further underground. Where they can be virtually unstoppable! It seams this where we are heading?! If we don't stand up and fight.

  4. Anonymous Coward
    FAIL

    blocking scorpion album covers?

    I suspect the filter will be blocking access to sites hosting photo of the infamous scorpions album cover, or video sites where you can download fims such as pretty baby, and the blue lagoon, or purchase art books by Jock sturges or David Hamilon and other such 'child abuse' images which are infact legal in many jurisdictions.

    I don't believe there is any commercial kiddy pron websites operating after landslide productions and others were all shut down in the early 2000s, as others point out kiddy pron is now distributed not for profit but for sexual perversion between pedos over P2P networks, newsgroups or even highjacked legitimate sites none of which a filter would stop.

  5. Anonymous Coward
    Holmes

    ok

    Australia joins the great line up of countries with awesome human rights records such as China, Saudi Arabia, Iran etc.

    *Tin foil hat time*

    As said above it's only mandatory on the surface. The 'think of the children'card is always played to get things like this in place. It has nothing to do with child porn.

    It's already been admitted that all someone has to do to continue to access child pornograpty is to simply use a VPN, which can be had for a few dollars a month.

    So what will the filtering do if its primary objective can be so quickly bypassed?

    Well nothing......until the government expands the list of banned sites to include the websites of some other unpopular items such as radical islamists. It's for our protection, of course.

    Then other dangerous sites such as those that tell people how to make bombs from sugar, dishwasher liquid and glass cleaner!!! It's for our protection, of course.

    By the time we're used to websites being banned the list will be updated quietly and without fanfare to include anything the government thinks would not be appropraite. The freedom that defines the internet is then gone and the government is back in control! For our benefit of course!

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