It is a relatively short assignment, and beng as such, you will have all of Tuesday and Thursday to complete your work. If you use your time well during class, there should be little need for any additional time at home.
Follow the instructions below.
ASSIGNMENT GUIDE: IS INTERNET CENSORSHIP A GOOD THING OR A BAD THING?
Wikipedia definition of Censorship:
"Censorship is the control of speech, and other forms of human expression, often by (but not limited to) government intervention. The ostensible motive of censorship is to stabilize or improve the society over which the government would have control.
"It is most commonly applied to acts that occur in public circumstances, and most formally involves suppression of ideas (by criminalizing or regulating expression). What is censored may range from specific words to entire concepts and it may be influenced by value systems. "Sanitization (removal) and whitewashing (from whitewash) are almost interchangeable terms that refer to a particular form of censorship via omission, which seeks to "clean up" the portrayal of particular issues and facts that are already known, but which may conflict with the official point of view."
Dictionary.com definition of Censor:
"A person authorized to examine books, films, or other material and to remove or suppress what is considered morally, politically, or otherwise objectionable.
Schools cracking down on teen Web site MySpace: http://www.bodine.phila.k12.pa.us/kaufman/ITGSweb/info/censorship/myspace.htm
Facebook...What it is really for! Warning! Click on the link. After watching the video you'll want to cancel your membership! http://albumoftheday.com/facebook/
Content Filters
How do filters work? Filters are designed to identify unsuitable or inappropriate material but comparing the content of a web page to “allowed” and “unallowed” content that is classified in the filtering software. The filter can do this in various ways: A filter contains a “black” or “exclusion” list which contains the URLs of websites that have unallowed content. If a web page matches one of the sites on this list, the user is denied access to view the site. A filter contains a “white” or “inclusion” list which contains the URLs of website that the user is allowed to visit. Any website that is not on this list will be blocked by the filter. A filter contains a list of content keywords and/or phrases that, if contained within a web page, will deny the user access to the site. A filter is able to analyze images contained on a web page, and will block access to the site if it contains a large percentage of flesh colored images. Many filters use a combination of these methods, and also allow the user to edit the lists which contain URLs or words that filter looks for. Many filters allow the parent (or the master user of the software) to adjust the “strength” of the filter - the criteria for what is deemed allowed and disallowed. The strength is often categorized by age groups in order to filter material for children, teenagers or adults.
SonicWALL
This graphic explains how the SonicWALL content filter works.
After considering what you've learned, respond to the following questions in a clear and concise post on this blog.
1. Discuss some of the social and ethical issues involved with filtering.
2. Describe how filtering works.
3. Evaluate the necessity of filtering in your region.
4. Examine two possible benefits of filtering for a large corporation.
Your response will be evaluated based on the following DP Program Standards:
- understand and critically examine the global impact of IT developments.
- demonstrate a knowledge and understanding of the social and ethical implications of IT systems and developments at the local, national and global level.
- analyse and evaluate the social and ethical implications of IT developments.
- express ideas clearly and coherently with supporting arguments and examples.
2 comments:
Margot Leysen, Grade 12
1.Discuss some of the social and ethical issues involved with filtering.
The main purpose of filtering is protecting the computer and its user. One of the fundamental intents, and the ethical side, of filtering is to shield children from inappropriate information or websites. This started out as an integer deed, with the child’s interests in mind. But in the case of filtering information for another person, the question that arises is: Where do we draw the line? When does filtering become patronising?
When filtering is implemented in such a way that the user is no longer able to make his own choice to access the information that they want or to decide for themselves which information is correct, right or justified; it becomes an issue. Filtering can be exploited by the government to control its citizens and their way of thinking. When filtering is used in extreme ways by the government, it may lead to total control of peoples’ minds and opinions (e.g. China).
Filtering can put restrains on the freedom of expression, as the government is able to block out websites that contain negative ideas about a political party or the government. In a communistic country like China, filtering has it sole purpose to control what information is out there. This leads to extreme situations wherein only the positive side of the government is shown to the rest of the world. The negative side is then harder to discover, therefore the social rights of the citizens are put at risk.
2.Describe how filtering works.
Basically, a filter has three main lists that analyse the data on or the website itself. By using a combination of these three lists, the filter looks for information that is seen as not allowed content and blocks out or denies access whenever this content if found on the URL of the website. Normally, the user can edit the lists or alter the filter criteria.
The three lists in the filter are:
•The ‘black’ or ‘exclusion’ list with URLs of websites with what is marked as unsuited content. If a webpage matches one of the sites on this list, the user is denied access onto the website.
•The ‘white’ or ‘inclusion’ list. This list has the URLs of websites that are allowed. Whenever the user tries to access a website that is not on the list, the access will be denied.
•There is also a list of content keywords or phrases. Again, when the webpage uses these words, the user will not be able to access the webpage.
3. Evaluate the necessity of filtering in your region.
As one takes a look at the Asian-pacific region there is one country that has been spoken about many times related to filtering and censorship. It is a known fact that China uses censorship as a way to control their citizens. All the liberal ideas of the Western world and the democratic views that are talked about on the Internet, which are the direct opposite of a communistic regime, are blocked out by the Chinese government. The Chinese citizens have no way of accessing these websites. As I said in question One, China is only showing the positive sides of their government (and if there is no positive side, they will make one up). In China filtering is needed by the government as a way to control their citizens, but for the people it is only a restrain on their freedom.
In Japan, the necessity of filtering should be rather low. As a democratic country, there should be little use for blocking out many websites with negative opinions or ideas about the government or politics. Japan is already an economic power and it is very much developed. As one of the main powers in the world, Japan should be for free trade and freedom of expression.
I think it would be in Japan’s best interest that they leave the freedom of expression on the Internet relatively free. But it seems that the Japanese government does see a need for filtering. I found an article that says that Japan has started internet filtering since February 2008:
Japan’s Internet filtering initiatives
Posted on February 1st, 2008 by Serkan Toto
Can you regulate the Cyberspace? Should you? It seems some forces in Japan think it’s possible and you should.
There has been a lot of efforts by the Japanese government in the last few weeks to regulate and censor the Internet in various ways.
2 weeks ago, Japan’s National Police Agency hinted it may soon require dating sites to register with public authorities for better control. It is estimated that there are about 5,000 different dating sites competing in Japan. The agency also tries to control crimes like child prostitution by introducing stricter age control verification systems. It said about 85 percent of all crimes related to online dating involve minors.
Survey supports the government
It seems Japanese people generally agree with the idea of filtering online content, at least in the light of child protection issues.
Last Saturday, the Japanese government published a survey it conducted among 3,000 citizens in November 2007. More than 76 percent responded it is right to regulate the Internet in order to prevent minors from accessing unsuitable dating or adult-oriented sites.
If the government implements these ideas development of the Japanese Internet industry will be heavily constrained within its own territory. Also, a serious setback in international competitiveness must be expected.
Source: http://asiajin.com/blog/2008/02/01/japans-internet-filtering-initiatives/
This article gives other reasons for filtering, such as preventing crimes like child prostitutions and preventing minors from accessing unsuitable dating or adult-oriented sites. So, as you can see, the Japanese government does think there is a necessity for filtering the Internet, as does the Japanese public (‘More than 76 percent responded it is right to regulate the Internet’). The reasons that the Japanese government gives sound reasonable but one can be almost certain that another reason for implementing filtering is to have control over what is said on the Internet about the government and politics.
4. Examine two possible benefits of filtering for a large corporation.
•Filtering would be beneficial for a large corporation because this way, they can protect the business’ private information and its employees. By denying access to certain sites, the risk of viruses and hackers is limited, or at least decreased. Any suspicious website will be blocked out and the vulnerability of the corporation’s computers decreases.
•In a large corporation, many of the employees will have to work with computers. Filtering can be implemented as a way to increase productivity. When employees are denied access to sites that have nothing to do with their work, the employees will be less distracted as they can only use the computers for work.
Emi Uranbileg
Internet Filtering- September 9, 2008
1. Discuss some of the social and ethical issues involved with filtering.
As seen in many places, filtering protects families and children from inappropriate media, such as filtering adult sites, politically and racially discriminative sites, also any other site that has violence as its prime, etc. This increases the amount of time and trust, parents can give to their children to conduct online activity.
As the modern times require a lot of interaction and transaction of information through internet, the children who spend more time online and knows the workings of the internet, would be more likely to be able to handle situations on the job position or elsewhere, than the children who don’t. This situation is clearly indicated by the number of adults who are, so late in their learning period, expected to learn the basics and possible more in depth, depending on the job position they have. Many countries, most developed, did not have computers until the late 1990s.
Ethically speaking, filtering has a negative implication as used by the Chinese government to filter. In his article Empirical Analysis of Internet Filtering in China, Jonathan Zittrain stated that Chinese filtering system is based on sexually explicit and non-sexually explicit sites. The inclusion of filtering with non-sexually explicit material, is the point where the government filtering, becomes a censorship that breaches the human rights in itself. Filtering of non-sexually explicit material, in difference to filtering sexually explicit content, has no basis to be undertaken, as non-sexually explicit sites are usually not dangerous. And the users of the internet are often not chared the knowledge that certain types of information are filtered when they include the search. The non-sexually explicit filtering includes major categories such as education, entertainment, news, major world governments, and politics. The user is not able to access other points of view in political thinking, nor access any type of education that is offered throughout the world. This kind of censorship not only ignores the right of citizens to be exposed to whatever information that they are entitled to, but it also indoctrinates the users into one oppressed thinking.
Socially, Chinese internet users will not be able to cope with the change in history like other people in the world who have access to that information. It would mean that among millions and millions of the citizens, there is going to be a growing trend in thinking process. A psychological implication could be made on the person who is not skilled at critical thinking. One factor that is different from American and Saudi Arabian blocking techniques is that Chinese filtering, when blocking, do no explain on the error page the purpose of the blocking. This could mean that the user could remain in the dark forever.
Source: Jonathan Zittrain, Empirical Analysis of Internet Filtering in China, April 01, 2003, viewed at http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/publications/2003/Empirical_Analysis_of_Internet_Filtering_in_China on September 16, 2008
2. Describe how filtering works.
Filtering is based on varieties of lists. The type of material filtering software has to identify and ‘allow’ or ‘unallow’ is different in each case. However, the general mechanism is similar to all the filters. In a series of black or white lists, the filter has the URL addresses of the web pages that could be excluded (black) or included (white). The filter automatically blocks any webpage not classified in any of the lists. This method will be efficient only to the level of the list. Another way to filter content of the web pages, is to match key words/ phrases in the web pages with the set of key words/phrases the filter is not allowed the user access to. This method expands to the images, where filter is able to scan the picture and identify the percentage of the color of human skin, and if too much, will not allow the content. The filters mostly have the combination of these methods.
3. Evaluate the necessity of filtering in your region.
Japan has been in many ways a leading mogul in the industry of mobile devices and services. The internet access that is provided the modern day mobile phones have the same functions of the internet on the computer, only modified for the average 5 inch screens and reduced in size to increase the uploading time.
Along with the phones, Japanese advertising and free service sites has broadened their field and now provides websites for viewing from mobile phones only. The popular trend of access instead of typing in URL addresses for mobile phones is a square barcode that can be scanned and read by the mobile and directly connected to a site. This operation is both very convenient and also threatening aspect to the industry.
Easy accessibility enables users to easily enter sites where sexual predators and loss of personal information and emotional abuse can happen regularly. As number of mobile internet dating sites grow, some young girls in middle and high schools became the victims of abuse and possible a threat to their lives though the sites. The internet anonymity is a factor for criminals to walk in the dark. Therefore, on the demand of parents and concerned guardians, the internet filtering is on the priority list. It not only filters inappropriate materials displayed, ranging in strength for the age group, but also can completely block internet access to nowhere other than the mobile device company’s recommended web pages (usually in children oriented simple mobile phones).
Also large computer internet providers, such as Asahi and NTT Plala have a fair use policy in which the company can control the traffic of the internet activity of specific users downloading and uploading in the internet share bases. There have been many complaints about downloading from torrents with too slow speed and about access to some certain websites (i.e. MSN, Instant Messaging of any kind, online games) which are restricted automatically.
Such implication implemented on the user’s freedom of use, is a clear distinction between European and American standards according to the foreign users in Japan.
Therefore it suggests that the Japanese companies do have negative ideas about using torrents and sharing files and are constantly fearful to the viral infections and Spam that could easily spread with instant messaging and computer games which is understandable with the users, but to show concern about the security of the sites of Microsoft and Yahoo’s mail services or foreign hosted websites are bound to be extreme to some.
These filters on the system are fixable once the company operator is online, but it is sign of the strictness of the system as internet security becomes an important issue in Japan and the world.
4. Examine two possible benefits of filtering for a large corporation.
Why would an employer prefer to have filtering software in the system of all the computers in the office? It increases productivity of the worker. It is very tempting for the workers to not take Instant Messaging (IM) as a way to take break from the work load, certainly it is understandable but upon reviewing the constant messaging and storing in the archive a company in US had found that the workers were not pleased with the behavior of their employers and therefore liked to talk gossip during work hours, though it was a strict infringement to personal privacy of the employees, the situation explains why a filtering software should be installed to avoid employees for getting distracted and restricts sites and downloadable soft wares that are similar to instant messaging. Just like, when MySpace (socializing site) was blocked from schools, the students have found a way to display information on other not-on-the-list blogging sites. Similarly the IM can’t be the only mean of communication between the employees as there are forums and chat rooms of other kinds on internet.
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