Australia plans to introduce an Internet filtering system to block obscene and crime-linked Web sites despite concerns it will curtail freedoms and won’t completely work.
Adopting a mandatory screening system would make Australia one of the strictest Internet regulators among the world’s democracies. Authoritarian regimes commonly impose controls. China drew international criticism earlier this year with plans to install filtering software on all PCs sold in the country.
The government said Tuesday it will introduce legislation next year for the filter system to help protect Australians, especially children, from harmful material on the Internet. Critics say it will not prevent determined users from sharing such content, and could lead to unwarranted censorship by overzealous officials.
Communication Minister Stephen Conroy said the government would be transparent in compiling its blacklist of Web sites, but did not give details.
Conroy said the Australian filter was among a number of new measures aimed at strengthening online protection for families. It aims to block material such as child pornography, bestiality, rape and other sexual violence, along with detailed instructions about committing crimes or using illicit drugs.
Such material is already banned from publication on Australian sites, but the government currently has no control over it being accessed on servers overseas.
Conroy conceded it may not be completely successful.
“The government has always maintained there is no silver bullet solution to cyber-safety,” he said in a statement. But, “it is important that all Australians, particularly young children, are protected from this material.”
Critics say illegal material such as child pornography is often traded on peer-to-peer networks or chats, which would not be covered by the filter.
“The government knows this plan will not help Australian kids, nor will it aid in the policing of prohibited material,” said Colin Jacobs, vice chairman of Electronic Frontiers Australia, a nonprofit group that seeks to promote online freedoms.
“Given…