Govt orders great firewall of Thailand

[Colabamumbai]

Soon they will build the great wall separating Laos, Cambodia and Malaysia and Myanmar from Thailand.

[thaimat]

I'll add that the social and economic costs of a single-point internet are very high. A free flow of information facilitates a free flow of money, and obviously academics, educators, and researchers suffer from internet censorship.

They just don't understand here how the Internet is good for business, and free flowing, fast internet makes everyone money. They also don't seem to see that fast, accessible Internet is crucial to increasing tourism. Old guys stuck in the 60's, business-wise. Either that, or they don't want upscale tourists, prefer busloads of Uzbeks and other low-tech extremely low budget tourists.

[KamalaRider]

Not a computer nurd so what is a VPN. When I was there last in March I had trouble getting on to AFF, is that still possible or is it totally blocked

Google VPN, virtual private network.

It's client software/connection type, with encryption between you and the supplier of the end point, if you have a choice of connecting to the UK, or your supplier is an UK based company, your IP number appears to be inside UK and not Thailand.

You have a plethora of choices to choose supplier with choices to connect to many countries, not just one, that means if you want to get US internet TV, you just chose US as end point to connect VPN to.

Edited September 24, 2015 by KamalaRider

[b4n9]

old fart putrescent commmmmunists, thinking mid 60. nothing to do with them, hopefully they all die one day.

interesting -> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IjMBOOfzPEU

[daveAustin]

Oh dear, been going in the wrong direction for a number of years now. For those that don't know, Thailand prior to the noughties was great.

Aside, looks like George sold TV at the right time.

[tukkytuktuk]

Only a country who have so much to hide would think of doing this. Example China, Iran, North Korean and Thailand.

Top ten of most censored internet countries on the planet, I see Myanmar and Vietnam are on the list so can Thailand get away with it, sure they can.

10. Cuba

9. Myanmar

8. China

7. Iran

6. Vietnam

5. Azerbaijan

4. Ethiopia

3. Saudi Arabia

2. North Korea

1. Eritrea

Read more: http://www.cheatsheet.com/business/the-10-most-censored-countries-in-the-world.html/?a=viewall#ixzz3mdMEaSFF

[Frank James]

I found an article on Google from 2008, in which the government at that time was proposing this very thing. I rely on international condemnation, but moreso on the rank incompetence of those who would attempt to set this up. Such an operation would be VERY costly, and require lots of monitoring. I don't think there is enough brain power here to pull this off.

Sic semper tyrranus.

[Caspersfriend]

Good to know that whoever 'masterminded' the online reporting and appointment booking system has a new job.

[Wilsonandson]

One other thought....you reach a banned website...it is stored in a "cache" on your computer. You forget to clear the cache...

I can see where a political suspect could have his laptop/phone confiscated, and then the cache for your browser (and prefetch) would still hold information from a banned website (that you viewed and did not clear). So I suppose...that would imply illegal use of circumvention methods..mentioned in the rules here on thaivisa. Forbidden to discuss illegal use of circumvention. VPN'S are legal..but could be used for illegal activity (no brainer)

Even more interesting...some folks may unwarily click on a link in their email/chat box...which executes a java script...which in turns adds a banned link to your browser cache...without you doing a thing.

clean your browsing history and cache..and cookies. . I would clear out the prefetch every so often as well...(but not turn it off). This is not circumvention...this is regular maintenance....but helps prevents accidental pages popping up...when on vpn. I don't need to do this too often...as I use a linux that runs in ram..... If my flash drive is not plugged in...all traces disappear when I turn off the power. Now that is good for banking.

You can also use a tunneling protocol to bypass the great firewall of Thailand. Users can also use tunneling to "sneak through" a firewall, using a protocol that the firewall would normally block, but "wrapped" inside a protocol that the firewall does not block, such as HTTP.

Sounded pretty tech savi then but I got most of the info from wikipedia. I could after a day or two maybe set this up but it looks like only a way a computer geek could figure out. I too prefer the VPN method.

[MiKT]

Then our company can't function here anymore, so we 'll have to move to Singapore.

What's next? Thai government telling us where we can fly to and where not?

Thai even can't read english so why do they have to ban them? This will set back Thailand into the stone-age and they will loose competition with Malaysia, Indonesia, Myanmar and all other Asian country's.

Up to you Thailand.

Also the USA won't be happy with it.......

Singapore have been monotoring and blocking their internet portals almost since they were invented. BB is so alive and watching it makes Thailand look totally stone age.

[2fishin2]

banks and financial institution encrypt their pages...so no vpn is necessary..or required.

very impervious to the "man in the middle" attack. The biggest risk involving your online banking is password and private questions.....and sometimes people download risky software that include "keyloggers" that can record and transmit home your typed entries. Onscreen keyboard provided by the bank website are the best way to enter passwords.

Its the "connection" that is risky. You can have a secure financial institution all day but, if your connection to the internet is "bad" then its all for not. That's where the scammers make their money.

[PaPiPuPePo]

I'll add that the social and economic costs of a single-point internet are very high. A free flow of information facilitates a free flow of money, and obviously academics, educators, and researchers suffer from internet censorship.

They just don't understand here how the Internet is good for business, and free flowing, fast internet makes everyone money. They also don't seem to see that fast, accessible Internet is crucial to increasing tourism. Old guys stuck in the 60's, business-wise. Either that, or they don't want upscale tourists, prefer busloads of Uzbeks and other low-tech extremely low budget tourists.

It's true that free wi-fi access is much harder to come by in Thailand than, for ex., Cambodia, which is as we all know much poorer than Thailand. 99% of "free wi-fi" in Thailand requires registering and/or paying for that service. This is one of the reasons I find Thais to be unusually stingy.

Two other places without good free wi-fi: Hong Kong and Japan; needless to say it's not about a country/place being able to afford giving away wi-fi, but whether TPTB in that place know that it takes money (investment) to make money, or would rather make pennies now and lose dollars later.

[dageurreotype]

Interesting piece on the junta's current plan to build a firewall here and the absurdity of announcing a 'Digital Hub'. Any implementation of which being hugely detrimental to doing business here. Also mentions VPNs, which would become illegal. Oh, and how neighbouring countries bypassed Thailand owing to CAT's astronomical fees. http://www.telecomasia.net/blog/content/general-happiness-orders-great-firewall-thailand#.VgIQnIbjvOU.twitter

More where that came from, just google or bing 'Thailand Firewall'.

You frogs beginning to feel the heat of the boiling water yet?

[seajae]

this is a very big mistake, its one thing to want to end the political sh*t fights but quite another to actually control what people can see and read. This will cause more trouble than he can possibly imagine and lose a lot of support for him.

[KamalaRider]

And wasn't it just earlier this year they proudly proclaimed they were going to be the IT "hub" of SE Asia? Can't see that coming to fruition.

They started to tell themselves, Phuket was going to be the IT hub of Asia 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2010 and this year again?

I'm tired of waiting now, they still sell computer without an OS (sometimes DOS installed) or with Windows XP.

It's one of the easiest lies whishes to disclose.

[baboon]

this is a very big mistake, its one thing to want to end the political sh*t fights but quite another to actually control what people can see and read. This will cause more trouble than he can possibly imagine and lose a lot of support for him.

Again: Did you not envisage such measures being taken as a logical progression of military rule?

[FBlue72]

Don't worry, the public backlash will be overwhelming.

Even if they push ahead with the laws, the next civilian government can always repeal the laws.

The previous government already put a firewall there some sites are already blocked, so don't be too sure of that. For the record i am against this kind of thing but just try opening the dailymail and you will see its blocked. So its not a new thing..

It is not the same as blocking sites here and there. They mean to control all content, which means likely it will need to be approved and one gateway means speeds reduced significantly.

It's the absolute end of any pretense to democracy here.

http://prachatai.com/english/node/5485

Arthit Suriyawongkul, coordinator of the Thai Netizen Network (TNN), an Internet freedom advocacy group, told Prachatai that the idea to reduce the internet gateways to a single one was proposed only a few days after the 2014 coup d’état by the ex-MICT permanent secretary.

He mentioned that the idea was formulated under the logic that Thai people in present use social media inappropriately without control.

The TNN coordinator added that the MICT then even proposed the idea of creating a special version of Facebook for Thailand and to require people to fill in their ID numbers before using the internet.

“We can see that this sort of idea came together with the coup d’état,” said Arthit.

[balo]

Again , it's just a proposal, I can't see it going through , ordinary Thais will protest to this from day 1.

[greenchair]

[webfact]

Junta Readies ‘Great Firewall of Thailand’
By Khaosod English


Map of malicious internet traffic. Image: NorseCorp.com

By Teeranai Charuvastra

BANGKOK — Thai authorities have taken steps toward achieving their stated desire of gaining greater control of internet use by creating a single gateway for all internet traffic in and out of the kingdom.

The military government’s intention to police internet content by channeling it all through a single point of control has taken practical steps toward becoming a reality in recent weeks, with officials being instructed to “speed up” the process of implementation of a system which alarm advocates of a free and competitive internet.

Although the idea was first floated almost immediately after the ruling junta came into power, it only went into writing last month. On 4 Aug. the military government approved the plan, and on 27 Aug. issued an order to the ministry tasked with regulating the internet to make it happen, according to cabinet meeting records.

“The Ministry of Information Communication Technology is hereby instructed to speed up the aforementioned issue and report any progress to the prime minister by September 2015,” read the 27 Aug. cabinet minutes of the gateway project.

Col. Setthapong Malisuwan, deputy chairman of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunication Commission, told BBC Thai that he prefers to call “single gateway” a “hub” to avoid any negative connotation.

He defended the plan, saying the “single hub” would allow Thai security forces to monitor internet traffic more easily. Col. Setthapong also insisted that the idea would promote, not hamper, Thailand’s digital economy,and claimed that other modern countries have similar surveillance measures.

"Singapore, United Kingdom and United States, many countries already have this kind of law. Cybersecurity laws,” the colonel said in an interview with BBC Thai. “We are very late comers."

Arthit Suriyawongkul, coordinator of internet freedom advocacy group Thai Netizen Network, told Khaosod English that the Ministry of Information, Communication and Technology recently gave two options to ISP representatives in the meeting: Either direct all signals through a central gateway operated by the ministry or consent to having tracking devices installed in their ISPs.

Full story: http://www.khaosodenglish.com/detail.php?newsid=1443090849&typecate=06&section=


-- Khaosod English 2015-09-24

[Just1Voice]

Ohhhh, this could get ugly - Real Fast!

[ChrisY1]

If they manage to get it working.....there's every chance it'll be a dogs breakfast and unstable for some time.............

[Bench499d]

The fanbois are going to have a tough time selling this turd. When will they have an inkling that they have backed the wrong horse?

Still, this will be good....

Why would someone in favor of the junta agree with everything they do. Did you agree with Thaksin letting his guys bomb and kill people ?

This is just crazy and should not be done. However a simple VPN and you can access all the sites you want, or you just use the tor network.

Not actually Sparky. They can block VPNs very easily if they are really serious. Contrary to popular belief, VPNs can be blocked.

If they started blocking VPNs then any international business would be forced for privacy reasons to leave...the only practical way to connect their offices internationally is by site to site VPN over the internet. For this reason don't think they'll block them.

[petedk]

Don't worry, the public backlash will be overwhelming.

Even if they push ahead with the laws, the next civilian government can always repeal the laws.

I doubt it.

Most Thais only use Internet for Line, Facebook and plagerism.

Most are only interested in what goes on in Thailand and couldn't care less about ISIS or migrants in Europe.

So, if the Thai government only allows their own "happy news" through, then Thailand will be full of "happy people".

[petedk]

Visa reporting, registering of mobile phones and now monitoring on internet traffic.

Talk about xenophobia gone mad. Thai people will wise up sooner or later for sure and no amount of government imposed restrictions can stop that,,, unless of course you abandon democracy all together (yikes).

Thailand want all the benefits of International trade and cross boarder relationships but also want to keep their boarders as closed as they dare and now restrict what you can realistically do online here.

A recent post said what company is going to be comfortable knowing that the Government has installed a single gateway,, well none of course.

Vietnam looks more and more to be the country to watch out for in the Asean, if not then perhaps indonesia,, Thailand is going to fall behind for sure.

Very sad, I have grown to like it here but there's only so much dictatorship I will stomach.

You forgot to mention that if you have overseas guests stay with you for a couple of days, you have to report that to immigration.

Likewise, if you fancy a few days off and go to visit and stay with a friend somewhere in Thailand, he/she is supposed to report that to immigration.

Give us the bloody wristbands with GPS chips. At least we will be free of all the paperwork.

[Praematura]

My wife and I have return tickets for November as we are back in the USA for a short visit. Thailand was great because of the freedom you felt getting away from home. That freedom is gone and like I have maintained all along Thailand is putting in place a carbon copy of the Chinese system. I didn't like living in China and now Thailand is doing the same. I have no doubt that this is the first step of many to come forming a way more authoritarian government. Thailands economy will continue its downward spiral, discontent will rise and like China, the government will retain power by using certain laws and restrictions on information.

So sad as I liked Thailand but it's time to move on.

[petedk]

I wonder if we'll know when the Great Firewall is... err... fired up. Will we start seeing more green screens of "No!" or will the entire network just grind to a halt? Maybe a nice, custom 404 Not Found error message?

Been getting that on Thai Immigration 90 day report page recently.

Edited September 24, 2015 by petedk

[Just1Voice]

I just told my wife that if it wasn't for her and my adopted son, my ass would be on the way to Vietnam. She just smiled and said "Thank you."

[petedk]

would anyone have a link to the story but in the Thai Language?

thanks

Just spoke to a group of Thais. They know nothing of this, ....... but then, isn't the whole idea? Only being informed of what the government want them to know.

[petedk]

Italian Hacking team was leaked, so many conversation between the team and thai officers.. just check wikileaks and you will se by yourself. bytheway wikileaks is blocked by the great firewall of thailand , but if you use a vpn then you good to go. Do not ever think to connect your emails, banks accounts, etc etc etc without using a vpn, specially in thailand.

Wikileaks isn't blocked