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Five Technologies Iran Is Using To Censor the Net
alphadogg sends in a Network World piece on the unexpectedly effective technologies Iran is now employing to thwart their citizens' access to the Net. "While the government's initial efforts to censor the Internet were blunt and often ineffective, it has started employing more sophisticated tools to thwart dissidents' attempts to communicate with each other and the outside world. Iranian dissidents are not alone in their struggle, however, as several sympathetic hacker groups have been working to keep them online. One such group is NedaNet, whose mission is to 'help the Iranian people by setting up networks of proxy severs, anonymizers, and any other appropriate technologies that can enable them to communicate and organize.' NedaNet project coordinator Morgan Sennhauser, who has just written a paper detailing the Iranian government's latest efforts to thwart hackers (PDF), says that the government's actions have been surprisingly robust and have challenged hackers in ways that the Chinese government's efforts at censorship have not."
It would be wonderful if for the first time in history a revolution took place without a war and by technology.
I hope it leads to a precedent.
Agreed. I'm optimistic that there will be a day when there are no wars, but unfortunately I think that will be right after the meteor wipes us humans off the face of the earth.
It is really awesome hear about the international collaboration of non-government, non-business entities working together to overcome tyranny. I'd like to wish those oppressors a sarcastic "good luck" in stifling the ingenuity of people all around the world. As for the Iranian people, kudos on being a continuously painful thorn in your government's side.
I'm waiting for the follow-up article, 'Five Technologies Iranian Citizens are Using to Bypass the Censors.'
And the masses cried out, "09 F9 11 02 9D 74 E3 5B D8 41 56 C5 63 56 88 C0!"
And who is providing the Iranian government with the technical know-how to implement these censoring measures?
Is it private consultants? Is it foreign governments?
Is there sufficient know-how within Iran's pro-government citizenship to effect the censorship?
I'm very curious who, if anyone, is helping Iran's government do this. Because I do control a decent amount of spending, and I'd like to know if there's anyone I do business with that I should think twice about renewing contracts with. I'd be disappointed, and more than a bit shocked, if any of my suppliers are helping Iran do this. But there is precedent. And my (and my employer's) dollars can speak a lot louder than this comment.
"Trolls they were, but filled with the evil will of their master: a fell race..." -- J.R.R. Tolkien on Olog-hai
"China has several gigabytes per second of traffic to deal with and has a lot more international businesses," he says. "They can't be as heavy-handed with their filtration. The Iranians aren't as concerned about that⦠so they get to use all these fancy toys that, if the Chinese used them, could cripple their economy."
I myself ordered Chinese products from sites using SSL. I don't think even they would be crazy enough to turn down money - but it seems Iran's leaders are. Are they going North Korea style? At least Chinese have a positive side to their repressive government. They have the money, they'll transform that to power and influence. Iran's policy is VERY bad for business - who seem to really WANT their people to be poor and unemployed. Which also leads to emigration of smart, competent and anybody willing to work. So yes, killing protesters and having a idiotic clerical fascistic system will make Iran poor and irrelevant in time. Countries with saner systems will benefit from importing their disgruntled intellectual elite - because smart people might be more tolerant by average, but also have lower tolerance for being served hypocritical crap.
If there exists any means of communication that is not blocked, that means can be subverted to support every form of communication. As a result, any partial technological block will inevitably be defeated.
The alternative to censorship is self-censorship - alter society such that it no longer wants to communicate in such-and-such a form, or to transmit such-and-such information. This has mixed results. Certainly, China and Iran haven't done well in convincing their citizens not to communicate with the outside world. On the other hand, the Pitcairn Islanders are not exactly broadcasting the facts behind the crimes of the power-brokers there.
I guess the difference is that all the Pitcairn Islanders are, to some extent, guilty of the crimes that only a handful were actually convicted for, and talking could lead to their conviction as well. On the other hand, dissidents in Iran and China don't see themselves as guilty of the crimes of their leadership and so have no need to protect themselves.
(One wonders how many other people have been silent of things they should have spoken up over, to avoid being convicted. It's a part of the censorship debate that IS important, as it is the only part that cannot be technologically circumvented. Well, not until mind-reading machines have been developed.)
In a way, I guess the Iranian censorship technology is a good thing, in that it seems to be pressing the technologists more, forcing them to come up with cleverer solutions. It's good for the mind and may, someday, lead to Iranian inventors and innovators gaining some clout in the world. Adverse conditions tend to produce some brilliant minds.
It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
Is slashdotting one of the technologies being used by the Iranian government?
In the 90's, Iran's principal start-up ISP was called neda.net
I can see why the new effort is named after the late Ms. Soltani. Still a coincidence of note.
Iran's gateway out - due to embargo issues - used to be a pair of 9600 Bps USR HST modems, located in Austria. That changed around '95.
"Speaking the Truth in times of universal deceit is a revolutionary act." -- George Orwell
Those technologies were probably taught by our universities. What a lovely little turn of events. The world is effing stupid. Period. We're all idiots.
http://diode.mbrez.com/docs/SoIN.pdf
Microsoft.
Flame suit: Activated.
I can list 10 technologies CIA is spying on Americans and 15 reasons the media tries to keep quiet about it.
Nobody tell Stephen Conroy!
Is one of the technologies forcing all traffic through a single Microsoft Proxy Server on an NT4 server with 128mb ram and a scorching celeron 366 to round out the "Internets" Congestion System? Just sayin...
"revolution comes at the barrel of a gun."
chairmen mao
Is that even legal with out a permit? ( here in the US anyway ).
---- Booth was a patriot ----
Assuming that the government of Iran has some concern for the world's opinions just how do they hope to justify disallowing free speech and association?
Did Iran take lessons from Bush or something?
I can't be bothered with an on-line PDF-file — is voting fraud on the list? Because the Honduran fraudster got the backing of the current US Administration... Someone needs to tell the mullahs, that the easiest way to the heart of America's President may lie through something, that they already doing...
(Flamebait my muscular behind...)
In Soviet Washington the swamp drains you.
Haystack (full disclosure: I wrote it.)
And, THAT is exactly why I want to see a city on the moon, more cities on Mars, and ships headed out, deeper into space, to plant more colonies yet.
How the hell we gonna have Star Wars, if everyone is killed off by a single comet? We must spread out to preserve our capability to wage war!!! Or, even peace, now and then.
"Windows is like the faint smell of piss in a subway: it's there, and there's nothing you can do about it." - Charlie Br
And why can't I find any qualifications/past works of his? Sounds like Fox News!
but unfortunately I think that will be right after the meteor wipes us humans off the face of the earth.
I think you meant fortunately, just after...
The amazing thing is that there is enough intellectual firepower which supports this draconian regime to even dream up these 5 technologies.
After all, advanced education in other than the Koran is viewed with deep suspicion by the Islamasists that have risen to power. Showing up God!
That leaves those educated in a more liberal era/setting and its heartbreaking to see such people apply their knowledge propping up such a brutal government.
If and when this segment turns, the game is over for the Mullahs.
Sig Battery depleted. Reverting to safe mode.
While outside the firewall, download on it websites, which may be of an interest and serve them from within of your office or home LAN.
Yes, so far, such a hard disk is still detectable. But if memory volume of a flash drives will continue to grow, I can imagine a point of time, when the whole Internet, or at least forbidden Internet, could be carried over the border on a minuscule flash drive. Which then is plugged into a proxy server and, voi-la, goodbye firewall.
True, it would be a read-only Internet. But it is better than nothing, and then a flash drive could be carried out of a fire-walled area and the Internet could be synchronized with this area.
So the concept is to use not a cable, which is controlled by the man, to transmit an information, but minuscule flash drives of high memory volume, which are physically moved over the border.
As for Iran, I would say, their internal social changes and problems, unavoidable in any society, still should not be used for own commercial and political hidden agenda by other more advance societies.
Comrade Conroy here in Oz will be onto that technology like a fat kid on a cup cake!
Yes, Iran has a long history of attacking other countries in wars of aggression so claiming peaceful use is a farce.
Nuclear technologiy is only safe with peaceful countries who have never lead any wars of aggression or used WMD, like say the U.S.A. and Germany.
Oh, wait...
Interesting that IP blocking would be the first item on the list. That alone should make all proponents of such blacklists even in self-declared democratic countries think very hard about it. Personally I am strictly opposed to it and I don't care if it's "just for child pornographers" as recently implemented in Germany. My experience has shown, that the people calling for, legislating and implementing such censorship technologies don't know where to stop. Once they have grabbed a tiny slice of power over other's, that power will increasingly corrupt them and they will push for more and more control over other people. Notice, how the 'lawmakers' always apply special protections to themselves in these regards so they are not targeted for spying and/or censorship. Therefore any such moves for censorship need to be diligently fought against and "Congress shall make no law abridging the freedom of speech"!
It's a good job we have someone sensible and balanced with an eye for the nuances of politics on the job, rather than a weirdo who has believed he's on a Jihadi hit-list since 2006, and who is packing a gun 24-hours-a-day loaded with bullets soaked in pork fat (maybe he thinks it makes them more effective in some werewolf-silver way, or maybe he's just really good at offending the people he says he's trying to help...)
America can't do a damn thing about it without causing Russia to intervene for the other side.
a 100Kg Iron-nickel meteor would make a big hole and look like an act of God.
Apocalypse Cancelled, Sorry, No Ticket Refunds
iran itself didnt directly attack any other country, but have been perpetrating civil wars in half of the neighboring countries through funding, training extremist groups. they use lebanese hezbollah as a police force in iran even. it has become THAT institutionalized. iran is basically one of the two sides in the lebanese civil war that lasted for around 30 years, through hezbollah. and now, in palestine, they are a party through hamas. in iraq they have been funding and directing shiites. a considerable portion of deaths in iran are due to those. even in turkey they funded terrorist groups, and killed many people.
please, dont SHIT online without knowing enough about what you are going to shit about.
Read radical news here
Is it only me or someone else too notices the courageous URL:
http://www.networkworld.com/cgi-bin/mailto/x.cgi?pagetosend=/export/home/httpd/htdocs/news/2009/072009-iran-censorship-tools.html&pagename=/news/2009/072009-iran-censorship-tools.html&pageurl=http://www.networkworld.com/news/2009/072009-iran-censorship-tools.html&site=printpage
"Political power grows out of the barrel of a gun."
- Mao Zedong
First, im not an american. i dont give zit about republicans.
Second, i live in a country that is neighboring iran, and having to cope with what shit that country perpetrates. i dont give a zit about astroturfing.
third, you are in desperate need of coming to the realization that not every idea/info/speech that sounds hard&tough, down to earth, or harsh regarding some reality is some conservative lunatic's ranting. there are people with evil intent in life, there are countries that are run by fascists, and there are wars. get to grips with it.
world will not suddenly become a loving place if you become politically correct.
Read radical news here
Have you watched 300 Spartans recently?
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