New Research On Computer Backdoors Reveals Disturbing Long Term Risks For All Netizens

Nov 052012
 

Research by the University of Toronto Citizen Lab shows that computer back doors are a permanent security risk to users through out the world.

Their research based on events in the middle east demonstrates readily available commercial software is being used by governments to infiltrate computers used by critics and dissidents.

Bloomberg news reported the case of Ahmed Mansoor who was sitting in “his study in Dubai and made the mistake of clicking on a Microsoft Word attachment that arrived in an e-mail, labeled “very important” in Arabic, from a sender he thought he recognized.

“With that click, the pro-democracy activist unwittingly downloaded spyware that seized on a flaw in the Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) program to take over his computer and record every keystroke. The hackers infiltrated his digital life so deeply they still accessed his personal e-mail even after he changed his password.

Since then, Mansoor, 42, an electrical engineer and father of four, says he has suffered two beatings by thugs in September during his campaign for citizens’ civil rights in the Persian Gulf federation of the United Arab Emirates. While those assailants remain unknown, researchers say they’ve figured out what was behind the virtual assault.

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Chinese Officials Take Control Of Two Beijing Newspapers Known For Independent Reporting

Sep 062011
 

There has been a further crackdown on press freedoms in China with the Beijing propaganda bureau taking control of two newspapers who have been developing a reputation for vigorous, independent reporting.

The move comes amidst tightening controls for online and socail media access in the wake of uprisings in the middle east which appears to have left Beijing jittery.

This latest move initially reported in UK’s Guardian newspaper and now confirmed by the Beijing propaganda bureau is leading to fears the two influential newspapers will now be more strictly censored.

Officials announced the move to reporters on the Beijing Times and the Beijing News – known for its bold reporting – at meetings on Friday afternoon.

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China Tops Tops List Of Countries Jailing Journalists – Burma Comes In Fourth

Jul 202011
 

A just released report on media and the law has found non democratic regimes are increasingly resorting to jailing journalists with China and Iran topping the list each having 34 members of the media behind bars.

 The report, Media And The Law, was published by the Center For International Media Assistance, its focus is on the use of legislation including libel, national security and licensing laws to put limits on a free press in the developing world.

Burma, also known as Myanmar makes a significant showing coming in at number four.

However it is worth noting that many of these laws were inherited from westen nations during colonial periods. A good example of this are some of Malaysia’s more repressive laws which have been defended by politicians there as a reflection of “Asian values”. In truth they were copies of the colonial British administration’s legal framework aimed at keeping the Malaysians subservient to their colonial masters.

This heritage and certain changes in western media laws broadens the reports interest and relevance and is recommended to anyone interested in the increasing use of legislative avenues to kill off dissent or criticism.

Chinese Censors Block Searches On Jiang Zemin Amidst Rumours He Has Died

Jul 062011
 

Rumors on the internet in China that former leader Jiang Zemin is dead has sparked a blanket suppression effort by the Chinese censors who have even blocked “Jiang” the word for river in an effort to contain the speculation.

While the veracity of the rumours are yet to be established it again hightlights the ludicrous nature of censorship in China – citizens cannot even know if a former leader is dead or what their current leader says in a CNN interview.

These sorts of restrictions on information only serve to fuel the more extreme claims annd conspiracies at the same time ensuring wide spread coverage and uninformed speculation. This is far more likely to be harmful than the not unexpected news that an ill, aging former leader is dying or dead.

Having power over information becomes so habitual for those who wield it and jealously hold on to it  that what little judgement and common sense the censors or those who direct them once had has gone out the window. This why closed regimes die from within – you can only keep the lid on for so long and in the days of the online world that lid has leaks.

Google news is carrying an AP report saying:  ”The Internet cat-and-mouse game over the possible death of a former leader underscores how secretive China’s Communist Party leadership remains — and the difficulties of maintaining that secrecy in a well-wired society.

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China Hacked Into Gmail System Claims Google

Mar 212011
 

Google says the Chinese government of hacked into its propriety email system, Gmail, in an effort to spy on political targets.

Google says it discovered the operation after complaints from a number of Gmail users that they were having problems with their accounts.

Googles claims come amid a period of unease among Chinese officials who are concerned uprisings in the middle east could spread to parts of the country.

The so called Jasmine or Jamine revolution has so far been a low key affair due, no doubt, to the swift and heavy handed response by the Chinese authorities to any sign of a street protest no matter how peaceful.

It now seems that they are looking to cut off the online conversations and organization that was key to Egypt’s popular revolt that brought down its long time president Hosni Mubarak.

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China Cracks Down On Foreign Journalists In The Wake Of Middle East Unrest

Mar 062011
 

China has begun tracking and detaining foreign journalists as Beijing becomes jittery with fears public unrest in the middle east may spread to Asia.

The Chinese authorities are also on edge as online calls for a Jasmine revolution, also being called the Jamine revolution online to avoid censorship,  circulate.

China tolerates foreign journalists operating in their country but in the past few days they have started to subject them to the restraints local journalists regularly deal with.

The New York Times reports a dozen journalists were detained on Sunday after they tried to monitor to a so-called walk by protest connected to the revolutionary calls.

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China Censors Name Of U.S. Ambassador To Beijing

Feb 272011
 

China’s paranoia about the wave of pro-democracy protests sweeping the middle east moving a bit more to the east and then south has been highlighted by some bizarre online censorship.

Reuters news agency reports  that Chinese authorities  blocked a microblog search of the Chinese name of the U.S. ambassador, Jon Huntsman, after he was seen near a pro-democracy gathering.

How Ambassador Huntsman came to be standing where he was is not clear but it is ludicrous to think that a diplomat with his experience to say nothing of his presidential ambitions would risk an international scandal by joining in or even showing support for such an event.

Given the United State’s problems in Pakistan, with its gun toting embassy official now behind bars, it is probably safe to assume the State Department has reminded all its staff in foreign postings that “we are not at home to Mr Cock-Up” and therefore doubly unlikely Mr Huntsman was looking for trouble. Instead it is a clear sign how jittery Beijing is to popular uprisings – which should hardly be surprising given how the current regime came to power in the first place.

Reuters says China has tightened control over the Internet in the wake of the unrest sweeping through the Middle East, underscoring the party’s anxiety over the easy spread of information that might challenge its one-party rule.

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Microbloggers Keeping Chinese Censors Busy

Nov 282010
 

China’s censors are being inundated with microblogs as local netizens latch on to the local “Twitter” like service for spreading information.

The South China Morning Post reports that microblogging has been a great tool for reporters but is giving the authorities a headache as they try and keep pace with a lightening fast form of communication.

The paper says: “China’s netizens may not be able to “tweet,” but they “knit a lot of scarves” – code for posting to a homegrown microblog.”

Chinese authorities blocked the popular global microblog Twitter, where users are limited to individual posts of 140 characters called tweets, in June 2009, as a precaution ahead of the 20th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square protests.

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Censorship In China And SEA: Share Your Experiences

Nov 192010
 

We would like to hear from anyone who has visited China or other countries in the region and used the internet.

Can you tell us of any problems you had accessing sites, email or ID theft. Please let us know if you managed to access websites you did not think you would be able to. And please let us know of any tips you have for other travelers to region about internet usage.

Staying Anonymous On The Internet – Tips For Avoiding Unwanted Attention

Nov 102010
 

It is almost impossible to use the internet without leaving a trail behind you. And for many netizens in Asia, particularly China and Vietnam, that can lead to trouble with the authorities.

Even in countries without formal restrictions to online sources there are other dangers associated with indiscriminate internet surfing – indentity theft, spam and invasion of privacy are just a few.

But there are some simple steps that can be taken to ensure that users remain, if not totally anonymous, at least harder to find.

The Link  newspaper provides a useful guide that even the least tech savy among us will find helpful. It is reproduced below.

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