Fitwatch closure illustrates threat to free speech
The ease with which the police closed down the activist site is worrying, says Val Swain
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Spain sues Google over Street View
The Spanish Agency for Data Protection (AEPD) has filed a lawsuit against Google. Following an investigation launched in May, the Street View service has been charged with violating the country’s data protection laws. In August, a judge decided to investigate a similar complaint made by another association (APEDANICA). AEPD says that, if found guilty, Google could be hit with fines of between 84,000 and 840,000 dollars for each offence. Street View has proved controversial in a number of countries, including Germany, Switzerland and the UK.
Australia: PM backs new internet filter
Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard has renewed her support for a controversial new web filter, saying the measure was driven by a “moral question“. The proposed filter will block access to material such as rape, drug use, bestiality and child abuse. Internet giants Google, Yahoo and Microsoft have criticised the plans, saying they set a worrying precedent for further censorship. There are also fears that the restrictions could be applied to legitimate information on issues such as euthanasia, abortion and drug addiction, as well as media reporting on criminal activity.
Libya: threat to .ly domains
State-owned Libya Telecom and Technology has forced the shutdown of vb.ly, a “link shortening” website run from San Francisco. It claimed that the content of the site was“against Sharia law”. Domain names with the suffix “.ly”, which are owned by Libya, have become popular recently. Other moves by the ministry could threaten another web startup, bit.ly, in which millions of dollars has been invested. In June, Tripoli announced that domain registrations with fewer than four characters were restricted for use only by those based in Libya. Andrew Cohen, the general manager of bit.ly, said in February that he foresaw no issues with using a Libyan domain name. American politician Mitt Romney has exercised caution by changing his mitt.ly shortener to mi.tt.