Internet Freedom in Thailand threatened by new bill, warns NGO

[Jonathan Fairfield]

Internet Freedom in Thailand threatened by new bill, warns NGO

An Internet freedom group in Thailand has warned that the military junta’s Cyber Security bill will threaten Internet privacy for everyone in Thailand.

The Cyber Security Act (Thai) would mean that Thai authorities would be able to access any private computer systems without a warrant.

Here’s a link to download the draft Cyber Security Act in English.

“We are not saying that the state can’t have the power to deal with online crimes that have been increasing in the present time,” said Arthit Suriyawongkul, head of the Thai Netizen Network. “But too much power will lead to a violation of privacy”.

The Thai Prime Minister, Prayuth Chan-ocha, has already said he would push a draft of the bill, which giving authorities the authority to monitor the Internet in the interests of national cyber security.

Read more: http://tech.thaivisa.com/internet-freedom-in-thailand-threatened/3190/

[theslime]

Glad I never bagged the big G.

[trogers]

Go for ethernet.

[aaacorp]

VPN, proxies, plugin, TOR,...so many possibilities...

Seeing how they censor some websites here(based on the domain name, not even the IP)...i think people may have options to give the finger to the little spies

[Marv]

"Thai people are not like farangs. We eat rice. They eat bread. It’s totally different."

Indeed.

[MaxLee]

Best solution for our dear PM's to annihilate criticism: Shut down and BAN the damn internet in Thailand for eternity

[marinediscoking]

if this was proposed by the previous government the junta supporters would be calling this as bad as the amnesty bill. This topic would have be up to 10 pages by now with outrage by them. Since it is proposed by their demi-god Prayuth it must be for everyone's happiness and to ensure Mr. Thaksin cannot remote in and control peoples keyboards from Dubai.

Edit: Spelling

Edited January 23, 2015 by marinediscoking

[WhizBang]

Best solution for our dear PM's to annihilate criticism: Shut down and BAN the damn internet in Thailand for eternity

I am quite sure they have thought about shutting it down completely. But the loss of facebook would send most Thais into a frenzy much worse than the 2010 red uprising.

[konying]

May be the new PM has had enough of his staff playing Facebook while at work

[rubl]

David Cameron was talking about warrants issued by the Home Secretary. What's the Thai equivalent?

""He said: “In our country, do we want to allow a means of communication between people which […] we cannot read?” He made the connection between encrypted communications tools and letters and phone conversations, both of which can be read by security services in extreme situations and with a warrant from the home secretary.""

http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/whatsapp-and-snapchat-could-be-banned-under-new-surveillance-plans-9973035.html

[Tokay]

"Thai people are not like farangs. We eat rice. They eat bread. It’s totally different."

Unreal. This is the best Thailand can do, even for a general?

What about foreigners who eat rice? Are they now like Thais? Hey, I'm not paying double price, I eat rice. I'm just like you!

This man continues to raise (or lower) the bar. I guess it depends on how you look at it.

[rickirs]

Section 35- "gain access to information on communications, either by post, telegram, telephone, fax, computer, any tool or instrument for electronic media communication or telecommunications, for the benefit of the operation for the maintenance of Cybersecurity."

Essentially any and all forms of communication!

If you use VPN, the government would have the right to monitor that communication. This is something the Chinese are now attempting to gain control over, for national security purposes. If VPN providers do not provide unrestricted government access to customer accounts, I expect the Prayuth government will create its own VPN system for the public and mandate its use in lieu of any private VPN providers - similar to North Korea. To this end the government may require registration of IP Adresses for all computers operating in Thailand.

For the ASEAN Community this law means the digital isolation of Thailand from the ASEAN countries and patners. And that wouldn't be very helpful to the Thai economy.

[rubl]

Pure coincidence but today a preliminary report was made available describing possible human rights abuses in the E.C.

"Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights

Mass surveillance

Report∗

Rapporteur: Mr Pieter Omtzigt, Netherlands, Group of the European People's Party

“Our freedom is built on what others do not know of our existences”

Alexandr Solzhenitsyn

A. Draft resolution

1. The Parliamentary Assembly is deeply concerned about mass surveillance practices disclosed since June 2013 by journalists to whom a former US national security insider, Mr. Edward Snowden, had entrusted a large amount of top secret data establishing the existence of mass surveillance and large-scale intrusion practices hitherto unknown to the general public and even to most political decision-makers.

2. The information disclosed so far in the Snowden files has triggered a massive, world-wide debate about mass surveillance by the US and other countries’ intelligence services and the lack of adequate legal regulation and technical protection at the national and international level, and/or its effective enforcement.

3. The disclosures have provided compelling evidence of the existence of far-reaching, technologically advanced systems put in place by US intelligence services and their partners in certain Council of Europe member states to collect, store and analyse communication data, including content, location and other metadata, on a massive scale, as well as targeted surveillance measures encompassing numerous persons against whom there is no ground for suspicion of any wrongdoing.

4. The surveillance practices disclosed so far endanger fundamental human rights, including the rights to privacy (Article 8 European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR)), freedom of information and expression (Article 10, ECHR), and the rights to a fair trial (Article 6, ECHR) and freedom of religion (Article 9) - especially when privileged communications of lawyers and religious ministers are intercepted and when digital evidence is manipulated). These rights are cornerstones of democracy. Their infringement without adequate judicial control also jeopardizes the rule of law."

http://website-pace.net/documents/19838/1085720/20150126-MassSurveillance-EN.pdf/df5aae25-6cfe-450a-92a6-e903af10b7a2

Note the "Their infringement without adequate judicial control also jeopardizes the rule of law." which although asking for control implicitly seems to accept the need for infringement.

[Chris Lawrence]

The Thais have new computer surveillance technology they are using. This new technology was gifted by the US for tracking the dealing in drug trafficking. As they are not using it for the intended purpose the US are not impressed.

Be careful what you write.

[rubl]

Some ideas on Internet security and surveillance from Sir David Omand, former head of GCHQ.

https://www.techdirt.com/articles/20150123/07461729791/former-head-gchq-warns-ethically-worse-kinds-spying-if-unbreakable-encryption-is-allowed.shtml

[trogers]

Section 35- "gain access to information on communications, either by post, telegram, telephone, fax, computer, any tool or instrument for electronic media communication or telecommunications, for the benefit of the operation for the maintenance of Cybersecurity."

Essentially any and all forms of communication!

If you use VPN, the government would have the right to monitor that communication. This is something the Chinese are now attempting to gain control over, for national security purposes. If VPN providers do not provide unrestricted government access to customer accounts, I expect the Prayuth government will create its own VPN system for the public and mandate its use in lieu of any private VPN providers - similar to North Korea. To this end the government may require registration of IP Adresses for all computers operating in Thailand.

For the ASEAN Community this law means the digital isolation of Thailand from the ASEAN countries and patners. And that wouldn't be very helpful to the Thai economy.

Back to pigeon carriers for me