Thousands rallied in Moscow to protest a bill in parliament that would route all internet traffic through servers in Russia.
Protestors fear this bill would
lead to widespread internet censorship for Russian users.
[...and make] virtual private networks (VPNs) ineffective
It is always easier to manage a powergrab of this sort if you can blame RussiaAmerica so the official line is:
the bill is intended to address concerns that Russia could be cut off if the United States applies a new cybersecurity doctrine in an offensive maneuver
conversely
Critics say the bill would create an internet firewall similar to China's.
It also makes a remarkably convenient surveillance choke point, which saves on costs.
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Thousands in Moscow Protest Bill Routing all Internet traffic through Russian Servers
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(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday March 11 2019, @11:46PM (4 children)
Bets on where the first land line will be out of Russia to bypass this?
(Score: 3, Funny) by RandomFactor on Tuesday March 12 2019, @12:23AM (3 children)
Land line? I -do- still have my old USRobotics (sysop program) modems in the basement. I'll help! Fidonet will rise again!
В «Правде» нет известий, в «Известиях» нет правды
(Score: 3, Funny) by realDonaldTrump on Tuesday March 12 2019, @01:15AM
You call them moderns. But, you also call them old. Cyber is a very special world!
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 12 2019, @01:12PM
Hey, I got mine from a friend that works there. Their employee purchase program ruled! Except for the fact they now are a tiny company that makes 3rd party accessories few people would buy.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday March 14 2019, @10:42AM
There is a fidonet network there as well as a clearnet continuation of the original fidonet still running.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by Phoenix666 on Tuesday March 12 2019, @12:12AM (10 children)
Good for the Russians. They are quite right about what the effect of the law will be, and its intent. I envy the Russians and Europeans that they've been more on top of Internet freedom, and vocal about it, than Americans have generally been.
But this, and China's Internet Firewall, ought to make it plain to everyone that the writing is on the wall for all of us. The elites have come to fully appreciate the threat to their global power that the Internet and its free expression represent. All over the place the rabble are beginning to figure things out for themselves, and that cannot be allowed to continue.
Closely following on the heels of democratizing information will be the democratization of our material culture. DIY people, the Makers, have been on the bleeding edge of that for a decade now, but sooner or later the mass market will internalize what they've been doing and follow suit. They've been persecuting that guy who's been distributing designs for 3-D printed guns, not because the guns are good, because they're not, but because of what it represents.
Washington DC delenda est.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by bob_super on Tuesday March 12 2019, @12:54AM
It doesn't hurt that the US has indeed been threatening to deploy cyber weapons against its enemies, was recently in the news for illegally shutting down known troublemakers during the midterms, that something fishy is going on with the Venezuelan power grid, and therefore anybody who is not already a true vassal of the US should be prepared to cut off the outside Internet to continue their internal business in the event that they are the next target.
Yes, it doesn't hurt the dictator, and has been in the playbooks of other dictators recently.
But sometimes, a cigar is just a cigar, Mr Freud.
(Score: 2) by DeathMonkey on Tuesday March 12 2019, @01:25AM (4 children)
Russia creates bill making it illegal to question the state online. [marketwatch.com]
Such bastions of internet freedom!
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 12 2019, @01:59AM (1 child)
They need to learn from us; we have been legislating against sedition since the 1790s:
"In 1798, President John Adams signed into law the Alien and Sedition Acts, the fourth of which, the Sedition Act or "An Act for the Punishment of Certain Crimes against the United States" set out punishments of up to two years of imprisonment for "opposing or resisting any law of the United States" or writing or publishing "false, scandalous, and malicious writing" about the President or the U.S. Congress (though not the office of the Vice-President, then occupied by Adams' political opponent Thomas Jefferson)." (Wikipedia)
(Score: 5, Interesting) by urza9814 on Tuesday March 12 2019, @02:57PM
Yeah, there have been numerous attempts at similar legislation, most of which thankfully died a quick death. That particular one only lasted two years and damn near sparked a civil war in the process. The vice president of the country was advocating in favor of states seceding over the matter! So yeah, they maybe should learn a thing or two from that...and so should we!
There's far better examples from recent history...Room 641A would have been more appropriate to this story IMO. Or if we want First Amendment violations in particular, just search with the magic phrase "Free speech zones"...
(Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Tuesday March 12 2019, @10:56AM (1 child)
Really, I meant the average citizens understanding enough and caring enough to go out into the streets in numbers to protest. I remember going to a protest in NYC more than a decade ago about the DMCA, and I was one of 10 people there.
Washington DC delenda est.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday March 13 2019, @04:23PM
(Score: 1) by khallow on Tuesday March 12 2019, @03:11AM (1 child)
When such "internet freedom" can be used to protect EU businesses from foreign competition. They've been quite casual about it otherwise.
(Score: 1) by khallow on Wednesday March 13 2019, @04:22PM
Then there's the Hate Speech laws which is an attack on online freedom of speech.
(Score: 2) by AnonTechie on Tuesday March 12 2019, @09:54AM
I understand that there are other countries (such as the Middle East Countries) which mandate that, not only all Internet Traffic but all Telephone Calls are also routed through their gateways.
Albert Einstein - "Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not sure about the former."
(Score: 2) by ilsa on Tuesday March 12 2019, @09:17PM
Considering that the only thing internet freedom seems to have accomplished is make it easier for everyone to get into shouting matches with each other, for kids to tell each other about how many times they've had sex with their respective moms, and given a voice to idiots like anti-vaxxers, I'm sure the elite probably think tat they're doing us plebes a favour.
We clearly arn't capable of using the internet responsibly on our own.
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 12 2019, @02:12AM
In the years to come more countries will adopt this model.It will be the norm in the not so far future.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 12 2019, @05:24AM (2 children)
Putin took away freedom of press, the crowd yawned.
Putin took away freedom of speech, the crowd yawned.
Putin took away fair elections, the crowd yawned.
Putin took away foreign porn, the crowd is furious!
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 12 2019, @08:53AM (1 child)
Or maybe you aren't really watching the crowd often enough.
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Tuesday March 12 2019, @06:38PM
Maybe because the pr0n is too interesting to watch the crowd?
To transfer files: right-click on file, pick Copy. Unplug mouse, plug mouse into other computer. Right-click, paste.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 12 2019, @07:34AM
Yet another example of a country trying to exploit the internet for the purpose of mass surveillance. Perhaps Tor could be used to bypass the servers, but I'm not quite sure.