Category Archives: Internet governance

More progress in the fight against online child sex abuse

Posted on March 13, 2020 by

Last week representatives from the Governments of the “Five Eyes” nations, (Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the UK and the USA) gathered in Washington DC. They endorsed a set of eleven voluntary principles to combat a range of online threats to … Continue reading →

Posted in Age verification, Child abuse images, Facebook, Google, Internet governance, Privacy, Regulation, Self-regulation

Companies behaving like states

Posted on March 10, 2020 by

Tech companies and Governments between them created the crisis of confidence that is said to be stimulating the demand for greater online privacy protection. Yet they are now lining up on opposite ends of the argument about how to address … Continue reading →

Posted in Consent, Internet governance, Regulation, Self-regulation

No room for complacency

Posted on February 20, 2020 by

My last blog was fairly upbeat about the UK Government’s interim response to the consultation on Online Harms. True the response was light on concrete proposals but much of the language was excellent. The overall tone was tough and purposeful. … Continue reading →

Posted in Age verification, Child abuse images, Default settings, E-commerce, Internet governance, Regulation, Self-regulation, Uncategorized

The long and winding road

Posted on February 13, 2020 by

It has been a busy week in the UK. Yesterday the Government finally published  its “initial response” to the Online Harms consultation. That’s the consultation which was concluded in July last year (admittedly a lot has happened since then e.g. … Continue reading →

Posted in Age verification, E-commerce, Internet governance, Regulation, Self-regulation

Facebook urged to rethink its plans for encryption

Posted on February 6, 2020 by

Today children’s organizations from over 100 hundred countries around the world publish a letter urging Facebook to rethink its plans on encryption. So far the story has been picked up and reported by the BBC, the Financial Times and the … Continue reading →

Posted in Child abuse images, Default settings, Internet governance, Privacy, Regulation, Self-regulation

Yesterday in Parliament – news and no news about porn

Posted on January 10, 2020 by

Yesterday was the final day of debate on the “Gracious Address” in the House of Lords. The Address had been delivered by Her Majesty on 19th December to mark the opening of a new Parliamentary year and a new Parliament … Continue reading →

Posted in Age verification, Child abuse images, Default settings, Internet governance, Pornography, Regulation, Self-regulation

Is the cure worse than the disease?

Posted on December 23, 2019 by

In a blog which focuses on the meaning of “privacy” in the modern world, Privacy International published an excellent summary of key international instruments which address the subject. At the end they announce their conclusion Privacy is a qualified, fundamental … Continue reading →

Posted in Apple, Child abuse images, Default settings, E-commerce, Internet governance, Privacy, Regulation, Self-regulation