The road to censorship: turn back now
Immunicity is a free service for British internet users, as well as those in other countries subject to censorship, allowing them the possibility of accessing any blocked web page without the need to install special software: a simple change to one’s browser configuration is enough. The change affects the proxy auto configuration (PAC), with the result that traffic that is not subjected to blocking will continue to function as usual, while requests for pages included in lists of blocked sites are directed through a network of proxies, and not stored. There’s no need to create an account, or contract any services, or agree to advertising: this is a free service designed to expose the ineffectiveness of government censorship. Immunicity is funded by the money made from Torrenticity, a network of proxies set up to unblock access to torrent sites, and which do feature advertising and that has seen a significant upsurge in popularity in the wake of British Prime Minister David Cameron’s attempt to block access to sites such as The Pirate Bay.
Immunicity is simply another battle in a war the outcome of which is evident: lose-lose. As internet pioneer and activist John Gilmore said back in 1993:
“The web interprets censorship as damage and routes around it.”
The “think of the children” excuse, and the creation of a paternalist state that decides what we can and cannot see, along the lines of China’s Golden Shield Project, or Iran’s halal-internet, is an affront to those of us who want to live under democracy; furthermore, it would never work. We have already two petitions to fight the so called “Great Firewall of Cameron”, one in Change.org, and another one using HM Government. The outcome will be an overall increase in encrypted traffic, as well as a progressive awareness that we all need to protect ourselves from spying and intrusion.
The widespread use of private virtual networks such as HideMyAss, iPredator or IVPN, along with the profusion of articles recommending and comparing ways to protect oneself from snooping has already led some online payment companies to take on the role of our moral guardians and to block payments to such services.
Growing numbers of internet users are now seriously considering using such tools to protect their privacy, to the extent that some commentators see this as “the new green”: one able to garner the support of large numbers of people to a simple-to-understand message. For the first time since 9/11, Americans are now more worried about civil liberties abuses than terrorism. As things stand, the idea that anybody who wanted to access “forbidden” data, or to use the web to coordinate or carry out crimes, would use mainstream technology is laughable.
The future, if some governments’ desire to control every move we make is not subjected to common sense, will be an internet in which all traffic is encrypted. This would be an absurd situation, as well as a waste of research and computing resources that should, by rights, be unnecessary; but one that we are heading toward as a result of not having discussed the problem properly and for not having taken action sooner.
