Thai govt backs off for now from single Internet gateway idea

[webfact]

INTERNET
Govt backs off for now from single Internet gateway idea
ASINA PORNWASIN
THE NATION



ICT minister rules out infringement on the right to privacy after online attack on state website

BANGKOK: -- THE GOVERNMENT has partly retreated from its controversial plan to merge the country's Internet connections into a single gateway after widespread criticism and heavy pressure from netizens.

Government figures yesterday said the plan was merely in the feasibility-study stage and the pros and cons of the proposal were being weighed.

But they said the plan would no longer be called a single gateway, although they did not say what the new name would be.

Information and Communication Technology Minister Uttama Savanayana said the government would not infringe on the public's right to privacy and freedom of expression, as it was only reviewing the country's Internet gateways.

Uttama said it was a misunderstanding that the Cabinet had resolved to have the ICT Ministry adopt a single international Internet gateway for Thailand.

He added that Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha had earlier instructed the ministry and other relevant agencies to study the concept.

A number of government websites came under a concerted cyber-attack on Wednesday night, when several Internet users launched a distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack by refreshing the homepages of agencies repeatedly. The targets included the ICT Ministry, the Internal Security Operations Command, and Government House.

The attack brought down the ICT Ministry website for several hours and severely slowed down other government websites.

Uttama, speaking at a press conference at the ICT Ministry, said its website was inundated with more than 100,000 users on Wednesday, compared with the daily average of some 6,000.

He said he understood that Internet and social-media users were unhappy and wanted to express their disagreement with the single-gateway plan.

At this stage, he said the ministry would not take legal action against the DDoS wrongdoers although such a practice was illegal.

Uttama said the single-gateway concept was the prime minister's idea as he wanted to ensure that young people who used the Internet were shielded from abuse.

PM's Office Minister ML Panadda Diskul said Prayut had ordered the feasibility study on the single international gateway, but no green light to implement it had been given yet.

Panadda urged the public, especially Internet and social-media users, to be careful about this issue.

"It is well known that a single gateway may cause, for example, instability of the Internet, which could hurt our economy and investors. We need to be aware of both the pros and cons [of this concept]," he said.

Internal Security Operations Command spokesman Maj-General Banpot Poonpien said the agency's website was accessible as normal.

Demand for clarity

Pawoot Pongvitayapanu, president of the Thai E-Commerce Association, said it was working with other online-related groups, including the Thai Webmaster Association and the Digital Advertising Association of Thailand, to call for the junta to be clear about this plan.

The groups will make their suggestion to the military's ruling National Council for Peace and Order, he said.

"Our suggestion is that the government does not need to invest [in the Internet gateway]. It should just allow the private sector to invest," he said.

"If the government wants to get particular information, it can ask the Internet service providers."

He said the associations were willing to work with the government on the issue.

Paiboon Amonpinyokeat, an Internet legal expert, said an action that caused a computer system to slow or go out of service was considered illegal according to the Computer Crime Act's Article 10.

If an action affects a government website and had an impact on others, it is against Article 12 of the act, he said.

He said some people who had joined the campaign against the single gateway might not know that engaging in a DDoS is illegal. They should use other ways to express their stance instead of affecting people trying |to get information and services from a |website.

Suphachai Chearavanont, president of the Telecommunications Association of Thailand, said that if the government was concerned about national security and inappropriate content on the Internet, it could use other measures to tackle that instead of adopting a single gateway.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/national/Govt-backs-off-for-now-from-single-Internet-gatewa-30270013.html


-- The Nation 2015-10-02

[stoneyboy]

More back peddling than a trick cyclist.

[Snig27]

Shades of the turn-off of Facebook (which they lied about but were caught out on) and the bizarre 300m booze ban.

Really, sometimes it would be helpful if they just went out into the street and asked random citizens for a little bit of help. Whoever they picked couldn't be less adept at government than this lot. Hopeless - over and over and over.

Edited October 1, 2015 by Snig27

[puukao]

I'm currently running 14 VPNs with only 23432 lost packets every 234234324.2342 gigs of data....

plus i use chrome incognito....

do dah do dah

[thesetat2013]

So they really think that changing the name of their single gateway is going to make a difference? Maybe it will to the people who are not acclimated with the internet. But those who are will try to stop them regardless.

I would also think it would be quite difficult to prove someone deliberately went to that website for the purpose of shutting it down using Ddos!

Their reasoning to do this is hogwash. You don't take control and make a firewall to shield abuse of the internet for children. You do it to monitor and control all that is done in that gateway which means everybody and everything.

One more note! Being thailand is a Junta controlled country with a military leader who can use article 44 anytime he sees fit then if the people don't rise up against this now then their is a good chance they will not be able to later should P invoke that article and ensure its creation and use.

[Somtamnication]

"But they said the plan would no longer be called a single gateway, although they did not say what the new name would be."

Ok, I'll bite:

Single Hazardous International Tits-up or Frequently Underestimating Citizens Knowledge. You figure it out.

[arthurboy]

Can't wait for the general's rant on this one, especially as he ordered it.

Again, another government - it's irrelevant whether a junta lead one or not - has shown itself to be utterly incompetent.

The whole thing has been pure farce.

It's of course possible that the whole hacking thing will give the junta the very reason it craves - however misguided - to go ahead with this nonsensical scheme.

More budget, anyone?

[apetley]

"But they said the plan would no longer be called a single gateway, although they did not say what the new name would be."

I'd like to suggest calling it 'The Love Pipe'.

[Tatsujin]

Whether it's a single gateway or multiple gateways, the intention was/is to intercept and monitor ALL internet traffic in and out of Thailand. That hasn't changed and will still be going on, no matter what they change the name to.

They are already doing this in a smaller fashion and have been doing so for a few years now, monitoring/intercepting/censoring a good chunk of incoming and outgoing internet traffic. Their justification to do this is partly because of the LM laws. The simple solution would be to remove the LM laws from the books then they won't have to worry about monitoring and arresting people because of what they think.

[petedk]

"But they said the plan would no longer be called a single gateway, although they did not say what the new name would be."

I'd like to suggest calling it 'The Love Pipe'.

Maybe "The People's Gateway"

[SergeyKot]

Officially?)

[cmsally]

At this stage, he said the ministry would not take legal action against the DDoS wrongdoers although such a practice was illegal.

Wow so magnanimous , I'm speechless !

[aussieinthailand]

Seems with a single gate way regardless of the new name they give it that there would be both pro's and con's for a ruling government, but a very different story for the users of the internet.

Think it will take a little bit more to convince the junta that taking control of the internet may not be returning happiness to the people?

[NOC]

So they really think that changing the name of their single gateway is going to make a difference? Maybe it will to the people who are not acclimated with the internet. But those who are will try to stop them regardless.

I would also think it would be quite difficult to prove someone deliberately went to that website for the purpose of shutting it down using Ddos!

Their reasoning to do this is hogwash. You don't take control and make a firewall to shield abuse of the internet for children. You do it to monitor and control all that is done in that gateway which means everybody and everything.

One more note! Being thailand is a Junta controlled country with a military leader who can use article 44 anytime he sees fit then if the people don't rise up against this now then their is a good chance they will not be able to later should P invoke that article and ensure its creation and use.

The name change scenario reminds me of a Robert Palmer song. Sneaking Sally Through the Alley. https://youtu.be/ICPAmS1TtIM

[JAG]

I'm currently running 14 VPNs with only 23432 lost packets every 234234324.2342 gigs of data....

plus i use chrome incognito....

do dah do dah

whatever does that mean?

[MZurf]

"But they said the plan would no longer be called a single gateway, although they did not say what the new name would be."

I'd like to suggest calling it 'The Love Pipe'.

Maybe "The People's Gateway"

Gateway to Happiness?

Uncle Too's # 2?

[gandalf12]

Feasibility study? What for? Every person involved in the industry knows it is as bad an idea as you can have. Thailand will have to revolutionise the IT industry for this idea to be realistic and they will never do that

[Shiver]

Wonder why they don't use the word 'hub' when it comes to networks...

[bamnutsak]

No one understands Thailand, and the need for a "Thai-style" internet "door".

The "Authorities" have informed the citizenry that there is nothing to worry about, and that the Thai Internet Door will be 99.9% "open".

Now go back to being happy.

[yellowboat]

This is right up there with the deck chairs on the beach and they bicycle lanes. One would think that since the whole rice pledging debacle, the government would keep its nose out of things where it is not in anyway needed. How is futzing with the Internet bringing happiness to the people and stamping out corruption ? These do gooder junta boys seem easily distracted from their task. A task they say was so important that they deposed an elected government.

[MZurf]

Wow. Already 20 posts slamming the junta and not one "But, but, but....Thaksin" post! Of course, the junta isn't making it easy for the cheerleaders.

Just sayin'......

[gavin1981]

I have been told by a IT guy who works in Bangkok that Thailand already has a single international gateway but it is not publicized.

[yellowboat]

Wow. Already 20 posts slamming the junta and not one "But, but, but....Thaksin" post! Of course, the junta isn't making it easy for the cheerleaders.

Just sayin'......

Too true. It is not the same anymore. You miss the westerns who were for deposing popularly elected governments, freedom of speech and rule of law. Thaksin is no better or worse perhaps. The status quo in Thailand remains.

[bamnutsak]

I have been told by a IT guy who works in Bangkok that Thailand already has a single international gateway but it is not publicized.

I think there are at least ten (10) International Internet Gateways, operated by ISPs and data providers. There may be are others, both private and government, as well.

A lot of the blocking and DPI gear has proven hard to manage, hence the need for a single point for censoring/monitoring/"law" enforcement.

But if you can share any details from your IT guy acquaintance please feel free to do so.

[WitawatWatawit]

That it was even thought of in the first place indicates that this govt is not getting rational and sane advice. That it was handled in such a sneaky fashion indicates this govt wanted to bring the concept to the point of execution before advising the people, dealing them a fait accompli. That no one in the govt is talking of dropping the idea completely (a new name?) indicates this govt is only waiting until the heat dies down before moving stealthily ahead with it. Don't anyone believe for one moment that this folly is ended - I believe it won't come to fruition, but that will require a lot more opposition of the DDoS kind to defeat it.

[LoveThaiGirls]

I have been told by a IT guy who works in Bangkok that Thailand already has a single international gateway but it is not publicized.

I don't think he should be in IT then, he hasn't got a clue what he's talking about.

[yellowboat]

A single gateway seems horribly inefficient as Cambodia is lying their own under water cables and selling bandwidth to Laos. Thailand has a central position and should connect with all boarder towns to ensure a faster, more reliable service.

[peterjackson]

Military Autocrats like the self imposed PM do not like it when there is resistance to their plans.

This is far from dead in the water.

Like the Minister said, we are just going to call it something else.

The Prayut Gateway or maybe the ONLY Gateway. Seems to be better aligned to his style as Supreme Ruler.

[MZurf]

That it was even thought of in the first place indicates that this govt is not getting rational and sane advice. That it was handled in such a sneaky fashion indicates this govt wanted to bring the concept to the point of execution before advising the people, dealing them a fait accompli. That no one in the govt is talking of dropping the idea completely (a new name?) indicates this govt is only waiting until the heat dies down before moving stealthily ahead with it. Don't anyone believe for one moment that this folly is ended - I believe it won't come to fruition, but that will require a lot more opposition of the DDoS kind to defeat it.

"That it was handled in such a sneaky fashion..."

No.no. The junta is not sneaky! Only the previous elected governments have sneakily been trying to sneak through a sneaky amnesty bill, but what the junta is doing is not sneaky, it's.........OK, help me out here

[AlQaholic]

Actually I think there is no real difference for the Govt. to monitor the presently operated 10 International Gateways in Thailand rather than monitoring just 1 gateway. So dropping the plan for the one gateway is just not such a big deal in terms of privacy and security for the Govt. considering the gains in PR it creates when they drop the plan.