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EU to regulate animated GIFs and morality of Youtube content

By on April 19, 2017 in Censorship, EU, Free Information, Freedom of Speech, Internet

The current proposal, which proposes even more obligations on video-sharing platforms, is horribly contradictory and unclear. It does contain, however, a reasonable amount of comedy, which is an innovation for the EU institutions. For example, this legislation on “audiovisual” content covers, on the basis of Parliament compromise amendments, “a set of moving images”, which would cover, for example, an animated GIF. (…)

On a more serious note, the proposal requires badly defined video-sharing platforms to take measures to protect children from content that would harm their “physical, mental or moral development” (“moral” added by the Parliament to various new parts of the Directive). This involves measures to restrict (undefined) legal content.

EDRi on the EU Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD): AVMS Directive – censorship by coercive comedy confusion »

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EU: The DRM problem

By on April 12, 2017 in Big Entertainment, Copyright, DRM, EU, Internet, IT security

German Member of the European Parliament Julia Reda has published an open-letter signed by UK MEP Lucy Anderson, raising alarm at the fact that the W3C is on the brink of finalising a DRM standard for web video, which — thanks to crazy laws protecting DRM — will leave users at risk of unreported security vulnerabilities, and also prevent third parties from adapting browsers for the needs of disabled people, archivists, and the wider public.

Boingboing » MEP to Commission: World Wide Web Consortium’s DRM is a danger to Europeans »

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German law limiting »WiFi liability« approved

By on April 9, 2017 in Copyright, Free Information, Germany, Intellectual Property, Internet

Germany has approved a draft law that will enable businesses to run open WiFi hotspots without being held liable for the copyright infringements of their customers. Copyright holders will still have the ability to request that certain sites are blocked to prevent repeat infringement.

Torrentfreak: Germany Approves Draft Law to Protect WiFi Operators From Piracy Liability »

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Tim Berners-Lee on the future of the web

By on April 4, 2017 in Data Protection, decentralization, Free Information, Internet, WWW

On the better web Berners-Lee envisions, users control where their data is stored and how it’s accessed. For example, social networks would still run in the cloud. But you could store your data locally. Alternately, you could choose a different cloud server run by a company or community you trust. You might have different servers for different types of information—for health and fitness data, says—that is completely separate from the one you use for financial records.

Wired: Tim Berners-Lee, Inventor of the Web, Plots a Radical Overhaul of His Creation »

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California to make »fake news« illegal?

By on March 29, 2017 in Big Brother, Censorship, Civil liberties, Democracy, disinformation, Free Information, Freedom of Speech, Freedom of the Press, Internet, US

From a proposed Californian law:

18320.5. It is unlawful for a person to knowingly and willingly make, publish or circulate on an Internet Web site, or cause to be made, published, or circulated in any writing posted on an Internet Web site, a false or deceptive statement designed to influence the vote on either of the following:

(a) Any issue submitted to voters at an election.

(b) Any candidate for election to public office.

EFF comments…

In other words, it would be illegal to be wrong on the internet if it could impact an election. The bill is unconstitutional under U.S. Supreme Court case law (see our opposition letter for more information on that), and likely to draw immediate and costly lawsuits if it is signed into law.

EFF: California Bill To Ban “Fake News” Would Be Disastrous for Political Speech »

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Your privacy, for sale – part 2

By on March 29, 2017 in Big Brother, Big Data, Data Protection, Internet, Privacy, US

Putting the interests of Internet providers over Internet users, Congress today voted to erase landmark broadband privacy protections. If the bill is signed into law, companies like Cox, Comcast, Time Warner, AT&T, and Verizon will have free rein to hijack your searches, sell your data, and hammer you with unwanted advertisements. Worst yet, consumers will now have to pay a privacy tax by relying on VPNs to safeguard their information. That is a poor substitute for legal protections.

EFF: Repealing Broadband Privacy Rules, Congress Sides with the Cable and Telephone Industry »

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EU to ISP:s: Scan and censor everything

By on March 26, 2017 in Big Brother, Big Entertainment, Big Media, Censorship, Copyright, EU, Free Information, Freedom of Speech, Intellectual Property, Internet, Privacy

Under the extreme rules proposed by the Commission in the Copyright Directive, uploads to the internet would need to be scanned to assess if any photo, video or text that is being uploaded can be “identified” based on information provided by copyright holders. This would block, for example, memes that include copyrighted images or videos, parody, quotation and other perfectly harmless activities.

In order to encourage internet companies to monitor and delete information as thoroughly as possible, it is also proposed that their legal liability for uploads would be increased.

EDRi: EU moves one step closer to the world’s worst internet filtering law »

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Stop the EU censorship machine!

By on March 13, 2017 in Big Entertainment, Big Media, Censorship, Civil rights, Copyright, EU, Free Information, Internet

EDRi has signed a joint open letter together with 27 other civil society organisations expressing concerns about European Commission’s copyright proposal. The proposal requires internet platforms to use automated upload filtering technologies. This obligation would impact negatively on free speech and democracy by building a system where citizens will face internet platforms blocking the upload of their content, even if it is a perfectly legal use of copyrighted content.

EDRi: Civil society urges EU institutions to stop the “censorship machine” in the copyright proposal »

Also, read » Copyright Directive: Lead MEP partly deletes the “censorship machine” »

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