Internet Filtering Research Articles

Accessing LGBTQ+ Content in One US State: The Role of CIPA and Internet Filters

Accessing LGBTQ+ Content in One US State: The Role of CIPA and Internet Filters

The determinants of COVID-19 case reporting across Africa.

According to study on the under-estimation of COVID-19 cases in African countries, the average daily case reporting rate was only 5.37% in the initial phase of the outbreak when there was little or no control measures. In this work, we aimed to identify the determinants of the case reporting and classify the African countries using the case reporting rates and the significant determinants. We used the COVID-19 daily case reporting rate estimated in the previous paper for 54 African countries as the response variable and 34 variables from demographics, socioeconomic, religion, education, and public health categories as the predictors. We adopted a generalized additive model with cubic spline for continuous predictors and linear relationship for categorical predictors to identify the significant covariates. In addition, we performed Hierarchical Clustering on Principal Components (HCPC) analysis on the reporting rates and significant continuous covariates of all countries. 21 covariates were identified as significantly associated with COVID-19 case detection: total population, urban population, median age, life expectancy, GDP, democracy index, corruption, voice accountability, social media, internet filtering, air transport, human development index, literacy, Islam population, number of physicians, number of nurses, global health security, malaria incidence, diabetes incidence, lower respiratory and cardiovascular diseases prevalence. HCPC resulted in three major clusters for the 54 African countries: northern, southern and central essentially, with the northern having the best early case detection, followed by the southern and the central. Overall, northern and southern Africa had better early COVID-19 case identification compared to the central. There are a number of demographics, socioeconomic, public health factors that exhibited significant association with the early case detection.

CHILD, FAMILY, SCHOOL IN THE INFORMATION SPACE

Relevance. In the modern world, information technology allows to create digital spaces for the child, parents and school. The issues of concern are how well protected a child’s world in the digital space is; how parents, children and educators interact in the digital world; how children are taught the basics of cybersecurity. Aim of the research is studying potential threats when using the Internet by a child, fi nding ways to ensure children’s safety. Research methods include a questionary and in-depth interviews. In the course of the study,  students from schools of Rostov-on-Don city were interviewed. Main results. Master students of the Southern Federal University conducted a study in which they tried to fi nd out the main risks and threats that may arise when using the Internet and considered offenses committed against adolescents on the Internet. The study revealed that  percent of schoolchildren do not know what to do and who to contact for help if they fi nd illegal or negative content on the Internet. The Internet and social media can pose risk to children, especially if they do not know how to use them properly and how to protect their personal information. There are many programs and tools that help to organize safe work of children on the Internet. These include Parental Control software, antiviruses software, Internet fi lters, mobile applications, monitoring tools that help parents track children’s Internet activities. However, only an open dialogue and frequent communication with children about their online activities can help parents and educators better understand the problems of the child and thus prevent possible risks. Conclusion. Teaching children how to use social media safely can help them avoid unwanted online situations. Involving children and adolescents in the study of problems related to cyber threats contributes to the development of their information culture.

Propaganda in America: How to Recognize and Defend Against It

Corporations and governments use modern propaganda techniques to influence and manipulate the public, incurring social and environmental consequences which are compounding over time. This paper provides both historical and modern examples of propaganda, then highlights key issues that arise as a byproduct, such as planned obsolescence, astroturfing, and the internet filter bubble. Companies like Google and Facebook use proprietary algorithms to shape the internet as well as their users’ minds through dopamine-driven feedback loops. The effects of a consumer driven culture spill over into the environment, with plastic pollution and e-waste littering the shores of distant countries. This paper details how plastic pollution in the environment has made its way back into the human body, while propaganda is used to distract people with targeted advertising using techniques pioneered by Edward Bernays. Propaganda is a multifaceted subject which requires historical context to understand and identify. This is an informative paper which has the goal of arming readers with an ability to recognize propaganda and defend against its negative effects. It is vital for Americans to become aware of the propaganda being used to manipulate them. Otherwise, societal issues caused by social media and other factors will continue to erode our ability to communicate and think critically.

The Personal is the Political: Internet Filtering and Counter Appropriation in the Islamic Republic of Iran

Issues of trust, privacy and security at the intersection of state intervention and the use of the internet both by ‘publics’ and by individuals for—from the State’s point of view- dispreferred purposes have been of great recent interest to researchers. This has been accompanied by a slowly developing concern for the way in which these issues pan out for people in non-Western cultures. Based on a study of Iranians living in urban centers, we examine the way in which culture, State institutions, technological infrastructure and practices intersect. Iran is a republic with a theocratic constitution and relatively strict regulation of private life. It has one of the highest rates of internet appropriation and social media use in the MENA region, but use is heavily mediated by state interventions, for instance the filtering of sites such as Facebook and Twitter. We show how young Iranians, due to restrictions on their private lives, learn from early age on to deal with illegal access techniques such as proxy servers and virtual private networks (VPNs). These access technologies are often used for private purposes such as contacting and meeting other genders. However, these capabilities become even more important when preparing to leave the country or to articulate their political dissatisfaction, specifically at moments of political unrest. We discuss and develop the concept of ‘counter-appropriation’ and the ‘counter-public’ to describe the practices of urban dwellers in circumventing increasingly more sophisticated intervention by the state security apparatus.

Losing power safely: Explaining the variation in dictators' responses to anti‐regime protests

AbstractThis study aims to understand a dictator's response to large‐scale anti‐regime protests regarding their safety. While dictators tend to order the repression of such protests, in some cases, they voluntarily cede power without such repression. Earlier studies based on the assumption that leaders always act to maintain power cannot explain this variation. This article presents a novel claim that dictators choose the way in which they lose power. It argues that since dictators who lose power bycoupssuffer a worse fate than those who lose power following protests, they prefer to relinquish power by the latter if they anticipate that repressing dissent will result in acoup. Thus, dictators prefer a safer way of losing power over maintaining their office at all costs. Data on the post‐tenure fate of dictators from 1946 to 2010 and the case of South Korean anti‐regime protests in 1987 support this theory.Related ArticlesHellmeier, Sebastian. 2016. “The Dictator's Digital Toolkit: Explaining Variation in Internet Filtering in Authoritarian Regimes.”Politics & Policy44(6): 1158–91.https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12189Hiroi, Taeko, and Sawa Omori. 2013. “Causes and Triggers ofCoups d'état: An Event History Analysis.”Politics & Policy41(1): 39–64.https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12001Hunter, Lance Y., Josh Rutland, and Zachary King. 2020. “Leaving the Barracks: MilitaryCoupsin Developing Democracies.”Politics & Policy48(6): 1062–103.https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12383

Filtering forbidden content

The relevance of this study lies in the need to filter content with high accuracy due to the creation of optimal variations of neural network architectures. The solutions available today provide low filtering accuracy, which leads to the blocking of potentially safe content. A complete lack of filtering will lead to the fact that minor users and other vulnerable groups will gain access to it, which is unacceptable. In today’s world, the process of digitization and integration of more and more software products into the life of an ordinary member of society is gaining momentum. Every day there are new apps that help people generate terabytes of content like TikTok, Instagram, Telegram, Linked In, etc. However, with the increase in the amount of content, the number of materials that violate the rules of the platform or the laws of the country of which the user is a citizen also increases. Every day there are photos and videos on social networks that contain smoking, alcohol, weapons, drug propaganda, direct or indirect, etc. At this moment, the phenomenon of content filtering comes to the rescue of users. The object of research is content filtering processes. The subject of research is the methods and technologies of building neural networks for content filtering. The purpose of the work is to increase the accuracy of content filtering by developing a neural network architecture. PyCharm and the Python programming language were chosen as a system development tool. The SciPy and Keras libraries, the Pickle data import and export library, and the Sckit-learn library for working with neural network algorithms were chosen as development tools. The result of the work is the constructed neural network architecture for filtering prohibited content. An analytical review of content filtering methods was conducted. Each of the methods has its own advantages and disadvantages. During the analysis, it was determined that the most effective option at the moment is the use of neural networks that learn from examples of prohibited content for its further filtering An Internet filter is software that limits or controls the content that an Internet user can access, especially when it is used to restrict material delivered over the Internet via the Internet, email, or other means. Content control software determines what content is allowed or blocked. No single solution provides complete coverage, so most companies deploy a mix of technologies to achieve adequate content control according to their policies. Such restrictions can be applied at different levels: a government can try to apply them nationwide, or they can, for example, be applied by an Internet service provider to its customers, an employer to its staff, a school to its students, a library to visitors, a parent to a computer child or individual users to their own computers. The purpose of the article is to analyze the relevance of using neural networks for filtering prohibited content and the phenomenon of content filtering in general. Based on all of the above, we can conclude that it is highly relevant to create various tools for automatic content filtering with an adequate behavior model.

Norm Entrepreneurship in Global Cybersecurity

New technologies create new challenges for global security that leave even the most militarily powerful countries vulnerable to attack. Countries are gearing up for electronic warfare and, in this realm, the old rules of international conflict either do not apply or have not been developed. Governments have yet to find stable policy solutions to match potential cyber threats. The challenge then is to establish new global norms concerning acceptable behavior in cyberspace. This article analyzes the attempts to construct global cybersecurity norms. It differs from much of the existing literature on norm‐construction since it moves beyond the interstate level to examine subnational groups and private sector actors that function as norm entrepreneurs in this policy area. The article posits that while nation states remain central, nonstate actors are playing an increasingly important role in cybersecurity norm‐building, supplementing state action, and, to some degree, compensating for state inaction when cooperation reaches an impasse.Related ArticlesGlen, Carol M. 2014. “Internet Governance: Territorializing Cyberspace?” Politics & Policy 42 (5): 635‐657. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12093Hellmeier, Sebastian. 2016. “The Dictator's Digital Toolkit: Explaining Variation in Internet Filtering in Authoritarian Regimes.” Politics & Policy 44 (6): 1158‐1191. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12189Zeng, Jinghan, Tim Stevens, and Yaru Chen. 2017. “China's Solution to Global Cyber Governance: Unpacking the Domestic Discourse of ‘Internet Sovereignty.’” Politics & Policy 45 (3): 432‐464. https://doi.org/10.1111/polp.12202

Internet Censorship: Access Issues for School Librarians in a Cyberspace World


 
 
 Converging communication technologies offer merizing potentialities for global access to local culture. However, concerns about controversial images and ideas on the Internet have inspired both political and technological challenges to open access. Over the past two or three years, a bewildering array of software products has appeared on the U.S. and Canadian markets that claim to be able to either "filter or 'rate' Intemet-based contenL Typical product claims are couched in the rhetoric of child protection and parental guidance.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 In the cyberspace universe of instant access to information and in ages of all kinds, how should school librarians around the world respond to these commercial products? How can they find a reasonable balance between the sometimes conflicting goals of parental responsibilities, children's educational and developmental interests, media literacy, and community standards?
 
 
 
 
 
 
 In view of what appears to be a growing political resolve in many countries to impose technological controls on Internet content, and a trend towards more and more labeling of creative expression in just about every other medium of communication, it is timely for librarians in all sectors to examine these issues and address the implications for information access. The topic of Internet filters is an exciting one for librarians because it represents the intersection of our roles as advocates for intellectual freedom, as organizers of infomation, and as promoters of media literacy. It gives us the opportunity to share our knowledge and expertise, and to increase our contribution to society at large and around the world.
 
 

Data Sovereignty and Trade Agreements: Three Digital Kingdoms

For centuries, international lawyers have wrestled with the relationship between national sovereignty and international law. This is also the case of international trade law, where the tension between trade liberalization and national sovereignty culminated in the famous “Great 1994 Sovereignty Debate” between the late Prof. John Jackson and other leading scholars when the WTO came into being. As we enter the digital age, the issue of sovereignty resurfaced once again in the form of data sovereignty. In this paper, I will examine provisions in trade agreements which deal with data sovereignty issues, such as restrictions on data flow such as internet filtering and censorship; data localization requirements including the requirements to use certain technologies. In particular, the paper will focus on the clash between the US, China, and the EU, which chooses to champion the sovereignty of the firm, the state and the individual respectively. With a critical examination of their relevant policies and positions, the paper will also suggest ways the issue should be dealt with in future trade agreements.

An analysis of American public libraries’ policies on patron use of Internet pornography

AbstractDrawing on and expanding previous graduate course research, this paper investigated and analyzed public libraries’ policies regarding patron use of legal, visual Internet pornography on public computers. Pornographic imagery that falls within legal boundaries is protected by the First Amendment. Incidents of, and library responses to, pornography viewing are not a new issue and have caused turmoil across the field of library and information science. In an attempt to understand the problem, the research question asks: how do public libraries respond to patrons viewing legal Internet pornography, while upholding First Amendment rights as well as the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA) and other legal requirements? Libraries tread a fine line to protect First Amendment rights, respect community laws, and uphold CIPA. Research indicated that responding to Internet pornography use in public libraries is heavily dependent on individual, community and library values. Policies are more likely to prohibit patrons from accessing Internet pornography, and most libraries have at least some Internet filtering software restricting what content may be accessed on public use computers. However, evidence also suggests that regardless of policy or filters, library staff will at some point encounter a patron accessing Internet pornography.

Internet filters in Canadian libraries

Internet filters can be understood as any method that “[blocks] content [from] coming into and going out to the Internet” (PC Magazine, n.d., para. 1). Instantaneously, the word ‘blocks’ causes advocates of intellectual freedom to stand at attention. The American Library Association’s (ALA) Library Bill of Rights states: “a person’s right to use a library should not be denied or abridged because of origin, age, background, or views” (as cited in Houghton-Jan, 2010, p. 40). More specific to the topic at hand: “the use of Internet filters to block constitutionally protected speech … compromises First Amendment freedoms and the core values of librarianship” (ALA, n.d., para. 1). This paper will investigate and discuss the function of and methodology behind internet filters, with specific attention to their application in Canada. Following a general overview, a discussion follows of what library professionals in public and school libraries should do to uphold and protect intellectual freedom.

Internet Censorship and the Intraregional Geopolitical Conflicts in the Middle East and North Africa

This study examines and maps Internet filtering practices around intraregional geopolitics in the Middle East and North Africa based on empirical data collected from 16 countries. The study finds that state censors employ technical Internet filtering as instruments to prevent content aligned with their rival states from reaching a domestic audience. The Internet filtering practices reflect the inter-state political rivalries, the contours of the geopolitical violent and nonviolent conflicts, and the political alliances around the conflicts. State-to-state geopolitical Internet filtering is becoming the new norm in the region, which is a stage of multiple adversarial political fronts. The blocked content contains counter-framing from rival sources that could potentially inform internal dissent and debate.

Internet Parenting upon Indonesian Children

Children living in the digital age are inseparable from the internet. It can lead them to success, and can also damage them at the same time. The role of parents is very important in this case because the parenting style influences the future of the children. This research was conducted due to the concern for the future of the nation. It aimed to determine internet parenting applied in Indonesia. It conducted with mix methods Bay using interview, observation and PSDQ survey techniques of data collection. After the data display and description, it resulted that the majority of parents in Indonesia apply to neglect parenting style. There was a lack of parents-children communication regarding the internet. The parenting style will allow the child to be trapped into the negative side of the internet. To avoid the increasing of the magnitude of the negative impact on children, the government is recommended to tighten internet filters, while increasing education to parents regarding internet care parenting, as well as children’s ICT literacy.

Impact of Blockchain on China’s Cyber Statecraft: Opportunities and Risks

Since 2016, China has officially regarded blockchain technology as a subversive innovation that will fundamentally transform major industries. Current blockchain projects in China are dominated by private or consortium blockchains that have their accessibility firmly controlled; for public blockchains such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, access is free for all. Not surprisingly, by weakening state control of digital data, public blockchains may neutralise China’s decades of efforts in building internet filtering systems. The existing development trajectory of private and consortium blockchains is likely to advance steadfastly, and citizens and companies in China may be required to use state-controlled blockchains.

Delisting and ethics in the library

Traditional librarian ethics protect privacy and promote information access. The right to be forgotten and delisting have the potential to create a new online information ecosystem that disrupts ethical norms and redefines the role of librarians. Along with Internet filtering, the right to be forgotten and delisting are the harbingers of coming changes to content regulation and information access online. Librarians should engage with right to be forgotten F and delisting issues now to prepare for possible future disruptions of information flow in the library and shifts in information policies and laws around the world. This paper articulates the legal and ethical issues associated with delisting, lays the foundation for an international dialogue on delisting, and signals the need for future research. The international librarianship community needs a larger discussion about the issues related to the right to be forgotten and delisting, particularly on laws and policies on free speech and privacy.

Internet Filtering and Adolescent Exposure to Online Sexual Material.

Early adolescents are spending an increasing amount of time online, and a significant share of caregivers now use Internet filtering tools to shield this population from online sexual material. Despite wide use, the efficacy of filters is poorly understood. In this article, we present two studies: one exploratory analysis of secondary data collected in the European Union (n = 13,176), and one preregistered study focused on British adolescents and caregivers (n = 1,004) to rigorously evaluate their utility. In both studies, caregivers were asked about their use of Internet filtering, and adolescent participants were interviewed about their recent online experiences. Analyses focused on the absolute and relative risks of young people encountering online sexual material and the effectiveness of Internet filters. Results suggested that caregiver's use of Internet filtering had inconsistent and practically insignificant links with young people reports of encountering online sexual material. Our findings underscore the need for randomized controlled trials to determine the extent to which Internet filtering and related technologies support versus thwarts young people online, and if their perceived utility justifies their financial and informational costs.

Freedom of expression in the digital age: enhanced or undermined? The case of Egypt

ABSTRACTThis research is intended to assess the extent to which freedom of expression is enhanced or undermined in the digital age. The purpose of this investigation is to explore the case study of Egypt. By employing qualitative modes of enquiry, the research argues that the internet could buttress freedom of expression as a ubiquitous, open, global network. However, these potentials are hindered by the violations of the right to freedom of expression carried out by the Egyptian government. To this aim, the study is built on a conceptual framework that hinges on three modalities adopted from Lawrence Lessig's (2006) framework: 1) the law – the internet legislation that regulates online freedoms; 2) the architecture – the design of the internet which is founded on hardware and software, and 3) the social norms – the norms that are imposed by the community and influenced by the law. To investigate these three modalities, three pertinent indicators need to be incorporated: 1) the international human rights standards that enshrine freedom of expression, against which the local legal landscape is assessed; 2) the internet filtering, censorship and surveillance used to analyse the internet architecture, and 3) the encroachments on human rights which would be necessary in order to examine if the social norms were altered by such violations.

Internet Filtering Technology and Aversive Online Experiences in Adolescents

To evaluate the effectiveness of Internet filtering tools designed to shield adolescents from aversive experiences online. A total of 1030 in-home interviews were conducted with early adolescents aged from 12 to 15 years (M = 13.50, SD = 1.18) and their caregivers. Caregivers were asked about their use of Internet filtering and adolescent participants were interviewed about their recent online experiences. Contrary to our hypotheses, policy, and industry advice regarding the assumed benefits of filtering we found convincing evidence that Internet filters were not effective at shielding early adolescents from aversive online experiences. Preregistered prospective and randomised controlled trials are needed to determine the extent to which Internet filtering technology supports vs thwarts young people online and if their widespread use justifies their financial and informational costs.

Knowledge and use of Web 2.0 by librarians in university libraries of East Azerbaijan, Iran

Purpose The present study aims to investigate levels of awareness and use of Web 2.0 tools by librarians in the university libraries of East Azerbaijan (EA) in Iran and to determine how librarians use these tools in everyday life. Design/methodology/approach A Web-based questionnaire was used to collect data from 38 per cent librarians in the university libraries of EA. Findings The research findings indicate that the librarians were more familiar with Web 2.0 tools such as wikis and blogs. While librarians widely use blogs and wikis, tools such as social bookmarking, social networks, RSS feeds, instant messaging and digital maps were less frequently used. Results obtained from present study indicated that librarians use Web 2.0 tools mostly to communicate with friends and family, to keep up-to-date, to collaborate with colleagues and for curiosity and fun. Also, librarians believe that Web 2.0 tools can be used mostly for sharing information about library resources. Internet filtering, lack of access to high-speed internet and lack of training were the major obstacles for Web 2.0 adoption by librarians. Originality/value This study is a useful source for implementing Web 2.0-based technology in libraries. Also, this study will help managers understand the librarians’ needs about Web 2.0 to improve their library services.