Source:
http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/stor ... 02,00.html

READERS of The Courier-Mail online have blasted plans for Australia's mandatory internet filter to block as many as 10,000 websites.

The websites form a blacklist of unspecified "unwanted content", Broadband Minister Stephen Conroy revealed in Federal Parliament.

"Why is some faceless bureaucrat to be given the same powers to censor our internet access as a prison screw has over the perversions of an uncontrollable pedophile? The mechanics are different but that is the ultimate result of the Federal Government's ill-considered and ill-liberal plan to filter the internet." Terry Sweetman in Friday's Courier-Mail.

The 10,000 blacklisted websites would be blocked in addition to 1300 websites identified by the Australian Communications and Media Authority.

The majority of 271 comments posted to 14.12pm yesterday revealing fears of interference from "Big Brother".

Britomartis of Camp Hill thundered: ''How can the government be allowed to do this?

''Block content and not tell us what it is!

''The list should be public or they should listen to the people and not go ahead with this at all!''

Johan Zetterlund of Annerley and Jason Davies of Greenslopes said the move seemed more in line with certain authoritarian, communist regimes rather than the ideals of a free nation.

Paul of Carina raged: ''This is typical of a government that thinks it knows better than the people that voted them in and the arrogance of (Prime Minister Kevin) Rudd to think he should impose his morals and ideals on the population!

''This is a communist style of imposition and the dopes that voted Labor into power should wake up to themselves!''

Derek Squire of Redcliffe and Dan of Brisbane said that implementation of the policy would ensure electoral defeat for the Labor government.

Senator Conroy revealed details of the Rudd Government's proposed web filter as he called for expressions of interest from internet service providers for a live trial of the technology.

As part of the trial, ISPs will test different methods of filtering the web with subscribers who volunteer. The trial is expected to last six weeks and will start before Christmas.

* Blog: How can this be stopped?

"The pilot will specifically test filtering against the ACMA blacklist of prohibited content, which is mostly child pornography, as well as filtering of other unwanted content," Senator Conroy told Parliament.

"While the ACMA blacklist is currently around 1300 URLs, the pilot will test against this list as well as filtering for a range of URLs to around 10,000 so that the impacts on network performance of a larger blacklist can be examined."

ACMA's laboratory trial of web-filtering technology this year found filtering technology could slow internet access by as much as 87 per cent and by at least 2 per cent.

Electronic Frontiers Australia board member Colin Jacobs says live trials of ISP-based web filters would be rushed, as they were scheduled to occur as internet companies geared down for Christmas.

He said large internet providers such as Telstra and Optus would find it hard to participate, while mid-sized providers might take part in the trial simply to prove the technology "unfeasible".

Mr Jacobs said the civil liberties group was also concerned at what would be deemed "unwanted content".

"It is unclear how ACMA will scale up their blacklist to 10,000 websites and what will go on the list," he said.

"Conroy said the list would contain illegal and unwanted content but we still have to see what would end up on that list.

"Under the current mandate that includes adult material, which would mean most material that could be rated R and, in some circumstances, material rated MA15+."

Some online readers suggested using the technology to remove political grandstanding from their lives.

''As long as the 10,000 sites include all political party websites and all sites ending in gov.au I'll agree to the filtering,'' Any of southeast Queensland wrote.

''Heather of Sunnycoast'' asked: ''Can I elect to filter all political advertising from my television, newspapers, mailbox etc?

''if I never have to see any of that crap again, I will be in heaven.''