The First Round-Up of 2012: Internet Rights and Restrictions
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After a break for the Holidays, the Monday Round-Up is back! In case you missed it, NDItech's first podcast looks at some of the work we've been doing in Nicaragua.
- Following the release of the details of more then 20,000 credit card users by hackers, Israel stated it will respond to cyber attacks with the same resolve as terrorist attacks.
- Vint Cerf's New York Times Op Ed struck off a debate about whether or not the Internet is a human right, including responses from GigaOm and Adam Thierer.
- Belarus' new Internet law came into effect on Friday, raising questions about what it means for Belarusians. Some think it will practically close down the Internet, while others are not so sure. Either way, it doesn't look good.
- New surveillance rules for Internet cafes move Iran one step closer to having a 'clean' national intranet.
- Access provided a great preview of the major cyber threats facing civil society in 2012.
- Weibo, China's major microblogging site, could provide a great lens for understanding Chinese Internet culture, but the effect of new real-name requirements remains to be seen.
- Cory Doctorow gave a great talk on general computation and governing technology at the Chaos Communications Conference.
- MobileActive produced a new case study on Somalia Speaks, showing how mobile phones can give Somali citizens a voice. A study in a recent edition of Forced Migration Review also shows how mobile phones are connecting displaced Kenyans back to their families.
- Code Year encourages people to make their 2012 New Years Resolution to learn how to code. Almost 300,000 people have signed up already, including New York's Mayor Bloomberg (and at least one NDItechie).
- The picture above (also here), maps underseas cables connecting Africa to the Internet.
- NDI's Egypt office, along with the offices of several other NGOs, was raided by Egyptian security forces just after Christmas, although the third round of Parliamentary elections continued to draw crowds on Tuesday.
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