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Tech Wired Australia recently interviewed user Matthew Law from online forum Whirlpool. Matthew submitted an abortion website to the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) for review as to whether such content is prohibited in Australia.

Now, you may be wondering why Matthew submitted such site for review. It was ‘all in the name of science’ so to speak, to test how ACMA would handle the submitted site. On the 6th of January Matthew submitted the site to ACMA that he found by doing a random google search on “abortion”; 15 days later he received a response:

“Following investigation of your complaint, ACMA is satisfied that the internet content is hosted outside Australia, and that the content is prohibited or potential prohibited content.“

“The Internet Industry Association (IIA) has a code of practice (http://www.iia.net.au/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=415&Itemid=33) for Internet Service Providers (ISPs) which, among other things, set out arrangements for dealing with such content.  In accordance with the code, ACMA has notified the above content to the makers of IIA approved filters, for their attention and appropriate action.  The code requires ISPs to make available to customers an IIA approved filter.“

Now this may not seem that bad as I would think some parents (that have installed such filters) would like to have the option to block such content. The problem that does arise though, is that the Australian Government want to implement a mandatory Internet filter that will block your access to such sites. If that policy goes through, then you won’t have access to such sites at all.

If you were blocked from seeing content of any nature the Government deemed inappropriate, would you be happy?

Transcript care of ( @ ) Lillary ( @ ):

TECH WIRED AUSTRALIA

Podcast 24 January 2009

[Intro music]
BEN:    Hi, this is Ben Grubb with a mini podcast edition.  In this episode I interview the Whirlpool user who submitted a site containing content on abortion to the Australian Communication and Media Authority (ACMA).  Why? To test current policy and legislation regarding internet filtering.

As we all know by now, the Australian government wants to implement a mandatory, ISP-level filter for all Australian internet users.  It has been argued by many that it will simply not work.  I’m currently on the line with Matt, a forum user on Australia’s Whirlpool website.  The reason that I’m on the line with him is because he submitted a what some would say “controversial” website containing content about abortion, to the ACMA for review as to whether such content is prohibited in Australia.  The website that he submitted for review had images and information regarding abortion.  Matt did not submit the site because he’s against abortion, but because he wanted to test current legislation and policy.  Soon after submitting his complaint, he received a response.  And what did it say, Matt?

MATT:    It told me that it was prohibited or potentially prohibited, and that they would be sending it on for ISPs to put onto their Internet Industry Association approved filters, which is mandated to be available to all families.

BEN:    So this is the IIA approved filter that most ISPs will offer now, usually the ones that are family-friendly and they have that little ladybird, I think, on them.  So now they’ve said this is potentially prohibited content, and they’re forwarding it on to the people that make the software, to update it I suppose, or action it correctly, to see whether it is indeed prohibited.  So what are your thoughts on all of this? Do you think … like, I was going through the laws of is abortion legal in Australia, and it varies throughout each State, there’s different, you know, types of, you know, this is illegal if you do this, and la da da da da, but abortion is not illegal in Australia.  Do you think what they’ve said: “potentially prohibited” is wrong?

MATT:    Yes.  Look, they’re extremely nasty pictures and I searched them out by a simple Google search to look for them, because, you know, I just wanted to test how the ACMA would treat them.  Everybody’s talking about child porn, everybody’s talking about porn, and I just wanted to see what else would happen and how easy it would be and what would happen if I submitted them.  I mean, the pictures offend me but I don’t care ‘cause I don’t look for them, so they’re welcome to have them there but I just wanted to see what would happen.

BEN:    Would you say, if they removed such content or if they … well they can’t remove it because it’s overseas, and that’s the problem I suppose, but do you think that if this was blocked, it would stop, say, for example, we don’t have freedom of speech as a constitution or part of a bill of rights or anything in Australia, but do you think it would, as a moral type of thing, you know, stop freedom of speech?

MATT:    No, because freedom of speech finds a way.  I just think it’s a, you know, it’s a stupid waste of money.  You know, freedom of speech is always gonna find a way and there’s going to be a way around this filter and, you know, five minutes with Google and anyone’ll find it.  And if the pro-filter lobby start to lose things which they care about, then … anti-abortion … maybe then they’ll start seeing that they have to get around it as well.

BEN:    So you would say that the filter that the Australian Government want to implement is flawed?

MATT:    Yes, definitely.  It is going to block people from seeing perfectly legal stuff.  It may not be pretty, what they see, but it is legal.  Yes, it might block some child pornography sites, which is illegal, but from what I understand these are illegal everywhere, in every country, and if they know of said sites to block them, then why isn’t the Federal Police working with these overseas law enforcement agencies and shutting them down?

BEN:    So you’d say that they’re putting their money in the wrong department?

MATT:    Yes.

BEN:    If you were, say, for example, Senator Steven Conroy, who manages the Department of Communications, would you put the money instead of in, you know, a department … I suppose this could be more of a cabinet-type thing, but the money in, say, the Australian Federal Police rather than trying … so instead of blocking stuff, preventing it?

MATT:    Well, you can’t prevent it, it’s always gonna happen, so help fund the law enforcement to catch the people who would put such things on the Internet and who would hunt out such things on the Internet, instead of forcing all Australians to … it’s just about censorship, purely and simply.  It’s not about child pornography, as they keep saying, it’s just about censorship.

BEN:    So you’d say that the key here is that what they’re doing, what ACMA even now, with the current legislation, proposing or even seeing or deeming prohibited, is wrong and it is censorship and they should, instead of just blocking this stuff they should go against it and kind of, you know, not do what they’re doing because there’s too many things that .. it’s censorship.  I suppose I can’t really sum it up any other way than censorship.

MATT:    I think the laws are already there for ACMA to be able to do what it’s doing, it’s just the laws aren’t there to force internet service providers to filter it, so I think through testing what can be banned on ACMA through there, I think that legislation’s already there but they just have to enforce the ISPs to do it.  At the moment it’s voluntary and nobody wants to, so it’s all voluntary code of conduct.  I’m not sure of this, but by my understanding from the ACMA website, and essentially they’re trying to … going to other countries’ internet services to comply with Australia’s adult laws or we won’t be able to view it.  Yeah, like for the fact that Australia can’t host adult websites unless they have an age-verification system.  And I think that we’ll end up having overseas adult websites blocked unless they have something similar.

BEN:    As we say, it’s pure censorship.  And do you think that the government should have the role in Australian society of choosing what is right and wrong?

MATT:    Oh gee, that’s a hard one! Of course they have to in some things, and some things [are] obviously wrong, but this is the problem of when it comes to what people view, you know, of what is right or wrong isn’t it?

BEN:    And I suppose with what they’re trying to do, or with the filters that they have tested, they haven’t really come up with a complete solution that will be 100% correct, that will block everything that … or not slow the internet down, which is what some of the filters will do, but some will always have problems with blocking content that is meant to be able to be seen, so I guess …

MATT:    Well, no, yeah, well that’s irrelevant ‘cos  they are going to block material … you know, they are going to block material that, for example, you know, consenting adults in sexual situations, which [are] perfectly legal to do at home, to photograph at home, to view at home, but they’re going to block Australian adults’ access from that, so that’s,  you know, where I have the problem, but regardless of all the technical things, they want to stop Australians accessing things that are perfectly legal, because it goes against what they think is decent or moral, regardless of the legality of it.

BEN:    I think I’ll end it there, but thank you very much, Matt, for speaking with us, it’s been good to get another different opinion; I’ve had a couple – I’ve talked with Mark Newton, of course, who’s been very much standing up on Whirlpool – the threads there are pretty massive at the moment, it’s kind of hard to wade through but what do you think the end outcome of all this will be?

MATT:    I’m hoping it will fade away in this economical meltdown, and I’m just hoping it will disappear and they’ll earmark the money for something else, and somehow, but I think that Conroy’s dug himself a bloody big hole and it keeps getting deeper, and I think … don’t know if he can get out of it and save face, so that’s the problem with it.  I’m hoping that, you know, every day more people come out against it, like with the article with [Senator Nick] Minchin in yesterday’s Sydney Morning Herald, more and more people are coming out against it but I don’t know if he’s going to … if Conroy’s going to be able to back away from it.

BEN:    Well thank you for your opinion, I’m very much thankful that you’ve spoken out about this and that you’ve tested what currently is accepted or not accepted in Australian law with ACMA.  Thank you very much, Matt.

[Outro music]
You’ve been listening to another Tech Wired Australia podcast.  Don’t forget you can email us at feedback@techwiredau.com