No anon pr0n for you: BT's network-level 'smut' filters will catch proxy servers too

Re: This is going to end badly

Some IP addresses will be blocked "where required", he added

I'm just waiting for more Radio Times/FA style cockups to happen...

Re: This is going to end badly

Twilight Zone was better IMHO

Re: Censorship is alive and well in Britian

How the hell can I watch The Daily Show now?

Re politics, this week's Have I Got News for You made a reference to Ed Balls throwing a hissy fit in the House of Commons, but they couldn't show it. British broadcasters are not allowed to show clips from the House of Commons for satire purposes... John Stewart on The Daily Show is.

If Channel 4 actually broadcast it, I could understand, but they don't and yet the UK residents can't watch it on-line without a proxy.

Re: Censorship is alive and well in Britian

Too right, the only discussion about these filters has been about porn, and "Do it yourself or we will legislate" from the government.

This gives us this situation, where BT has decided (almost certainly with assistance from the various moral crusaders) that these things are also verboten:

Discussion of illegal drugs

Discussion of suicide

Because, obviously, if little Johnny can google "heroin", how much longer before he is injecting it in his eyeballs.

Re: Censorship is alive and well in Britian

"What will be blocked next?"

Whatever you tell it to. It does have an on/off switch.

Re: Censorship is alive and well in Britian

Sites critical of Phorm, Deep packet Inspection and Behavioural Advertising, for starters.

Plus any site that lists BT's repeated disingenuous utterances, like:

* BT has "better performance" for up to 16Mb customers than Sky or TalkTalk

(from http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/12/04/asa_bt_bskyb/)

* fibre optic Infinity already available throughout Manchester

(from http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/11/13/bt_manchester_infinity_ad_slapped_by_asa/)

* Oh, no, fewer people are complaining than ever before

(From http://forums.theregister.co.uk/forum/1/2013/03/12/Kelly_Fiveash_BT_engineers_missed_appointments/)

* BT's "six-month free broadband"

(From http://forums.theregister.co.uk/forum/2/2013/01/16/bt_asa_ruling_line_rental/)

* No, we've never intercepted web traffic

(from http://forums.theregister.co.uk/forum/1/2013/01/16/bt_asa_ruling_line_rental/

* No, we've never had anything to do with DPI

(from http://forums.theregister.co.uk/forum/1/2013/01/16/bt_asa_ruling_line_rental/

* No, we'd never do something like impose behavioural advertising trial on our customers without asking them first.

(from http://forums.theregister.co.uk/forum/1/2013/01/16/bt_asa_ruling_line_rental/

* No, it MUST be your PC

(from http://forums.theregister.co.uk/forum/1/2013/01/16/bt_asa_ruling_line_rental/

* No, we're not scamming prices.

(from http://forums.theregister.co.uk/forum/1/2013/01/16/bt_asa_ruling_line_rental/

In fact, El Reg and BT's own forums will probably disappear from T'Internet

Re: Censorship is alive and well in Britian

"What will be blocked next?"

Anything that displeases our wonderful thought controlling overlords.

Re: Censorship is alive and well in Britian

My guess translation sites, as they can be used like a proxy.

Re: Seriously?

In a sane world, BT should be losing thousands of customers every day, because of this.

Indeed, although given most of the major ISPs are also towing the same line, it's almost as difficult to find a suitable ISP as finding a politcal party worth voting for. Maybe this could be a nice niche for an enterprising new provider to make an ISP that's specifically not controlled or meddled with (I know, it's even more of a pipe-dream than a party worth voting for).

Personally I just wonder how long the off switch will remain available, and whether it'll be spring-loaded to go into the "on" setting at the drop of a hat (in the same way that Talktalk's homesafe filter seems to be).

But of course also in the same sane world we'd have some suitable filter to protect us from Whitehall meddling too.

Re: Seriously?

"In a sane world, BT should be losing thousands of customers every day, because of this."

Trouble is, how many members of the public know/understand what is happening.

We are all technically minded, but the average Joe Public isn't. Most of them won't even know what a proxy server is, never mind how to use one.

And its all being sold as a way of protecting children. How is the average guy, opposed to the way censorship is heading, explain to their wife that they need to switch providers to complain about the porn filter without it sounding like he wants the filter turned off so he can see porn?

Re: Seriously?

It gets worse.

ISPs which are reselling BT or TT wholesale services are forced behind thiese filters too.

Re: To not be self-defeating

What makes you think it's not pointless anyway? If someone is actively trying to subvert the filter, it isn't going to pose much of a problem. Just ask anyone who actually maintains a filter professionally how often they need to revise rules because someone spent half an hour googling synonyms and found a site that slipped through.

Re: To not be self-defeating

Sorry Phil but had to downvote, as you appear to have fallen for Content Mafia and Big Brothers plausible deniability line.

Re: To not be self-defeating

So by one of us simply pointing out how to change your computer or router to use OpenDNS or Google's DNS servers here in a comment, the comments section of theregister, or possibly the whole site must by extension also be banned?

Pretty nifty way to take out any site that you fancy huh?