[LINK] ACT's iiNet Wifi to Block Lots of Traffic?

[Roger Clarke]

[Can anyone work out what's actually being done here?]

[I've embedded a number of queries.]

[It's unclear who 'Mr Bader' is, so I can't ask him.]

[And Kathy Leigh's spokeswoman is unnamed.]

[Declaration:  I chaired the ACT Govt's Online Services Advisory Committee some years back, so I have more than a passing interest in the matter.]


Canberra's wi-fi network to block file sharing P2P traffic
Andrew Colley
itNews
Sep 22, 2014 3:05 PM (16 hours ago)
http://www.itnews.com.au/News/392353,canberras-wi-fi-network-to-block-file-sharing-p2p-traffic.aspx

At ISP's request.

ISP iiNet will block peer-to-peer file sharing on the free wi-fi network it has been contracted to build and operate for the ACT Government, in a bid to prevent users breaching its usage conditions.

The ACT Government has confirmed with iTnews that it has given Australia's third largest broadband provider permission to block peer-to-peer file sharing traffic.

A spokeswoman for the Chief Minister of the ACT's Treasury and Economic Development Directorate Kathy Leigh said that iiNet had sought to permission to block file sharing on CBRfree.

"During negotiation of the contract, iiNet requested blocking of certain types of traffic generally considered to be bandwidth intensive and not in the spirit of free public wi-fi," the spokeswoman said.

She added that other types of peer-to-peer applications focused on social networking, including Skype, Facebook, Whatsapp and Viber remained "types of activity that both iiNet and the Territory see as appropriate uses of CBRfree".

[Under what definition of 'peer-to-peer' do those applications qualify?
http://www.rogerclarke.com/EC/P2POview.html#Chars (2004)]

The ACT has also requested that the iiNet provide the means to filter "content considered inappropriate for publicly supported service". However, it said that aside from Interpol's child abuse material list "no request to actively filter content of any kind has been made".

The ISP aims to deploy over 700 wireless access points across 12 business districts in the territory by June next year.

The ACT Government revealed it would spend about $2.5 million on the final design of the network in a redacted version of its contract with iiNet published on its tender site.

The ACT Government's overall spend has been reported to be around $4 million over five years.

The ACT's contract with iiNet contained long list of activities considered to be "unlawful" uses of CBRfree including:
1.   gaining access to any material that is pornographic, offensive or objectionable;

[Only a small percentage of pornography is unlawful.
[In general, offensive material is not unlawful.  The word has been used in a misleading sense in some legislation - but only a very small percentage of offensive material is 'unlawfully offensive'.
[In general, objectionable material is not unlawful.  The word may have been used in a misleading sense in some legislation - but only a very small percentage of offensive material is 'unlawfully objectionable'.

2.   engaging in any conduct that offends Federal or Territory laws and regulations;

[What does the word 'offends' mean in this context.  Should it be 'breaches'?]

3.   bullying or harassment (sexually or otherwise) of another person;
4.   engaging in any defamatory message - including reading and then forwarding a message of which you are not the author;
5.   sending or forwarding any material that is abusive, sexist, racist, pornographic, offensive or otherwise illegal; and
6.   engaging in activities of an illegal or fraudulent nature.

It also prohibits using the service for "anonymous peer to peer file sharing, television restreaming, hosting of internet services or services, unauthenticated email".

[Apparently that applies even where the use is lawful, e.g. where a copyright licence is held that encompasses performance of that act with that material, or out-of-copyright material.]

[OTOH, it would appear to authorise P2P file-sharing where the user is identified, in which case the blocking of all P2P file-sharing is unjustified and inappropriate.]

Mr Bader said that there was scope to increase the level of filtering on CBRfree but warned that it was difficult to be 100 percent effective blocking pornography.

At this stage, he said, the ACT was content with a level equivalent to that applied to 4G mobile networks.

"With all our large customers that consume IP, we provide filtering capability - base line is the really bad stuff and it goes up from there. We have some customers that are very restrictive - think schools for example.

"The ACT government is no different. It's largely the customers call as to what we activate outside of base line - at this stage they will be adopting a 'lite' approach to filtering," Mr Bader said.

In May, Telstra announced it would spend $100 million rolling out 8000 hot spots to be part of a commercial wi-fi network.

Telstra declined to comment on its usage policy for its wi-fi network.

"We are not in a position to give an update about our wi-fi roll out at this stage. We will come back to you when we have more information to share," a Telstra spokesman said.


-- 
Roger Clarke                                 http://www.rogerclarke.com/
			            
Xamax Consultancy Pty Ltd      78 Sidaway St, Chapman ACT 2611 AUSTRALIA
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Visiting Professor in the Faculty of Law            University of N.S.W.
Visiting Professor in Computer Science    Australian National University