UN: The Problem With The Internet Today Is It's Just Too Open & Terrorists Might Use It
from the terrorists!-run! dept
Ah, the UN. As highlighted by Declan McCullagh, a new report from the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Implementation Task Force, clocking in at an unwieldy 158 pages (pdf) warns that this old internet of ours is just too damn open, and that means terrorists can use it. Thus, it has to stop the openness. The report really is just about that bad: if terrorists might misuse it, it's bad and must be stopped. The costs of locking up all this openness are brushed aside, if they're even considered at all. Among the problems? How about open WiFi?ISPs may require users to provide identifying information prior to accessing Internet content and services. The collection and preservation of identifying information associated with Internet data, and the disclosure of such information, subject to the appropriate safeguards, could significantly assist investigative and prosecutorial proceedings. In particular, requiring registration for the use of Wi-Fi networks or cybercafes could provide an important data source for criminal investigations. While some countries, such as Egypt, have implemented legislation requiring ISPs to identify users before allowing them Internet access, similar measures may be undertaken by ISPs on a voluntary basis.It seems like it should be a general rule that, if you're supporting something that includes better surveillance tools by saying, "Hey, Egypt -- the same country that recently had the people rise up to force out a dictator, who tried to shut down the internet -- does it!" perhaps you don't have a very good argument.
The report is basically one big "OMG! But... but... terrorists! Kill it!" It talks about things like "standardizing" data retention rules for ISPs, while we here in the US don't currently have data retention rules -- nor is everyone in agreement that such things are good. Nevermind all that... terrorists!
The development of a universally agreed regulatory framework imposing consistent obligations on all ISPs regarding the type and duration of customer usage data to be retained would be of considerable benefit to law enforcement and intelligence agencies investigating terrorism cases.Also... all that social media stuff going on out there? Scary, scary stuff because terrorists might use it as well. They might publish propaganda on it, and we can't have that:
The promotion of extremist rhetoric encouraging violent acts is also a common trend across the growing range of Internet-based platforms that host user-generated content. Content that might formerly have been distributed to a relatively limited audience, in person or via physical media such as compact discs (CDs) and digital video discs (DVDs), has increasingly migrated to the Internet. Such content may be distributed using a broad range of tools, such as dedicated websites, targeted virtual chat rooms and forums, online magazines, social networking platforms such as Twitter and Facebook, and popular video and file-sharing websites, such as YouTube and Rapidshare, respectively. The use of indexing services such as Internet search engines also makes it easier to identify and retrieve terrorism-related content.You hear that? All those internet companies, enabling terrorists. Oh, and they're not just handy for terrorists to promote their propaganda... but to sneak up on the dumb users who reveal important info for terrorists as well:
Particularly in the age of popular social networking media, such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Flickr and blogging platforms, individuals also publish, voluntarily or inadvertently, an unprecedented amount of sensitive information on the Internet. While the intent of those distributing the information may be to provide news or other updates to their audience for informational or social purposes, some of this information may be misappropriated and used for the benefit of criminal activity.Loose fingers on Twitter sink ships, as the saying goes.
Now, of course, some of this is just describing what's going on out there for those who haven't realized that any communications technology can be used by both people with good intentions and bad intentions (and no intentions at all). And we shouldn't freak out about that kind of thing. But, the report does also make some "legislative and policy recommendations," where it gets worrisome:
In order to provide effective criminal justice responses to threats presented by terrorists using the Internet, States require clear national policies and legislative frameworks. Broadly speaking, such policies and laws will focus on:Nice of them to throw in that last one about human rights... because all of those other ones are really about ways to chip away (often with a pretty big digital bulldozer) at human rights and civil liberties. In providing examples of countries that have put in place good anti-cyber-terrorism laws... they list a who's who of countries with dubious human rights records, including Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates. Oh, and China:(a) Criminalization of unlawful acts carried out by terrorists over the Internet or related services;
(b) Provision of investigative powers for law enforcement agencies engaged in terrorism-related investigations;
(c) Regulation of Internet-related services (e.g. ISPs) and content control;
(d) Facilitation of international cooperation;
(e) Development of specialized judicial or evidential procedures;
(f) Maintenance of international human rights standards.
In the terrorism context, in China there are provisions criminalizing different forms of terrorist activities, including article 120 of the Criminal Law, which criminalizes activities related to organizing, leading and participating in terrorist organizations. This broad criminalization provision covers a wide range of terrorism-related activities, including those carried out over the Internet.Of course, if you also get to define what counts as "terrorism," I imagine such laws can be quite handy in making opposition parties and activists disappear (or at least get them to shut up).
There's a lot more in the report like that. While the report pays lip service to "human rights" throughout, it really seems to focus on a whole bunch of ways to chip away at those human rights all because terrorists might be out there, using your internets.
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So many tools available to the bad guys
The problem with bicycles today is that anyone can learn to use them, and Bad Guys* might use them!
The problem with underwear today is that anyone can wear them, and Bad Guys might use them!
*Don't want to say the "T" word. I heard if you say three times you'll be teleported to Gitmo.
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Re: So many tools available to the bad guys
And *gasp* we have to laws for retaining information on carrier pigeons! The horror!
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As an aside, they really use "relatively limited"? Dear god, EVERYTHING is relatively limited, and *every* *single* *advance* in communication has effectively increased audience in what could be described as some, "a relatively large increase".
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Re: Re: So many tools available to the bad guys
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Hopefully by the time I'm done, all the terrorists will have died from me poisoning the atmosphere.
I'm doing it For The Children(tm)
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Response to: Lord Binky on Oct 24th, 2012 @ 9:30am
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Re: Danger! Danger!
Wait, that actually works!
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I mean we've even had Dennis Kucinich write in huffpost hey we are running and arming Al-Qaeda is Syria, Ron Paul has said so in congress, other decent human beings, as well as all the media. The Guardian reported, NYT, Washingtonpost, etc... that yeah NATO and the USA are allies with Al-Qaeda and are arming them in Syria who cares, you still need to give up all your rights because of Al-Qaeda.
Its just a one big giant joke.
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But, I thought...
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Re: But, I thought...
What's funny is the UN writes nasty letters about rights abuses or countries preventing weapons inspections. That's it. Just a letter. Nothing gets accomplished.
Remember the letter from the UN regarding Israel's reaction to the flotillas? Yeah, neither does anyone else.
But this cyberterrorism buzz-word, fearmongering crapolla they call a "report" will actually do something. It will be used by the US to push more ACTA/SOPA/PIPA/ScrewLotsUnderThisSection legislation. Yet nothing will come of the rights abuses or war crimes or anything else that the UN does that comes without teeth.
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Buy the UN a dictionary
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Just have every driver show ID when entering and exiting the roads and retain that information along with the entry/exit times and locations, number of stops, average speed, etc... for a minimum of 5 years just in case it could help law inforcement catch bad guys.
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Thanks,
Reddit member
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Freedom fighters
Where does Hamas fall according to the UN?
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Maybe People Will Start to Realize
Sure, it's a good idea in principle: A forum for all the world's nations to get together and talk things out. Heck, that's a great idea!
The problem is when people want to give such a body any sort of power, or allow it any sort of regulatory control--primarily because it's got representatives from every nation!
Hey, guess what! Most nations in the world are despotic cesspits which are diametrically opposed to the concepts of freedom and liberty for their subjects! And yes, I use the word subject, as opposed to citizen, because that's how they view people within their borders.
Think about it this way: we know how bad the U.S. is lately in the realm of protecting their citizens' rights. Now consider the fact that the U.S. is probably still one of the best nations in the world in that respect, especially in regards to protecting freedom of speech. Scared yet?
The majority of UN member states are either:
1) dictatorships
2) ruled by religious fundamentalism
or
3) both of the above
As such, ANY policy put forward by the General Assembly is going to reflect their priorities: Control of individuals and protection of their power.
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Re: Maybe People Will Start to Realize
1) "Most nations in the world are despotic cesspits which are diametrically opposed to the concepts of freedom and liberty for their subjects"
Most?
2) "we know how bad the U.S. is lately in the realm of protecting their citizens' rights. Now consider the fact that the U.S. is probably still one of the best nations in the world in that respect"
lately?
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Re: Re: Maybe People Will Start to Realize
I'm allowing for the chance that there are some nations out there that I am unaware of that don't fit that bill. I'm pretty optimistic about Iceland, for instance.
When did I say they were better in the past? It doesn't matter, anyway. The only relevant data is their current behavior.
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UN Speak
The UN Human Rights Comission is manned by human rights' luminaries such as Sudan, Syria, and Libya. I think the UN understands human rights in a completely different way than most of the readers on TechDirt.
Similarly, since most of the countries making up the UN are dictatorships of one sort or another, "terrorists" in their context probably means "citizens" in the regular world.
Citizens are surely a threat to any regime, and since the internet can be used to promote both human rights and civil participation, than internet=terrorism and must be controlled.
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Re: UN Speak
Heck - that's what they called a bunch of guys that dumped tea in Boston Harbor some time ago.
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Re: Re: UN Speak
Raping black animist because they are not Muslim, is not the same as letting them live their lives and not raping them.
Enslaving Asian workers, not paying them for years and then killing them when they try to run away is not the same as paying your workers a salary and so on.
You can argue that every society has the right to live within its own values, but I cannot see how all values are morally equivalent.
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Re: Re: Re: UN Speak
There are horrible people that do horrible things, but you have to be very careful that dealing with them does not have a profound effect on people that simply disagree. When does a "freedom fighter" become a "terrorist"? When they hold a protest in the street? What if their protest causes a fatal car accident? How about burning a flag? Burning an empty building? Shooting back at an oppressive military?
"I cannot see how all values are morally equivalent"
I would argue that morality itself is relative. Some people believe it is immoral to kill and eat animals. I can see how their argument makes sense, but I still like bacon. You may view something as extreme and someone else may view it as normal. I would never agree with some of the crazy violent things that have happened in our history (and are still happening), but I do recognize that my view of right and wrong may differ drastically from someone else's.
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Gutenberg?
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Re: Gutenberg?
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are the idiots in the UN really voted into positions and paid out of public funds? any of them actually got the interests of the public in mind or are they just another bunch that are bought and paid for by the entertainment industries? do they need sacking and quickly, or what?
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Oh No!
Yet when it's out on the Internet it's, "Terrorism!" somehow. Like saying something in text as compared to out loud is somehow inherently different in meaning.
It's interesting to see how people automatically shut down and act defensively in silly ways as soon as they hear any word associated with fear. Maybe we should stop calling it Terrorism and start calling it what it is. Sad.
The Internet is simply another avenue of human expression. It should not be limited because to limit it would be akin to limiting ourselves. Limiting access to the Internet simply because Terrorists use it is like saying we should discontinue Welfare or Medicaid because there are lazy people who abuse those services as well.
Oh wait...
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Re: Oh No!
The internet is supported by the fees paid to the ISP's for access, paid to the companies for purchases and the advertisers who pay to place ads on the sites. It's voluntary, if you do not wish to use it you simply don't pay for the services. If someone chooses to offer an open connection to people, such as at a coffee shop or restaurant, they pay for it and it's up to them to voluntarily provide the access. Medicaid and Welfare are not financially supported by the people who use it, or by volunteers, it is supported by forced taxation.
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People who detonate explosives in public places to destroy and cause death and chaos do it not to kill people, but to instill fear. Terror.
People who tell us who we should fear, instill fear in those who listen to them. Terror.
Terrorism is fear-mongering, whatever its form.
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Regulate the TV News
They left out the part where the news media also distributed the extremist rhetoric (think all of Bin Laden's video/audio). We need to regulate the TV news and lock it down so it only tells us what those in power want to say. That shouldn't be a problem at all should it?
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Re: Regulate the TV News
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Oh NO!
unless.....
THEY ARE THE TERRORISTS!!!!!
RUN EVERYONE RUN!
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We need to pass laws to make unlawful activities illegal
Can anyone (without having a laughing fit) please explain why we need new laws to make illegal activities illegal?
Seriously, I want an answer because I don't understand. Please help.
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Re: We need to pass laws to make unlawful activities illegal
It would also be great to get an explanation of why we should only criminalize unlawful acts when they are carried out on the internet - because I think in-person unlawful acts should also be illegal.
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Re: We need to pass laws to make unlawful activities illegal
Illegal activities "on the internet" are not illegal.
/headexplodes
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Re: We need to pass laws to make unlawful activities illegal
I'll take a shot at it: If you're a citizen of country A, and you break the laws of my country (B) on the Internet, currently I can't have you arrested. (Unless country B in this case is the USA, but for the sake of argument let's forget about that for this moment.)
So maybe they want to fix that little "loophole" in the law.
That way, all those criminals won't get away with insulting the President/Monarch/Prophet or whatever other crazy laws these dictators like to impose on their subjects.
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No comments yet on one important line
(c) Regulation of Internet-related services (e.g. ISPs) and content control;
Notice the provision for content control? Sounds like our old Hollywood-based buddies have their filthy lobbying tentacles in the UN these days as well.
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"f)Maintenance of international human rights standards."
is the last point on their list. Just goes to show how much they care about it, and how they didn't just throw it in there at the end to not freak out human activists.
Seriously, what is it with Governments lately trying to gain full control of the Internet and wanting to know everything everyone says online? Are they really that scared of their own population?
And do they actually think the terrorist threats will scare us? They are so transparent when using this excuse. It's so obvious they are using it to gain power.
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What about the Telephone?
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disband the UN
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And video games too?
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Think of the children of terrorists!!
Now it's "Terrorists!"
Same ol' dodgy legislation, new the-sky-is-falling excuse.
Let's give them the ultimate excuse to ram through bad legislation, "It's for the children of terrorists!!"
Arty
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The needs...
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I laughed.
Its clear to everyone that the people behind the terror are the ones with all the money. Arabs aren't the problem, Jews aren't the problem. Zionism is the problem my friends.
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The excerpts in this article are pretty well sensationalized. You print a sentence and then tell what that sentence implies, vis a vis Egypt, when in actuality the portion that was printed in the article [emphasis mine] reads:
While some countries, such as Egypt, have implemented legislation requiring ISPs to identify users before allowing them Internet access, similar measures may be undertaken by ISPs on a VOLUNTARY basis.
Is the quote from the document. To which Techdirt tacks on as some sort of implied imaginary justification the UN is using - which just isn't the case - is:
"Hey, Egypt -- the same country that recently had the people rise up to force out a dictator, who tried to shut down the internet -- does it!"
If you actually read and understand what Techdirt is implying, it becomes much more ridiculous. The article you link to about internet access being shut off is from January 2011. Not only is this MONTHS after the uprising began, but President Mubarak did not even stand down until February. So yeah, the old dictatorship tried to shut down the internet, while the new government requires some information on you be verified before they provide your service to prevent fraud and, yes, terrorism. Much like many ISPs already require from you. Your entire "omg dictators in Egypt shut down the internet lets not be like them" angle is not only fraudulent but inaccurate to boot and frankly insulting to the freedoms of the Egyptian people that Techdirt insinuates they had an uprising because someone turned off their Facebook access.
Given all the stuff like SOPA, ACTA, LALA and PO recently I have few doubts that there won't be a massive public outcry about this, but this article is just sensationalised bullshit trying to stir people up before the actual issues with the proposal have been isolated, it's insulting.
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Terrorists can hijack airplanes? Ban all airplanes!
Terrorists can sail speed boats? Ban all speedboats!
Terrorists can use the internet? Ban the internet!
UN, do you see how ridiculous your claims look now?
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Common cause
riddla26 apologizing for it above with "voluntary" http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20121022/17162220792/un-problem-with-internet-today-is-its-just-too -open-terrorists-might-use-it.shtml#c875 is blinkered: the victims are not "voluntarily" being stripped of their rights.
The crimes invasiveness fosters are far worse than the crimes it's supposed to help prevent. Rooting out terrorist cells is a legitimate interest. This is burning down the house to roast the pig.
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The solution is to abolish govt. established broadcasting and cableco monopolies. No one has a right to have govt established exclusive privileges over both content and communication medium so that they can exploit those privileges against my, and the public's, interests.
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THEIR ASSES ARE TOO OPEN
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