"In the halcyon days of the Internet, a vision took hold that in a vast global network, no single point could control. Rather, the Internet would flow like water around obstacles. Tim Berners-Lee, a web pioneer, said it was originally intended to be a “universal space,” not controlled by a single government or company. President Bill Clinton declared in 2000 that China controlling the Internet in its country would be “like trying to nail Jell-O to the wall.”
"Today, it is clear that those views were naive — as the people of Sudan, Myanmar and Ethiopia recently discovered. The Internet in all three countries went dark after their governments decided to kill it when faced with internal crises. The disruptions showed that the Internet is not truly global; it can be switched off by national rulers. And maybe not just in relatively isolated corners of the world. Russia is also pondering whether it can build a kill switch, though the task would be more difficult in a large country with many connections to the world."
The entire article is short, and worth reading. It makes me think about Radio Free Europe, in the cold war days. I'm sure that tech wizards are already figuring out ways around control-freak governments, who are of course figuring out ways around tech wizards.
I'm definitely not a tech wizard, but I did a little research, and came up with some things, such as this article, Five Ways to Bypass Internet Censorship. It mentions things such as VNPs, or Virtual Private Networks. And Tor Browsers, which of course are associated with the so-called Dark Web.
Here is a brief Wikipedia article discussing Tor Browsers.
The thing about governments "nailing Jello to the wall" is that it tends not to stay nailed very long. But it's also like Whack a Mole. As soon as someone figures out a way around the wall, the governments in question are figuring out a way to block it.
One hope for the original hope of the internet would be meshnet. If phones could communicate directly with phones, and pass on information phone to phone, it would obviate central control. If your home wifi could pass info to your neighbors' wife's, same thing. Another possibility would be Musk's vision of thousands of low orbit satellites. That is scary for its space clutter but it might fix the problem. However, the totalitarian internet is another example of pollyanna technical optimism proven wrong. Our version of internet gone totalitarian is the death of net neutrality . There is no techno fix without people fix
ReplyDeleteNot wives. Wifi. Stupid autocorrect.
DeleteI hadn't heard of meshnet. That's an interesting concept.
DeleteIt would need a change in hardware. Maybe an add on to the phone or wifi attached by usb or bluetooth. In China, they'd execute someone who has it, I guess.
DeleteThe idea that the Internet would be so democratic, and we sophisticated,generous people would set utterly high standards for its use, entered the dust bin of history with the arrival of trolls and "sponsored content." It sort of reminds me of the promise that nuclear power would be "too cheap to meter," which left out the part about being too expensive to get rid of.
ReplyDeleteYes. Whack-a-Mole.
For purposes of this topic, there are two obvious weak links in the chain that connect us to the Internet: the power grid; and the carrier network. Both of those are susceptible to government control.
ReplyDeleteIn the cases of Myanmar and Sudan, the carrier networks in question were mobile telephone networks. In much of the developing world, and increasingly in the developed world, consumers rely on cell phones as their primary devices for Internet connectivity. Shutting down the mobile networks disconnects citizens from the Internet.
In the US, four mobile network providers (AT&T, Verizon, Sprint and T Mobile) provide nearly all the cellular bandwidth. So if a President For Life Trump was able to impose his will on those four carriers, he could disconnect virtually the entire country's cell phones. That wouldn't be fatal in the US, because my notebook computer could continue to connect to the Internet via other methods (in my case, I use my cable service for data connectivity). So notebook and desktop computer users aren't as vulnerable to mobile-network control by a hostile government - but they are more vulnerable than cell phones to a power grid disruption (in the sense that many cell phone users have spare batteries; over a long enough time horizon, which still would be pretty short, killing the power grid also would prevent people from recharging their cell phones). And for that matter, a government that can impose its will on mobile networks presumably can do the same to cable networks, circuit carriers and the rest of the infrastructure vendors that allow notebook computers to connect to the Internet.
Jim, you are right about the two weak links. I actually think the carrier network is the weakest. The rise in solar power possibly means there will be less reliance on an electrical grid.
DeleteI am remembering that in the days before the internet there were a lot of short wave radio hobbyists. There probably still are some, though cell phones and internet have to an extent superseded that medium. Maybe in some places people will be resorting to short wave again.
Jim, I just responded to your comment on Tom's post about Russian influence in the US and Rome.
ReplyDeleteMy ability to comment comes and goes on my computer. I am locked in a sign-in loop most of the time. I've given up trying to figure it out. However, today I could comment (if my ipad dies, that's it I think. I can still use it, but it's slow typing).
Anne, have you tried commenting on your phone?
DeleteIn related stories:
ReplyDeleteIn pursuing its obsession with illegal immigrants, Trump-ICE is trying to ferret out people to deport using drivers license photo data bases.
And the parents of Sandy Hook children are finally winning some lawsuits against those.accusing them of participating in a vast deep state hoax. The Internet has made harassing these parents far easier than it would have been decades earlier. This story is so FUBAR that reading about it gives me palpitations. Why is Alex Jones not locked in a dungeon?
Using driver's license photo data bases; what that will do is increase the number of people who drive without a license. Doesn't that make us feel so much safer?
DeleteI think Trump has bees in his bonnet about illegal immigrants, but I also think he is pandering to his base to keep them eating out of his hand.
Yeah, I know, I can't believe that Alex Jones was able to perpetrate that hoax. Or that he found anyone willing to believe it. They ought to lock him up and throw away the key.