A very happy Censorship and Block to 50 million URLs - National URL Filtering and Blocking System
Fouad Bajwa
Internet is being captured in Pakistan. Feel free to be censored and
blocked soon.
http://ictrdf.org.pk/RFP-%20URL%20Filtering%20&%20Blocking.pdf
This is what happens when corruption and only monetary interests drive
business and industry. Imagine the companies that will be contributing
to this process, will they be working in the interest or against the
interest of the nation?
--
Regards.
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Fouad
Fawad Niazi
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Regards.
--------------------------
Fouad
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Wahaj us Siraj
This is not a censorship of Internet. This practice is already going
on in the industry but done manually to block blasphemous and partial
pornographic Internet URL. The objective is to develop a system within
Pakistan with the help of local industry and academic organizations.
Some relevant abstracts are given below that were used as background
to this initiative.
-----------
Internet access in Pakistan is mostly unrestricted and unfiltered. The
Internet traffic is coming from two IP backbone providers, i.e., PTCL
and TWA. The Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and backbone providers
have currently deployed manual URL filtering and blocking mechanism in
order to block the specific URLs containing anti Islamic and anti
Pakistan content as notified by PTA from time to time.
With the proliferation of Internet and broadband in the country,
pornography has become a social menace. Free, unrestricted and easy
availability of millions of web sites with pornographic content is
playing havoc with country’s social fabric, particularly harming young
children.
Many countries have deployed web filtering and blocking systems at the
Internet backbones within their countries. ISPs and backbone providers
have expressed their inability to block millions of pornographic web
sites using current manual blocking systems. A national URL filtering
and blocking system is therefore required to be deployed at national
IP backbone of the country.
ICT R&D Fund has decided to fund the indigenous development,
deployment, operations and maintenance of such a system by Pakistani
companies, vendors, academia and/or research organizations with proven
track record.
-------
Kind regards....Wahaj
Nash
Nash
On Friday, February 24, 2012 9:17:22 AM UTC+5, Wahaj us Siraj wrote:
Wahaj us Siraj
The practice of manual URL blocking is already in place. This practice
was adopted by the PTA and industry after facebook and youtube were
completely blacked out in order to block blasphemous contents on the
orders of superior courts. That created an fiasco in the country amid
hue and cry from Internet users.
Currently, PTA keeps ordering ISPs to block certain URLs containing
blasphemous, sacrilegious and anti-Pakistan contents from time to
time. These instructions come to PTA from an Inter-Ministerial
Committee of Government. ISPs, being a licensee of PTA, are bound to
follow these instructions. This blocking is implemented at Internet
gateways with PTCL and TWA and also with ISPs.
Superior courts have ordered PTA many times to block the pornographic
web sites in Pakistan while deciding public interest petitions filed
by Pakistani citizens and organizations from time to time. PTA wanted
the ISPs to implement these orders but industry couldn’t do so because
there are millions of such sites over the Internet and manually it’s
not possible to block these sites. Few months back, PTA sent a list of
around 170,000 pornographic sites to ISPs asking to block them at the
gateway routers but the industry could not implement this impractical
order. The list was then reduced to 1,000 sites which was implemented
by the industry.
For last year or so, PTA wanted ISPs and the Internet backbone service
providers, i.e., PTCL and TWA to install an automated URL filtering
and blocking system. The operators stance was that since they were
operating on already thin margins, it wasn’t possible for them to
invest millions of dollars in implementing a new system. The operators
were of the view that since they were already contributing huge
amounts to USF, ICT R&D Fund and PTA license fees besides paying
taxes, the project should be financed from one of these funds.
Series of consultations were held at PTA with the ISPs and it was
decided that such a system should be locally developed within Pakistan
so that it won’t have any foreign dependency. The system would be
implemented at Internet gateways with PTCL and TWA and its operations
and management would be with the operators. The consultations
concluded that development of such system in Pakistan could also save
huge amount as of the shelf systems of this capability are quite
expensive.
It was therefore decided that ICT R&D Fund would be requested to
provide funding for this project. Local development of this system
would also strengthen the indigenous capability and talent of the
software/hardware industry.
The ICT R&D Fund was requested to finance this activity and the
proposal was approved by the Board of Directors of ICT R&D Fund. I
happen to be one of the Board Members of Fund as representative of
Broadband Operators.
With this background, an RFP was prepared jointly by PTA and industry
and advertised in the press. Leading universities, research
organizations and private sector companies have shown interest to
submit their proposals in response to the RFP. The proposals would be
evaluated purely in merit and contract, in a transparent manner, would
be awarded to a suitable organization have relevant expertise and
capabilities to design and develop such a system.
The RFP is backed by PTA and all broadband operators. ICT R&D Fund is
only providing funding for this project as indigenous research and
development in information and communication technologies (ICT) falls
squarely within the domain of the Fund.
The RFP was posted on Pakgrid couple of weeks back by the ICT R&D Fund
itself.
IMHO, there’s nothing wrong with the concept. The system wouldn’t
compromise the performance of the Internet. It’s not a new censorship
as such. The money is not being spent on buying an imported system
either. It’s to provide an automated and state of the art system for
something that’s already being done manually and in rudimentary manner
that also compromises the performance of Internet at times. Brief
background of the RFP is also enclosed.
Kind regards.
Wahaj us Siraj
Convener, ISPAK
Background
Internet access in Pakistan is mostly unrestricted and unfiltered. The
Internet traffic is coming from two IP backbone providers, i.e., PTCL
and TWA. The Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and backbone providers
have currently deployed manual URL filtering and blocking mechanism in
order to block the specific URLs containing anti Islamic and anti
Pakistan content as notified by PTA from time to time.
With the proliferation of Internet and broadband in the country,
pornography has become a social menace. Free, unrestricted and easy
availability of millions of web sites with pornographic content is
playing havoc with country’s social fabric, particularly harming young
children.
Many countries have deployed web filtering and blocking systems at the
Internet backbones within their countries. ISPs and backbone providers
have expressed their inability to block millions of pornographic web
sites using current manual blocking systems. A national URL filtering
and blocking system is therefore required to be deployed at national
IP backbone of the country.
ICT R&D Fund has decided to fund the indigenous development,
deployment, operations and maintenance of such a system by Pakistani
companies, vendors, academia and/or research organizations with proven
track record.
deployed at IP backbones in major cities, i.e., Karachi, Lahore and
Islamabad. Any other city/POP could be added in future. The system is
proposed to be centrally managed by a small and efficient team
stationed at POPs of backbone providers.
---------------------
Tariq Mufti
commentary? And how can we ensure that "Internet access in Pakistan remains
'mostly' unrestricted and unfiltered?
Tariq Mufti
Dear Fouad,
Kind regards....Wahaj
--
Jamal Shamsi
Blessings
Besides internet censorship there shall be some methods for content
screening & filtering over the GSM/ Cell networks as well.
A distant nephew of mine at an O level class in private school of Lahore was
barred for 2 weeks because he made a 'HOT' clip of his lady teacher in
school class and immediately shared over the cell network with other mates.
Barring phones in schools for students cannot be done due to security
reasons and almost every child of sensible age is carrying a cell phone.
The android phones & data sharing over the cell networks shall also be
discussed while discussing the Internet censorship. It is not only Internet
it is the phone networks as well.
The youth of the country is heading for disaster if Proactive measures are
not put in place on war footing.
Adulthood before puberty and parenthood before adulthood menace will eat up
the generation next.
2 cents
JS
-----Original Message-----
Dear Fouad,
This is not .. ...............organizations.
Fouad Bajwa
Such things should have been led through a public consultation with Internet users involved and not the service providers alone. Using the ICT r&d fund to develop blanket blocking, filtering and censorship systems endangers the privacy and expression of Pakistani citizens online as well as their physical safety offline.
Anyways, it's not long when the industry itself will fall prey this system.
Fouad Bajwa
sent using my iPad
Ashar Iqbal
is currently happening is censorship and what is proposed is an
automated censorship.
Given the track record of the PTA, this is not a good development. The
fact that an indigenous solution is sought is the only plus point.
Ashar
Fawad Niazi
Omer
"With the proliferation of Internet and broadband in the country,pornography has become a social menace. Free, unrestricted and easy
availability of millions of web sites with pornographic content is
playing havoc with country’s social fabric, particularly harming young
children. "
On Friday, February 24, 2012 9:17:22 AM UTC+5, Wahaj us Siraj wrote:
Fouad Bajwa
Somehow in the recent years, a certain group of people have turned the
online content and url blocking, filtering and censorship national
issue into an elitist, liberal and global issue literally deterring
the international investment community from the economic growth
opportunities in our country. This defames our country as well was
sends the wrong message internationally that our govt or industry does
not respond appropriately or adequately to our citizenry, social,
political and economic environment.
There should be one clear understanding among all of us whether our
thoughts are conservative, labor or liberal, that our economy needs
growth so there can be more jobs, more human development combined with
improvements in our thinking and perceptions. There is no other avenue
beyond agriculture, minerals and technology that will make this happen
and sustain it. 66% of this country is involved in the first two
agriculture and minerals, the rest 33% is subject to or involved with
technology in one way or the other. We are known for our craft in
technology across the world like our neighboring countries.
This is only one end, on the other, just look at how Pakistani's have
helped build the middle east with everything from concrete to
technology and worked with all other South Asian country citizens.
Those were due to our 2 decades of investment friendly, liberal and
conducive information and communications technologies related policies
and developments despite there were errors in policy planning. I am
not concluding that there weren't problems but there were
opportunities too that helped us all go a long way.
Prevention of access to undesirable online content is based on social
and cultural norms of the citizens of a state. There is no society or
community in the world without a certain level of censorship. Vast
sources of evidence is available online of the level of blocking,
filtering and censorship that happens across the west and in
non-Muslim countries. I personally believe that we stand together and
will always stand together as a nation when it comes to someone
outside our borders or inside trying to attack our religion or the
beliefs of our nation's minorities, our social and cultural values as
well as morals and our country's sovereignty.
What we are facing in this ICT R&D Fund's RFP for an automated
blocking-filtering-censorship-system case is to understand the
pressing question, that do we want to give a govt within an immature
democratic environment that can tilt anytime into chaos or
dictatorship the full blanket control to shut down and censor our
Internet? Our governance system has not been able to put its house in
order during its tenure and now we are approaching an election. If
such a system did go underway, and the elections are around the
corner, it will be automatically stiffled with the new government.
Secondly, do we want to be part of what happened in Egypt during the
Arab Spring, do we want our ISPs to be party in Human Rights related
violations, do we want the world to know that our Internet industry
actively participates in initiatives that can plunge the ICT industry
and other avenues of life into a single button control shutdown and
thus all international investments in ICTs will also be prone to this
blanket system?
From what I am monitoring throughout the International Media and
Information Sources, as mentioned earlier, a certain group of people
have literally made ICT publications print that International
Companies should not bid for the system and can you literally believe
that they never even read the RFP that its a system that will be built
indigenously in Pakistan. Of course there are streams of knowledge and
research that come from abroad but the ISP industry and ICT R&D fund
wants it to be developed in the country by local companies. The
messages these people have been sending out is that DON'T INVEST IN
PAKISTAN, that hurts all of us in the technology industry and society
equally. This indeed becomes an anti-state message and should be
intervened upon.
The issue of undesirable and how far undesirable can be extended to
remains a national debate. Do we want online blanket censorship or not
is also a national debate. To ward of international investments and
interest by global business towards our country is an anti-state
activity by a handful of opportunists and should be condemned and
responded to intelligently and firmly. These are the very groups with
the intention of shining their businesses create and give the
impression globally that our citizenry is ignorant and violently
aggressive and has no brains of its own.
The issue of the ICT R&D Fund's RFP backed by the ISP industry
requires some extensive dialogue, it could have happened earlier and
it didn't but that does not mean that this cannot still happen at the
National level in the same manner that we discuss our nation's
internal issues and problems as well as work towards finding common
solutions.
I would urge to the Telecom and Internet community that there needs to
be dialogue that did not happen or was not carried out earlier and it
can still happen and should happen. There needs to be clarity on the
extent of such systems. Look the technology to do this is already
there in the Free and Open Source Community and I do not want to point
to it just as yet. These activities can be managed in a public
interest way by developing a strategy with the citizens, academia,
research, industry and government. It literally will work because all
of us want the same for our nation, to work together, to build it
together and to sustain the future of our children showing to them
that we took the right stances and did the right things to help build
a sustainable and strong nation.
ISPs, ICT R&D Fund, Telecom Grid and all, just think for a moment what
blanket control and a single button shutdown means, the rest we can
have a good dialogue.
Think for a moment.......
--
Regards.
--------------------------
Fouad
Saad
LOL! Wait till I catch my breath, please!
So, URL filtering and content censorship (do I need remind you of what such methods were used to inflict during 2007 emergency?) is a liberal issue? :) I am sorry but that's some low grade propaganda material right there.
Of all the other ICT related investment arenas, its the censorship department that needs more foreign input. Ha! This passes as intellect these days?
Regards,
--
Saad
[Sent from Mobile]