‘Connectivity’
01
03.15
Title 1, Title 2, and the future of the Internet
Here at War for the Web, we’ve been very excited to follow the progress of the activist groups pursuing a “title 2” strategy for the Internet. We’ve felt from the very beginning of this project that Title 2 is an important regulatory change for the Internet and we’re glad to see the FCC begin this process. This is a major victory for the forces of net neutrality and those interested in keeping the Internet competitive and available. We celebrate our friends at Fight for the Future, Democracy Now, Demand Progress, the EFF, and the variety of other institutions that fought and ultimately won this battle; but the war for the web isn’t over, not by a long shot. Title 2 isn’t a panacea, but rather a framework into which we can build more effective rules to govern the Internet’s infrastructure. Read more 
30
09.13
Snowden, the NSA, and the ITU
There's been a lot of uproar over the last few months since Snowden's disclosures about the NSA's unprecedented surveillance of the Internet at large; and the consequences have been incredibly damaging for US interests both at home and abroad. The NSA's reckless actions will have two sets of distinct long-term consequences for American business and the Internet at large. Read more
25
09.13
Wifi (in)security
It came out a few weeks ago that Google, the benevolent giant, has access to all the wireless passwords stored on Android devices. For the uninitiated, let me explain how this works. Read more
23
09.13
Taken Down
Piracy is a big issue, there's no doubt about it. Certainly with Hollywood blockbusters flopping all summer, there's more concern than ever about pirated TV content, movies, and music eating into the profits of the studios and record labels. Read more
28
03.13
Battlefield Internet
We often get asked, what is War for the Web about. We have a really good elevator pitch down about the physical infrastructure of the Internet, and the way that ownership works, etc... We can rattle it off no problem.
And those are all great descriptions of the film, but they aren't what the film is about. Read more
05
02.13
War on the Internet
In the last month there have been some startling admissions from several newspapers that their newsrooms have been the target of malicious hacking activities over the last six months. It started with the New York Times own admission of being hacked, and their description of the way they confronted this dilemma. Since then, the Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post have both acknowledged their own issues with hacking, and it looks as though Bloomberg is having some trouble as well. It looks like the hacking has been done from China, and the timing of the hacks coincide with the publication of a series of articles about the top leadership in China and their families by both the Times and the Wall Street Journal. Mandiant, the computer security group that the Times hired, has even gone so far as to suggest that it was the Chinese military coordinating these attacks. Read more
01
01.13
The Internet as a Utility?
This past summer, we had the good fortune of sitting down with Susan Crawford to discuss the issues affecting Internet use today in the United States. She's always been a proponent of overhauling the Internet regulatory structure in the United States, and for good reason. She recently wrote a great article for Bloomberg, outlining the Internet as a utility, and advocating some pretty important regulatory changes. You can find that article here. Read more
06
12.12
Happy Birthday to the ARPAnet
The ARPAnet, the precursor to our modern Internet, came into existence today when a group of students at UCLA sent the message, L - O before the computer crashed. The modern computer network was born! While we are here, let's just mention that ARPA was a project entirely funded by the defense department, and that it's success and importance became quickly apparent. From its inception in the 1960's to the explosion of the Internet in the consumer marketplace in the 1990's, there was a continual expansion of Internet and networking for businesses and academic institutions. Definitely check out wikipedia's history for more information. Read more
18
11.12
This week in Internets
A lot happened this week. We can't recap all of it in detail but there are a few stories to pay attention to:
Most recently, Anonymous claims to have hacked a whole boatload of Israeli websites, including some government sites. They also claim to have deleted data from government databases. There's no doubt that these sites and databases where backed up, so there was probably no lasting damage done, but none-the-less, I'm sure it served as an annoyance if not worse. Read more
08
11.12
Sandy and the Internet
There were some real heroes keeping the Internet moving during Hurricane Sandy. The Internet is a vast entity that literally spans the globe, but downtown New York City, and the Jersey shore are incredible important to the Internet in the United States and all over the world. In fact, 60 Hudson street, in downtown NYC, is perhaps the most important Internet hub on the east coast; it's also on the edge of Zone A in Manhattan, and both flooded and lost power during the hurricane. Read more
