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Google Releases Software To Iran

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the zomg-they-can-see-your-house dept.

eldavojohn writes "After working closely with US officials following the lifting of export restrictions, Google has announced that their Google Earth, Picasa and Chrome are now available for download in Iran. US sanctions once prevented this but now Google has created versions of its popular software that block all Iranian government IP addresses from utilizing them — thus satisfying the new restrictions."

14 of 286 comments (clear)

  1. Home of the Free by elrous0 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I always love a government that tells me where I can and can't travel, where I can and can't sell my stuff, who I can and can't talk to--then proceeds to bad-mouth everyone else for not being free enough. Even when I was a kid and everyone was chiding the Ruskies with the "Papers please" and "In Russia you can't travel around or say whatever you want without government permission" I was stuck with the hypocrisy. Try telling the next cop who pulls you over that you don't need to show him your papers and see what happens. Try to take a vacation to Cuba sometime and see how free you are to travel anywhere. Try to export your software (or any other goods) to a country the U.S. doesn't like at the moment (i.e. countries who won't play ball) and see who comes knocking on your door.

    What if the Google guys legitimately believe that the Iranian government is running a peaceful nuclear program and is being unfairly targeted by a hostile U.S. ally (Israel)? Not saying this is the case, but shouldn't they still be able to sell them non-weapon/non-military software if they want to? That's hardly an unreasonable "freedom" in a country that holds itself as a bastion of both personal freedom and glorious capitalism.

    Maybe I would see it differently if the U.S. were actually at *WAR* with Iran. But if the criterion is "any country we don't like today," then exporting any product must be a goddamn nightmare for any international corporation.

    --
    SJW: Someone who has run out of real oppression, and has to fake it.
    1. Re:Home of the Free by Ephemeriis · · Score: 3, Interesting

      I always love a government that tells me where I can and can't travel, where I can and can't sell my stuff, who I can and can't talk to--then proceeds to bad-mouth everyone else for not being free enough. Even when I was a kid and everyone was chiding the Ruskies with the "Papers please" and "In Russia you can't travel around or say whatever you want without government permission" I was stuck with the hypocrisy. Try telling the next cop who pulls you over that you don't need to show him your papers and see what happens. Try to take a vacation to Cuba sometime and see how free you are to travel anywhere. Try to export your software (or any other goods) to a country the U.S. doesn't like at the moment (i.e. countries who won't play ball) and see who comes knocking on your door.

      Yup.

      And back then things really were pretty free and open... Look at what we're putting up with today. You don't even need to try to vacation in Cuba to get an invasive search at the airport.

      What if the Google guys legitimately believe that the Iranian government is running a peaceful nuclear program and is being unfairly targeted by a hostile U.S. ally (Israel)? Not saying this is the case, but shouldn't they still be able to sell them non-weapon/non-military software if they want to? That's hardly an unreasonable "freedom" in a country that holds itself as a bastion of both personal freedom and glorious capitalism.

      At least with Google Earth I can almost see the logic... It could possibly be used for military planning or something...

      Chrome... Umm... Maybe it's got some nice encryption for SSL stuff? Or something? I remember there used to be a problem exporting Netscape back in the day.

      Picasa... I'm at a loss. What're they going to do, upload pictures of government office buildings or something? I have a hard time envisioning any way to use Picasa for nefarious purposes.

      Maybe I would see it differently if the U.S. were actually at *WAR* with Iran. But if the criterion is "any country we don't like today," then exporting any product must be a goddamn nightmare for any international corporation.

      I'm sure it is... But that isn't just a problem with the US. Every nation is going to use its exports as a lever to get what they want. And in order to exert that leverage, they're going to make things more complex/difficult for the folks trying to earn a living off those exports.

      --
      "Work is the curse of the drinking classes." -Oscar Wilde
    2. Re:Home of the Free by Duradin · · Score: 3, Insightful

      So you don't see any difference between getting pulled over by a cop for a traffic violation and being asked for your license and registration and sitting a coffee shop and having an undercover cop come up to you for no discernible reason and demand your id and travel papers?

    3. Re:Home of the Free by CRCulver · · Score: 3, Interesting

      The US has lost some freedoms, but it has gained others. It is much easier to be openly homosexual, segregation is no longer enshrined in law, and one doesn't have to participate in school prayers.

    4. Re:Home of the Free by conspirator57 · · Score: 5, Informative

      apparently you are either woefully uninformed or have a very selective memory regarding US government behavior.

      our government has tortured people to death very recently. some of them we knew to be innocent. we have partnered with governments every bit as hateful as iran to outsource even more torture (Egypt as an example.) take your strawmen elsewhere

      --
      "If still these truths be held to be
      Self evident."
      -Edna St. Vincent Millay
    5. Re:Home of the Free by I8TheWorm · · Score: 3, Informative

      I was in some pretty heated arguments over it (my wife is now a retired PO of 14 years) when the laws started going in at the state level. 9/11 opened the doors to "anyone can be suspicious".

      One local example (I'm near Houston) was a guy being considered suspicious because he was walking down a long road that people rarely walk along, never mind there was a sidewalk there. There was not other probable cause than that.

      Also, if a PO pulled a car over and asked the passengers for their ID they didn't have to cough it up. That changed at the same time. And quite a few states enacted the same law.

      --
      Saying Android is a family of phones is akin to saying Linux is a family of PCs.
    6. Re:Home of the Free by molo · · Score: 3, Informative

      Maybe you haven't heard of the NYPD's "stop-and-frisk" policy? It is clearly unconstitutional, but goes on anyway.

      http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kevin-powell/stopping-stop-and-frisk-i_b_647298.html

      http://www.nyclu.org/issues/racial-justice/stop-and-frisk-practices

      -molo

      --
      Using your sig line to advertise for friends is lame.
    7. Re:Home of the Free by shadowfaxcrx · · Score: 3, Informative

      "A cop needs an "articulable reason" to search you"

      Yes, and that's why they all say "OK I'm gonna pat you down for your safety and mine, sir. Do you have anything on you I should know about?"

      Their "articulable reason" is "Well you might have a knife and I don't want you to stab me with it. Yeah, that's the ticket." Since anyone wearing any sort of clothing could conceivably conceal a weapon, they never have to think hard to come up with a reason to frisk you.

      As for having a reason to stop you in the first place, "I judged him to be acting suspiciously as he glanced at me and then quickly looked away while putting his hand in his pocket."

      Did you actually do that? Probably not. and even if you did, it probably wasn't because you're doing something criminal. But it's your word against the cop's. Who do you think the judge is going to side with?

      Plus you have to remember that there is such a thing as a "contempt of cop" arrest, where they put you in handcuffs simply because you pissed them off, whether you were breaking the law or not. It's illegal as hell, but they get to lock you up for a few hours (and of course once they arrest you they can paw through all your stuff either on trumped up probable cause or to "inventory it for later return." And most people, once released, won't sue because it takes time and money for a lawsuit that you stand a very good chance of not winning.

      --
      "I disagree with you" does not equal "flamebait."
    8. Re:Home of the Free by conspirator57 · · Score: 4, Informative

      given that the US is directly responsible for the deaths of well over 100,000 people in Iraq and Afghanistan in the last 10 years alone, i think that you are the one employing moral relativism.

      --
      "If still these truths be held to be
      Self evident."
      -Edna St. Vincent Millay
  2. Ummmm ... by gstoddart · · Score: 3, Interesting

    US sanctions once prevented this but now Google has created versions of its popular software that block all Iranian government IP addresses from utilizing them — thus satisfying the new restrictions

    So, couldn't the Iranian government just use different IP addresses?

    This seems like a pretty weak way to get around the export restrictions and sanctions, doesn't it?

    --
    Lost at C:>. Found at C.
    1. Re:Ummmm ... by somersault · · Score: 4, Funny

      In recent news, the Iranian government have moved to telecommuting until they figure out what a proxy is.

      --
      which is totally what she said
  3. so naive by pz · · Score: 3, Insightful

    This is either astonishingly naive, or propaganda. I can't quite figure out which.

    From the US Government, I would believe naivete, given any of a large collection of equivalent moves that are demonstrably idiotic.

    From Google, I have a hard time accepting that they aren't smart enough to understand the very many ways that IP-based restrictions can be circumvented by anyone more talented than a sixth -- no, wait -- fourth grader. This is Google we're talking about who have brought us a large number of amazing things that require lots and lots of smarts to implement, and "Hey Muhammed, go to the internet cafe around the corner with this laptop and download Google Earth, please, the US pigs have blocked our government IP address," is something that will occur to the people there. So, Google must be doing this with a wink in order to either further some political agenda, or increase their customer base. Since I am not aware of any political agenda, I'm leaning toward greed. Propaganda either way.

    So naivite from the US, and propaganda from Google. Anyone have evidence to the contrary?

    --

    Put my fist through my alarm clock with its ding-dong death inside my ear. - The Blackjacks.
  4. citizens can use but the gov't can't... by gnieboer · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Let's make a huge assumptions that this IP restriction actually works...

    What must it be like to download and use a piece of software that you can use but your own government isn't allowed to use? Takes a way some of the perception of the gov'ts power I'd imagine. A bit emasculating even. Which of course might be the reason the USG is allowing this to proceed. A sanction that is truly against the government, not the people.

    Sadly, I don't think a software release will result in a democratic Iran. But it would be nice.

  5. Re:Uhmm... by BJ_Covert_Action · · Score: 3, Funny

    No, they actually just sent all Iranian, government IP addresses a real picture of Cheney's actual backyard which is basically the political equivalent of goatse. After that, the Iranian government said they, "didn't want to play anymore." And we wonder why other countries see us Americans as savages and infidels...

    --
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