Thailand isn't a victim of cyber theft, no foreign country targets them, why else besides spying on your own citizens to retain power would they need this...

Venturebeat Asia did a report on this as well. Thailand can expect significantly lower data speeds similar to what transpired in China after there firewall was implemented.

Next VPN will be illegal. VPN is problematic in China as well. Simply see what occurred in China to see what will happen here.

Edited September 26, 201510 yr by Praematura

IN other words worst than dial up age coming soon..

The country quickly going from everyday stupidity to a state of absolute lunacy.

"Statement of the day" .... This is indeed The Golden Age of Idiocy

This will just hamper economic growth further. M y company has a sizeable office in Thailand. If they lock down the internet it will impact my companies ability to operate in Thailand.

can you imagine the day a single gateway system fails?

no banks, ATMs, hotels, flights, communications, stock market, currency markets, social media.

the huge economic lost to Thailand if only for one day?

50 baht to a US dollar here we come.

If the internet goes down why would there no banks, hotels, flights, communications, stock or currency markets? All those can operate without the internet in the main. I don't agree with the proposal but you're over-dramatising it.

He asked the public not to worry much as the project is just being studied.

And yesterday they said they ordered the gateway allready few months ago in secret.

So you first order a very big piece of expensive hardware and then start studying? Sounds typical Thai

I don't believe any word of this minister. The thing will be used to spy on certain people.

Edited September 26, 201510 yr by Thian

" He asked the public not to worry much as the project is just being studied."

Oh yeah, we have full confidence that the government will screw this up ....

God forbid that a Thai citizen would want to express an alternative opinion which was contrary to government mind control policy. North Korea here we come.

Thailand isn't a victim of cyber theft, no foreign country targets them, why else besides spying on your own citizens to retain power would they need this...

Venturebeat Asia did a report on this as well. Thailand can expect significantly lower data speeds similar to what transpired in China after there firewall was implemented.

Next VPN will be illegal. VPN is problematic in China as well. Simply see what occurred in China to see what will happen here.

I could be wrong but I think VPNs are illegal already. It's something to do with using it to avoid Thailand's computer laws. I use one to enable me to watch BBC programmes so unless there's something on the BBC they don't like it shouldn't apply. Of course they don't know if I'm using it to view porn which isn't OK.

Great article here.

Quote from it:

One world stands for free information and the exchange of ideas, the other for censoring and monitoring. The wall fences in a Chinese information prison where ignorance fosters ideologies of hatred and aggression. If the firewall exists indefinitely, China will eventually revert to what it once was: a sealed off, narrow-minded, belligerent, rogue state.

Single Internet Gateway?....The OP is missing something. The Word FIREWALL.

The whole story does not make sense. From the Chinese experience, the firewall had increased demand for pirated material. e.g. pirated movies and TV shows.

In Thailand, did the Police not seize over 10,000 items of pirated goods only yesterday (okay they were electronic gadgets, but....piracy is piracy)

in a bid to

step up its crackdown on piracy to improve the country’s image in the global arena.

Edited September 26, 201510 yr by meltingpot2015

He assured that the project will not violate any privacy or rights of individuals, claiming that this arrangement will further enhance data security as the authorities will have better access to information regarding online offences.

He stressed that the government does not intend to utilize the new gateway arrangement for the political stability reasons.

He assured that the project will not violate any privacy or rights of individuals,

claiming that this arrangement will further enhance data security as the authorities will have better access to information regarding online offences.

That`s one hell of a contradiction. It won`t violate our online privacy, but the government snoops will be looking in.

Clarify whatever you want Thailand.... it is what it is...... China ,N Korea and soon to be Thailand.

There wont be many fans of this anywhere, shame the Thai people havnt a clue whats coming down the road.

Doesnt matter what they do we all know it will either be broken within a month and never fixed, never worked in the first place, be the incorrect selection of equipment with the purchase based solely on commission, stolen and hocked, bypassed or converted for use in video games by the operators.

can you imagine the day a single gateway system fails?

no banks, ATMs, hotels, flights, communications, stock market, currency markets, social media.

the huge economic lost to Thailand if only for one day?

50 baht to a US dollar here we come.

They're clearly intent on going ahead with this thing.

If they do go ahead, and as "Reigntax" points out it fails they will have to go back very quickly.

Otherwise as "NCC1701A" points out Thailand will be teetering on an economic abyss.

A lot of damage will be done. It will take years, if ever for Thailand to recover. I should imagine that International business is very much aware of this, and even now a large number of investment decisions are being frozen or possibly even reversed. When (if) that becomes understood, and the"born to rule" wake up to the implications to them, loss of money and face; then stand by for some more "clarification".

Yep, the psychological brain damage will be UN-bearable, UN-possible to ever recover from again, for our social media savvy generation Y-kids, every parent should be aware of that, but it will be to late to save them and get their kids back to reality and torture brainwash them with boring 12 principles

What is this minister talking about ? Another step backwards on the road to a modern and democratic country.

Who wants to invest in such an environment ? Switch on your brain before starting to talk.

Edited September 27, 201510 yr by Beng

"He assured that the project will not violate any privacy or rights of individuals, claiming that this arrangement will further enhance data security as the authorities will have better access to information regarding online offences"

Is it just me or does anyone else see the contradiction there?

There is no contradiction if we remember that " individuals " don't have any rights or privacy to violate in the first place.

There's no contradiction when we realize what it might take some a long time to. It's not that the average Thai thinks the farang has a disability because they don't know the language, as much as they seem to generally think that the average farang is stupid.

As shown over matters that most of us have been familiar with for years, and when the technology arrives here you're supposed to be as stunned about it as they are.

Don't worry MUCH, pardon ? The essence of Thainess.

Why is it that this sounds worse than the usual lie, sorry response, of " there's nothing to worry about ' ?

Edited September 27, 201510 yr by NongKhaiKid

How would a single gateway effect the financial markets? I can just imagine what might happen given a market meltdown. If gold took a dive to say $800 USD per ounce or the other asian stock markets took a dive the gateway would trap everyone trying to exit or cover there exposure. The Ministry will face the firing squad no doubt.

don't believe a word they say

Junta is as Junta does

He told BBC Thai that instead of calling the system ‘single gateway’, it should be called as the ‘digital hub’. CAT would facilitate the hub and invite the internet gateway providers in Thailand, which are about nine in total, to join the hub.

See nothing to worry about... We love hubs

Gateway bad - hub good

If ISPs thought a single gateway would save them money, they would have done so already, there's no need to have the govt force them to do it.

Doesnt matter what they do we all know it will either be broken within a month and never fixed, never worked in the first place, be the incorrect selection of equipment with the purchase based solely on commission, stolen and hocked, bypassed or converted for use in video games by the operators.

You forgot fast tracked

They can't walk this back fast enough.

can you imagine the day a single gateway system fails?

no banks, ATMs, hotels, flights, communications, stock market, currency markets, social media.

the huge economic lost to Thailand if only for one day?

50 baht to a US dollar here we come.

If the internet goes down why would there no banks, hotels, flights, communications, stock or currency markets? All those can operate without the internet in the main. I don't agree with the proposal but you're over-dramatising it.

really? the list is so endless i could never list it all.

even for a day? no email? you know how many business in Thailand use facebook to promote their business? no online shopping? No internet bank transfers? access to account information? credit card processing? no debt cards? hotel bookings? shipping? flight booking? communications? No Skype. VOIP? LINE? no internet based phone systems? No access to your stocks in the USA? EU? UK? Forex? how do you trade stocks if all you have is a online account? how do you see market data?

a failure of a single gateway could "flash crash" the Thai stock market.

Quick, right now, what is your banks phone number? don't know? and who is going to answer the phone when suddenly there are millions of phone calls instead of internet access? and what are the people who answer the phone going to do? look at a computer which is hooked up to the internet.

"Bloomberg Breaking News. As of 10:30 hours Bangkok time internet access into Thailand has failed. The market quotes you see on the screen are not updating. We are trying to place a phone call to our Bangkok office by satellite cellphone. The Baht slipped against other currencies in the first hour of the failure."

anyway, don't worry because none of this is going to happen...

i would say the highways will be safer as there will be no more texting while driving in Thailand.

We already have a single gateway for all broadcast/cable/satellite TV in Thailand. The current regime uses it frequently to interrupt all broadcasts and play propaganda videos, sometimes on schedule, but often, it seems, whenever they feel like it. One could speculate what ELSE they could do with that gateway, and likewise, a similar Internet gateway...

Another step towards the Ministry of Truth.

The Chinese model of internet suppression and restriction of native-language news flow will appear attractive as long as economic progress is seen to be made and felt.

However, as the wheels have begun to fall off the economy, the popularity of certain self-appointed leaders is uncertain and social cohesion is affected, such a model may shortly appear for what it is, delusional, oppressive and ultimately self-defeating.

Edited September 27, 201510 yr by asdecas

Here's coconuts take on it:

http://bangkok.coconuts.co/2015/09/25/junta-implementing-great-firewall-thailand

NBTC Deputy Chairman Setthapong said CAT, the state-owned and largest telecom in Thailand, will act as the single door to all internet gateways in Thailand when it’s ready.

"...There is a chance that we will be able to get service at a lower price because each telecom is renting their own gateways, but together they might get a lower price,” Kitt said.

Assuming that the telcos will pass on the savings to the consumer.

I would say the cost saving element is a presumptuous attempt to stimulate public support.

Edited September 27, 201510 yr by meltingpot2015

A hub........with one route in......and the same route out. Sounds more like a cul de sac to me.