In June 2013, Jordan’s Press and Publications Department initiated a ban on all Jordanian news websites that have not registered and been licensed by the government agency. 7iber was among the more than 300 news websites blocked as a result of this initiative. Since its website was blocked, 7iber has been working with lawyers and other media groups to challenge the law and has used the opportunity to raise awareness about Internet filtering and freedom of expression.
The Citizen Lab has documented a pattern of Internet filtering in Pakistan that is inconsistent and intermittent with with filtering primarily targeted at content deemed to be a threat to national security and at religious content considered blasphemous. In recent years, Twitter, Facebook, and certain pages on Flickr and Wikipedia have been periodically blocked in the country due to what was considered blasphemous content circulating on those sites. Bytes for All (B4A), has been campaigning for the online rights of Pakistani citizens and an active participant in the debate on the use of information communications technologies for sustainable development and strengthening human rights movements in the country.
The Centre for Internet and Society (CIS), India has launched its CIS Cybersecurity video series, a video documentary project which features interviews conducted by Laird Brown with cybersecurity stakeholders from various sectors on hotly debated aspects of cybersecurity. The project aims to encourage wider public discussion around cybersecurity issues.
In 2013, the Paradigm Initiative Nigeria (PIN) published “The Economic Cost of Cybercrime in Nigeria,” a report written by ‘Gbenga Sesan, Babatope Soremi, and Bankole Oluwafemi. The authors provide quantitative data for measuring the extent of cybercrime in Nigeria and propose recommendations for combating its influence in the country. PIN’s report is the first major study dedicated entirely toward quantitatively measuring the costs of cybercrime in Nigeria.
In June 2013, Citizen Lab released O Pakistan We Stand on Guard for Thee, a research report that reveals evidence that Internet filtering software developed by Canada-based company Netsweeper is deployed on networks operated by the Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL). PTCL is a formerly government-owned enterprise that currently serves as Pakistan’s largest ISP and the manager of its Internet Exchange Point. Previous research by the OpenNet Initiative indicated that Netsweeper is being used for national-level filtering in India and across countries in the Middle East and Gulf including Qatar, UAE, Yemen, India.
On May 13, 2013, Bytes for All (B4A), a Pakistani civil society group and partner in the Cyber Stewards Network, filed a petition with the Lahore High Court on the possible use of the FinFisher product suite in Pakistan. B4A has advocated for the rights of Pakistani netizens to browse the Internet free of censorship and surveillance through numerous court and government actions, including a recent petition submitted in January 2013 in protest of the ongoing censorship of YouTube.
This edition of the Southeast Asia CyberWatch contains featured news update on the Malaysian election, as well as from Cambodia, Indonesia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
John Scott-Railton is conducting research in collaboration with the Citizen Lab on electronic attacks against opposition groups and the media in Libya and Syria.
This edition of the Southeast Asia CyberWatch covers Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand.
This edition of the Southeast Asia CyberWatch covers Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam.