[AusNOG] Public Internet Access Policies

[Karl Auer]

On Tue, 2014-10-07 at 17:05 -0700, Andrew Yager wrote:
> We’re currently developing a public internet access solution for a
> public space, and one of the things we’re considering is content
> filtering as part of the solution.
> [...]
> - is it a good idea to do this in a public space (think children, families, etc all around)

It's not ever a good idea unless you have total (or at very least
substantial) control over the population that will be using the access.
Filtering a home network might make sense, but filtering a public
network never does. For two very simple reasons:

- it doesn't work; and
- it doesn't work.

If (as I suspect) what you are really trying to do is avoid liability
when (not if) little Johnny downloads porn[1] then you have to insert a
liability-shifting shim. They either sign something or they click
through something. Since kids can't enter contracts, children would be
unable to use the network without their parents consent. Click-through
agreements have the same problem with children, and are probably invalid
for everybody else as well because if push came to shove I suspect the
click-through wouldn't be worth the paper it wasn't printed on.

And that's just direct usage. What if Little Johnny looks over someone's
shoulder and happens to see on a screen some currently taboo part of the
human body, causing awkward questions from Little Johnny and righteous
indignation in little Johnny's mum? Mum never signed up for that! Better
fence off the area and put up huge warning signs! Of course,
unaccompanied children would need to be banned.

Seriously: Filtering public networks is a complete waste of public
money. Spend the money on a better network instead.

Regards, K.

[1] or sets up a CnC node to tell his botnet to unleash a distributed
DDoS that takes down the entire eastern seaboard, plunging Melbourne
into darkness, Sydney into chaos and Brisbane into confusion...

-- 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Karl Auer (kauer at biplane.com.au)
http://www.biplane.com.au/kauer
http://twitter.com/kauer389

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