The Guardian: Internet to be partially restored in Kashmir but social media ban stays. “Internet is to be partially restored in Kashmir after an unprecedented five-month blackout, but only for institutions providing ‘essential services’, while social media sites will still be banned.”
human rights
Ars Technica: Indian Supreme Court finds 150-day Internet blackout in Kashmir illegal
Ars Technica: Indian Supreme Court finds 150-day Internet blackout in Kashmir illegal. “The Indian region of Kashmir has had most Internet service blacked out since August. The government of Narendra Modi says the online blackout is a necessary security measure in the face of growing unrest in the region triggered by a change in Kashmir’s status under the Indian constitution. (Kashmir’s status within India has been a topic of controversy for decades.)… But on Friday, India’s highest court rejected the government’s rationale, arguing that the blackout violated Indian telecommunications laws.”
Wired: Iran Tensions Increase Social Media Surveillance at the US Border
Wired: Iran Tensions Increase Social Media Surveillance at the US Border. “Just days after the United States assassinated Iranian general Qasem Soleimani, US Customs and Border Protection reportedly detained more than 60 Iranian Americans and Iranians, including children, at the US–Canada border. Multiple sources present claim that while some of those detained were held, in certain cases for up to 10 hours, CBP confiscated some of their phones, ordered them to hand over their social media passwords, and questioned them about their political views and social media activity.”
Bangladesh: Online Surveillance, Control (Human Rights Watch)
Human Rights Watch: Bangladesh: Online Surveillance, Control. “Bangladesh authorities are blocking access to online news sites in violation of the right to free speech and access to information, Human Rights Watch said today. The government has also adopted advanced methods to block or conduct surveillance on internet traffic and regulate online news sites without a sufficient legal framework to protect rights to privacy, expression, and access to information.”
South China Morning Post: Internet access, social media shutdowns cost world over US$8 billion in 2019
South China Morning Post: Internet access, social media shutdowns cost world over US$8 billion in 2019. “The total economic cost of major internet access and social media shutdowns around the world topped US$8 billion last year, according to a new report, which predicted that these disruptions would continue amid ongoing political turmoil.”
Washington Post: A top Google exec pushed the company to commit to human rights. Then Google pushed him out, he says.
Washington Post: A top Google exec pushed the company to commit to human rights. Then Google pushed him out, he says.. “For years, Google tasked Ross LaJeunesse with executing its plan to protect human rights in China, after Google announced a decade ago it would stop censoring search results there to safeguard security and free speech. LaJeunesse took the mission to heart: He later devised a human rights program to formalize Google’s principles supporting free expression and privacy. He began lobbying for it internally in 2017 — around the time when the tech giant was exploring a return to China, in a stark reversal of its 2010 move that made its search engine unavailable there. Now, the 50-year-old is alleging that Google pushed him out for it in April.”
New Atlas: Social media surveillance drives 2019 drop in global internet freedom
New Atlas: Social media surveillance drives 2019 drop in global internet freedom. “An annual report tracking internet freedom across the world has found global declines for the ninth consecutive year. Underpinned by domestic election interference and social media surveillance, the report identified internet freedom deterioration in more than half of the 65 countries assessed.”
