Programme
Internet Governance
Privacy, free speech, surveillance, digital identity and cybersecurity. 3,058 items.
25 Feb 2013
Blog post
BigDog is Watching You! The Sci-fi Future of Animal and Insect DronesDo you think robotic aeroplanes monitoring us are scary enough? Wait until you read about DARPA´s new innovative and subtle way to keep us all under the microscope! This blog post presents a new reality of drones which is depicted in none …
19 Feb 2013
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The Omnishambles of UID, shrouded in its RTI opacityThe Centre for Internet & Society sponsored Colonel Mathew Thomas to hold a workshop at the fourth National Right to Information (RTI) organized by the National Campaign for People's Right to Information, held in Hyderabad from February 15 …
19 Feb 2013
Blog post
Surveillance Camp IV: Disproportionate State Surveillance - A Violation of PrivacyThis is the fourth in a series of posts mapping global surveillance challenges discussed at EFF's State Surveillance and Human Rights Camp in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. This article has been co-written with Elonnai Hickok — Centre for Internet …
18 Feb 2013
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Freedom of Expression GaggedThe use of law to bully people into silence, called ‘heckler’s veto’, is not unique to India, writes Chinmayi Arun in this op-ed published in Business Line on February 15, 2013.
16 Feb 2013
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Analyzing the Latest List of Blocked URLs by Department of Telecommunications (IIPM Edition)The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) in its order dated February 14, 2013 has issued directions to the Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to block seventy eight URLs. The block order has been issued as a result of a court order. …
12 Feb 2013
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2012: Privacy Highlights in IndiaIn this blog post, Elonnai Hickok summarizes the top privacy moments of 2012 in India. In doing so she lists out the major ones like the Report of Group of Experts on Privacy, the RIM Standoff, the Nira Radia controversy, the Centralized …
31 Jan 2013
Blog post
A Comparison of Indian Legislation to Draft International Principles on Surveillance of CommunicationsThis blog post is a comparison of the relevant Indian legislations allowing governmental access to communications and the Draft International Principles on Surveillance of Communications. The principles, first drafted in October 2012 and …
30 Jan 2013
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Data Retention in IndiaAs part of its privacy research, the Centre for Internet and Society has been researching upon data retention mandates from the Government of India and data retention practices by service providers. Globally, data retention has become a …
28 Jan 2013
Blog post
Five Frequently Asked Questions about the Amended ITRsThis piece discusses the five major questions that have been the subject of debate after the World Conference on International Telecommunications 2012 (WCIT). The politics surrounding the WCIT are not discussed here but it must be kept in …
21 Jan 2013
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TV versus Social Media: The Rights and WrongsFor most ordinary Netizens, everyday speech on social media has as much impact as graffiti in a toilet, and therefore employing the 'principle of equivalence' will result in overregulation of new media.
18 Jan 2013
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Web of SamenessThe social Web has been an ominous space at the start of 2013. It has been awash with horror, pain and grief. The recent gang rape and death of a medical student in Delhi prevents one from being too optimistic about the year to come. My …
16 Jan 2013
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Draft International Principles on Communications Surveillance and Human RightsThese principles were developed by Privacy International and the Electronic Frontier Foundation and seek to define an international standard for the surveillance of communications. The Centre for Internet and Society has been contributing …
15 Jan 2013
Blog post
Statement of Solidarity on Freedom of Expression and Safety of Internet Users in BangladeshThis is a statement on the violent attack on blogger Asif Mohiuddin by the participants to the Third South Asian Meeting on the Internet and Freedom of Expression that took place in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on January 14–15, 2013.
10 Jan 2013
Blog post
No Civil Society Members in the Cyber Regulations Advisory CommitteeThe Government of India has taken our advice and reconstituted the Cyber Regulations Advisory Commitee. But there is no representation of Internet users, citizens, and consumers — only government and industry interests.
31 Dec 2012
Blog post
State Surveillance and Human Rights Camp: SummaryOn December 13 and 14, 2012, the Electronic Frontier Foundation organized the Surveillance and Human Rights Camp held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The meeting examined trends in surveillance, reasons for state surveillance, surveillance …
31 Dec 2012
Blog post
Mining the Web CollectiveIn March 2012, Dr Bruno Latour and his team from the Sciences Po Media Lab organized a workshop that assembled a selected group of researchers from India to explore methods of Controversy Mapping. It was hosted by Dr J. Srinivasan, Director …
29 Dec 2012
Blog post
Tomorrow, TodayOur present is the future that our past had imagined. Around the same time last year, I remember taking stock of the technologies that we live with and wondering what 2012 would bring in.
28 Dec 2012
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Internet-driven Developments — Structural Changes and Tipping PointsA symposium on Internet Driven Developments: Structural Changes and Tipping Points was held in Cambridge, Massachusetts at Harvard University from December 6 to 8, 2012. The symposium was sponsored by the Ford Foundation and the MacArthur …
19 Dec 2012
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The Trouble with Hurried SolutionsThe World Conference on International Telecommunication showed that countries are not yet ready to arrive at a consensus on regulation and control of the Internet
10 Dec 2012
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The Worldwide Web of ConcernsThe International Telecommunication Union’s World Conference on International Telecommunications (WCIT-12) is currently under way in Dubai, after a gap of 25 years. At this conference, the Inter-national Telecommunication Regulations — …
10 Dec 2012
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The Worldwide Web of ConcernsThe threat of a ‘UN takeover’ of the Internet through the WCIT is non-existent. However, that does not mean that activists have been crying themselves hoarse in vain.
5 Dec 2012
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Online Censorship: How Government should Approach Regulation of SpeechWhy is there a constant brouhaha in India about online censorship? What must be done to address this?
3 Dec 2012
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Transcripts from WCIT-12We are archiving copies of the live-transcripts from the World Conference on International Telecommunications, 2012 (WCIT-12) which is being held in Dubai from 3–14 December, 2012.
3 Dec 2012
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Section 66-A, Information Technology Act, 2000: CasesIn this blog post Snehashish Ghosh summarizes the facts of a few cases where Section 66-A, Information Technology Act, 2000, has been mentioned or discussed.
3 Dec 2012
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Comments on the Proposed Rule 138A of the Central Motor Vehicle Rules, 1989 Concerning Radio Frequency Identification TagsThe Centre for Internet & Society gave its comments on the proposed Rule 138A of the Central Motor Vehicle Rules, 1989. The comments were made in response to Notification GSR 738(E) published in the Gazette of India on October 3, 2012.
2 Dec 2012
Blog post
So Much to LoseUnless you have been hiding under a rock, you have been a witness to the maelstrom of events that accompanied the death of the political leader Bal Thackeray.
28 Nov 2012
Blog post
Fixing India’s anarchic IT ActSection 66A of the Information Technology (IT) Act criminalizes “causing annoyance or inconvenience” online, among other things. A conviction for such an offence can attract a prison sentence of as many as three years.
25 Nov 2012
Blog post
Breaking Down Section 66A of the IT ActSection 66A of the Information Technology Act, which prescribes 'punishment for sending offensive messages through communication service, etc.' is widely held by lawyers and legal academics to be unconstitutional. In this post Pranesh …
24 Nov 2012
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Draft nonsenseSeriously flawed and dodgily drafted provisions in the IT Act provide the state a stick to beat its citizens with.
21 Nov 2012
Blog post
DoT Blocks Domain Sites — But Reasons and Authority UnclearEarlier this year, ISPs such as Airtel and MTNL blocked a number of domain sites including BuyDomains, Fabulous Domains and Sedo.co.uk. Whereas the Indian Government and courts have previously issued orders blocking websites, these actions …