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Egyptian 'Net Killed By Intimidation, Not a Switch

Posted by Soulskill on from the break-that-router-or-i'll-break-you dept.

jfruhlinger writes "In the wake of the Egyptian revolution of the past weeks, much tech buzz has focused on the 'kill switch' that Mubarak's government used to try to stop Internet-based networking. The New York Times gives the details. As blogger Kevin Fogarty points out, the process involved less high-tech derring do and more intimidation of tech workers by regime thugs."

30 of 126 comments (clear)

  1. Not Surprising by kevinNCSU · · Score: 4, Insightful

    You don't need a kill switch when you have people with guns. Anyone who's willing to stand up to that is already in the streets protesting, not standing around maintaining the network.

    1. Re:Not Surprising by __aaxtnf2500 · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Perhaps there are personnel working at those telco's that understand that information is more powerful than a brick thrown at a police officer.

    2. Re:Not Surprising by Stenchwarrior · · Score: 2

      Actually, the gun is the kill switch, literally and figuratively.

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    3. Re:Not Surprising by __aaxtnf2500 · · Score: 2

      One million tweets is more powerful than a brick. The best thing that the telco personnel could have done for Egypt is do their job, not head to the streets with a bat. That's what I said, if you disagree with that statement, then your comment should respond to what I said and not the straw man of "information is useless without the threat of force."

    4. Re:Not Surprising by Stenchwarrior · · Score: 2

      No, I think that's 'technically'. Plus, the trigger doesn't actually cause the bullet to leave the chamber and travel down the barrel, it only starts the process. It also doesn't make the kill, the bullet does. Or, it at least causes the loss of blood that eventually leads to the death. Even then, the 'trigger assembly' is the sum of the many parts that cause the action of the bullet making its way to the victim, but at that point you may as well say 'gun'.

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    5. Re:Not Surprising by kevinNCSU · · Score: 4, Insightful

      One million tweets is more powerful than a brick.

      First of all I think that's highly debatable if not flat out false. I think we like to believe that because that's what we see over here, and that's what stirs a lot of passion over here, but at the end of the day, even when the internet WAS shut off, it's the people with piles of bricks holding the square and responding to low-tech alarms of clacking two steel rods together to cause people to rush to the defense in order to continue to hold the square that won the day. If tweets were more powerful then bricks then justin beiber (sp?) fans would be running the world. But the truth is the tweets are only as powerful so far as their ability to incite, organize and deploy said bricks. In that they have a use, but there are other methods to do such things.

      I think the problem with your statement that the revolutionary telco employee should stay to defend the networks comes down to basic force deployment strategy. Not every member of the telco is going to be willing to fight. If he makes his stand there alone he's just going to get locked up or shot because chances are every member of the police force or group of thugs that show up to turn the internet off WILL be willing to fight. Therefore he's far better abandoning his indefensible location and banding together with the handful of employees from every other teclo and business across the city thereby concentrating their forces into a size large enough to hold ground and force change. If the telco is truly THAT important it would be easy to convince the larger force to move in and defend it. It seems however they decided the main square was far more appropriate.

    6. Re:Not Surprising by __aaxtnf2500 · · Score: 2

      Everybody plays their part in any communal enterprise. This is one reason that terrorists do not wire up the bomb-maker or forger with a suicide vest. Those with specialized skills are most valuable in the execution of those roles which no one else can fill. How are you going to get the internet back up after rioting if all the network techs are recovering from concussions and burns?
      It is a straw man, 100 people does not make a difference to a million-man riot, but those 100 people can make a difference in maintaining internet connectivity. I am not saying that everyone should just tweet. I am saying that people with specialized network maintenance skills should not be in the street chucking stones.
      Networked information is powerful because it rallies support from much greater numbers than would otherwise be possible, and at a higher rate than is possible through word of mouth.
      Of course it is implicit that information is powerful because it causes action.

    7. Re:Not Surprising by arivanov · · Score: 2

      For Egypt?

      No. The kill switch is two boats dragging a plough on the sea floor. One in Alexandria bay, the other one in the Red sea. In fact the Alexandria bay should be enough.

      It has happened unintentionally a few times. So if someone wants to do it intentionally it is not that difficult. The areas are clearly marked on maritime navigation maps.

      It will also take out most of the Middle East and drop most of the capacity to India and Pakistan to a trickle as a side effect.

      --
      Baker's Law: Misery no longer loves company. Nowadays it insists on it
      http://www.sigsegv.cx/
    8. Re:Not Surprising by BCGlorfindel · · Score: 3, Insightful

      There are many Egyptian Telco workers who think, 'If the government tells me to shutdown the ISP connection, I will obey, because the government knows best.' - These are the same types you find in the EU or US who say it's okay for the SA officers to stick hands down passengers' pants (i.e. grope penises) and touch women's breasts.* They think it's okay if the government does it.

      Your experience in a free country doesn't translate quite so well to a dictatorship. The Egyptian Telco workers also think "If the government tells me to shutdown the ISP connection, I will obey, because the government will jail or possibly kill me and my family if I don't".

      Don't marginalize the position and plight of those under repressive dictatorships by pretending it's akin to your own struggles in a free country. By all means fight to keep your country free. By all means point out measures in your free country that can lead to suppression and tyranny. By all means stand up against those measures. Just don't do it on the backs of those like the Egyptians fighting a very different and much harder conflict.

    9. Re:Not Surprising by isorox · · Score: 2

      You don't need a gun to kill. You only need your bare hands or a well-placed kick. QED it's not the gun or knife or blunt instrument that kills - it's the owner of the hands/legs

      People kill.

      You don't need a person to kill. Animals and acts of god can kill without the person, the only constant is the person being killed. QED it's not the person that kills, but the victim.

    10. Re:Not Surprising by commodore6502 · · Score: 2

      >>>"I will obey, because the government will jail or possibly kill me and my family if I don't".

      And this is different from refusing a search in the EU or US - how? I don't know about Europeans, but I've read about several Americans jailed for refusing to assent to a search, or changing their mind and trying to leave the airport, or refusing to open their car trunk at random police stops (et cetera).

      You act as if we somehow have more "freedom" just because we elect our dictator (sorry - Mubarak calls himself "president").

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      Information wants to be expensive AND wants to be free. So you have Value vs. Cheap distribution fighting each other.
    11. Re:Not Surprising by BCGlorfindel · · Score: 2

      You act as if we somehow have more "freedom" just because we elect our dictator (sorry - Mubarak calls himself "president")

      No, YOU are acting like the Egyptian people under Mubarak's dictatorship had as much "freedom" as Americans. That's a gross insult to the suffering and persecution that the Egyptian people were suffering, and it's shameful.

  2. What's the difference? by kwenf · · Score: 2

    Same thing, different name.

  3. Kill switch it is... by vvaduva · · Score: 2

    Still sounds like a kill switch to me - whether Obama presses a physical red button under his desk or he makes a phone call to threaten corporate employees with jail or physical harm or else, still a kill switch to me. This is semantic bullshit.

    1. Re:Kill switch it is... by Hatta · · Score: 2

      Also, don't forget that Obama already has statutory authority to do this under section 706 of the Communications act:

      (d) Upon proclamation by the President that there exists a state or threat of war involving the United States, the President, if he deems it necessary in the interest of the national security and defense, may, during a period ending not later than six months after the termination of such state or threat of war and not later than such earlier date as the Congress by concurrent resolution may designate,

                  (1) suspend or amend the rules and regulations applicable to any or all facilities or stations for wire communication within the jurisdiction of the United States as prescribed by the Commission,

                  (2) cause the closing of any facility or station for wire communication and the removal therefrom of its apparatus and equipment, or

      You don't have to wonder what Obama would do if he had that power. It's right there in black and white that he does. There's absolutely no reason to believe he wouldn't use it.

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      Give me Classic Slashdot or give me death!
    2. Re:Kill switch it is... by vvaduva · · Score: 2

      Maybe you are right, but did anyone every thought to see the day when the Department of Homeland Security would have the authority to take over dns zones without warrants or explanation?

      Don't say "never" when it comes to government censorship and coercion. If they have the power, they will use it.

    3. Re:Kill switch it is... by anyGould · · Score: 2

      What I find funny about the so-called "kill switch" is this - if there was an Actual Emergency (omg, the hackerz are coming), and the freakin' President calls you up and says "we need to turn off the connections right now"... who *isn't* going to do it?

      The job still commands some respect during emergencies.

      (If you're feeling less charitable, substitute "Presidential phone call" with "Secret Service/FBI agents", and you'll get the Egypt-equivalent. Folks forget that even if you take your principled stand, they can just move you out of the way and do it themselves. Or arrest/detain/shoot you and ask your co-worker to do it.)

    4. Re:Kill switch it is... by interkin3tic · · Score: 2

      whether Obama presses a physical red button under his desk

      Hmm, I'm imagining it now:

      "My fellow Americans,

      I sincerely apologize for shutting down the Internet. You see, I asked them to put the Internet killswitch on the left side under my desk, they accidentally put it on the right side, right next to the trap door button. The ambassador from Bulgaria was in the oval office, and I don't know if you've ever met a Bulgarian, but I'm pretty sure they are all assholes. Anyway, he said something about Chicago, and that really pushed my button so I decided to push his button, amirite? Ahem... Well, suffice to say, I pushed the wrong button, I sincerely regret this incident."

  4. Is anyone surprised ? by mbone · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Is anyone really surprised by this ? However, I don't think it was just as simple as sending over a bunch of goons - or even a "Brooks Brother's Riot."

    The Egypt Internet cutoff was technically done by stopping the BGP (Border Gateway Protocol) announcement of most Egyptian address blocks. BGP itself was not taken down, and the circuits themselves did not alarm. This was most likely not achieved by cutting cords or unplugging routers (which would have downed BGP, at the least). Pulling the plug, any general can do, but most generals don't know anything about BGP.

    My guess is that there was a contingency plan for this (maybe as a military defense measure), that that plan took some thought by a technically savvy person, but, having a plan, it probably wasn't much more than a few phone calls to execute it. This can be compared to Burma (which really did just pull the plug - the link light was lost at the other end).

  5. Craftsmanlike... like a wrench. by Taibhsear · · Score: 2

    It was individual, craftsmanlike, one-intimidation-at-a-time thuggery, plain and simple, according to HRF.

    How appropriately used...

    Obligatory xkcd.

  6. or you could just infiltrate the government by decora · · Score: 2

    like http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rene_Carmille did.

  7. because Staples has good lobbyists by decora · · Score: 2

    repression... that was easy!

  8. What the hell? by DNS-and-BIND · · Score: 4, Interesting

    OK, somebody stop me if I say something out of line.

    It seems from the article that a journalist actually thought that there was a big red button somewhere labeled "INTERNET KILL SWITCH - DO NOT TOUCH". This graduate of the college of communications then makes the connection that phone calls were made instead. Really? You think so? He then makes reference to "This morning's New York Times" and then links to an article published three weeks ago. Next, he accuses this unassailable beacon of journalistic accuracy of being wrong. As a crowning achievement, he then gives valuable pagerank to a "Human Rights Defenders" website that openly states that it only exists to lecture Europe, America, and Russia about anti-Muslim crimes without speaking a single word about persecution of religious minorities in Egypt.

    I'd say that journalist Kevin Fogarty is a winner all around and represents his profession^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H occupation well.

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    Shutting down free speech with violence isn't fighting fascism. It IS fascism!
  9. NYTimes Link is to old story by chalker · · Score: 2

    The NYTimes link in the summary is to an older story about this. Here is the correct link: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/16/technology/16internet.html?sq=egypt%20internet&st=cse&scp=3&pagewanted=all

  10. Re:But in the USA it's more then 1 place that will by jimicus · · Score: 2

    Arguably, it's not necessary to go that far. There's only a handful of tier one carriers, if you can force them to stop routing all traffic within the US, you may not shut down the Internet in the US entirely but you'd definitely cripple it.

  11. Re:C'mon by jcwayne · · Score: 2

    Yes, and I've got photographic evidence.

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    Failure to follow this advice may result in non-deterministic behavior.
  12. In that case, it'll never happen here. by JustAnotherIdiot · · Score: 2

    The US government can't intimidate ISPs, it's usually the other way around that happens.

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    What do I know, I'm just an idiot, right?
  13. Jeeze! by countertrolling · · Score: 2

    Has anybody figured out yet that the internet "kill switch" is a figure of speech, a metaphor? for ordering all the ISPs to shut down? Damn! It's like the Bible. People take everything too literally.

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    For justice, we must go to Don Corleone
  14. Eben Moglen by Gnaythan1 · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Is trying to make software preventing this kind of thing from happening again. http://lastonk.blogspot.com/2011/02/freedom-box.html by using wall wart servers and routers.

    If there was a software app that allowed handheld devises with wifi to create ad hoc networks... the people in Egypt may not have even noticed when the ISP's were shut down... they would have been able to continue talking to each other via short link wireless networks.

  15. Side note, Egypt used "environmental" rules first by retroworks · · Score: 3, Informative

    My used electronics company tears down and recycles most (77%) of the computers etc. turned in to us. But of the 23% we refurb or resell for repair and reuse, and by far the lions share during the past decade went to Egypt, either directly or indirectly (after being re-manufactured to new-in-box in Asia, resold in boxes in Egypt with arabic lettering). In 2008, three of our sea containers of working Pentium 4s and display devices were seized by Egyptian customs and declared "e-waste". Having visited in person with our partners in Egypt on many occasions, I knew this was not an environmental concern, and they told me that it was part of the government's effort to put the internet genie back in the bottle. The NYTimes also reported that these "geeks of color", and not the Muslim Brotherhood, have emerged as the leaders. I have been documenting the Geek vs. Goliath battle for 2 years, e.g. http://tinyurl.com/4b4yw9j and http://tinyurl.com/24ypbf4, if anyone is interested. Kenya and Pakistan also tried using environmental laws to clamp down on affordable PCs (CRT displays for $5 last 20 years and still sell like hotcakes).

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