Science & Technology World

Australia intends to introduce filters which will ban access to
websites containing criminal content. The banned sites will be
selected by an independent classification body guided by complaints
from the public, said Communications Minister Stephen Conroy. A seven
month trial in conjunction with ISPs found the technology behind the
filter to be 100 % effective. However, that claim has been questioned
and there has been opposition from some internet users. Twitter
users have been voicing their disapproval by adding the search tag "
nocleanfeed" to their comments about the plans. "Successful technology
isn't necessarily successful policy," said Colin Jacobs, a
spokesperson for Electronic Frontiers Australia, a non-profit
organisation that campaigns for online freedom. "We're yet to hear a
sensible explanation of what this policy is for, who it will help,
and why it is worth spending so much taxpayers' money on." Mr Conroy
said the filters included optional extras such as a ban on gambling
sites which ISPs could choose to implement in exchange for a grant.
"Through a combination of additional resources for education and
awareness, mandatory internet filtering of RC (refused
classification)- rated content, and optional ISP-level filtering, we
have a package that balances safety for families and the benefits of
the digital revolution," he said. The filter laws will be introduced
in parliament in August 2010 and will take a year to implement.
'noble aims' "Historical attempts to put filters in place have been
effective up to a point," Dr Windsor Holden, principal analyst at
Juniper Research, told BBC News. The "noble aims" of the filter could
be lost in its implementation, he warned. "Clearly there is a need to
protect younger and more vulnerable users of the net, but one
concern is that it won't just be illegal websites that will be
blocked," he added. "You have to take extreme caution in how these
things are rolled out and the uses to which they' re put."