Re: Google Hijacked -- Major ISP to Intercept and Modify Web Pages

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Begin forwarded message:

From: Patrick Sinz <ps () ethiqa com>
Date: December 9, 2007 5:32:18 AM EST
To: dave () farber net
Subject: Re: [IP] Google Hijacked -- Major ISP to Intercept and Modify  
Web Pages
Reply-To: ps () ethiqa com

What makes this move very "interesting" and "suspicious", is that  
exactly the same effect
(notifying the user to "protect" him or her from involontary over use)  
would have been achieved by
a "dumb" silent proxy that would send a "spash screen" at the next  
HTTP connection, independently
from any specific site.
A little bit like a "wifi splashscreen".
This would actually be more efficient for the alleged use.
1) It could work with "non google users" (misguided souls using other  
search engines :-))
2) It would be "harder to overlook", personally I think I would have  
ignored the "ads" as I tend
to ignore all the other one.

So it seems either incompetent (as in spending lots of money in  
useless technology made by patent
junkies), that would be the charitable evaluation.
Or it is a "policy setup"
 Step one: "but think of the kid" : we are snooping on you but it is  
to protect inocent users
    and in particular the parents of thoose irresponsible downloading  
teenagers against
    overspending.
 Step two: we add this teeny weeny little ad: as a community service
 Step three: I highjacked the Internet but if you mind you should  
have protested earlier
 Step four: Oups a bigger competitor immitated us, and now is pushing  
us out of the market
huho...

Additionally what is sadly amusing, is that this kind of issue will  
arise mainly with "massive
downloaders" (if you are a professional user of large quantity of  
multimedia content you most
probably took you precautions)
And their use is more like:

 Launch a download client, launch a chat client, tchat/tchat/tchat,  
look at the video.

Wich means that highjacking the tchat client would make more sense  
(although be just as evil).
In addition if the Telcos would be able to somehow wake up and stop  
mixing evilness with stupidity
they would try to figure out how to push their user to a platform and  
network neutral chat/video
chat system, instead of letting a small couple of players (msn/aim/qq)  
in practice confiscate the
phone and videophone market.

         Regards
           [ps]
--- David Farber <dave () farber net> wrote:

> ________________________________________
> From: Lauren Weinstein [lauren () vortex com]
> Sent: Sunday, December 09, 2007 12:27 AM
> To: David Farber
> Cc: lauren () vortex com
> Subject: Google Hijacked -- Major ISP to Intercept and Modify Web  
> Pages
>
>       Google Hijacked -- Major ISP to Intercept and Modify Web Pages
>
>                http://lauren.vortex.com/archive/000337.html
>
>     [ Due to highly relevant screen capture content, please see the  
> link
>       above to read this item.  Thanks! ]
>
> --Lauren--
> Lauren Weinstein
> lauren () vortex com or lauren () pfir org
> Tel: +1 (818) 225-2800
> http://www.pfir.org/lauren
> Co-Founder, PFIR
>   - People For Internet Responsibility - http://www.pfir.org
> Co-Founder, NNSquad
>   - Network Neutrality Squad - http://www.nnsquad.org
> Founder, PRIVACY Forum - http://www.vortex.com
> Member, ACM Committee on Computers and Public Policy
> Lauren's Blog: http://lauren.vortex.com
>
>
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