Proposed blogging law outrages Italian netizens

Italian bloggers may be required to register with a national database, unless an ambiguously-worded new law is amended before it comes into force. Widespread outrage among bloggers and IT-savvy journalists has reached the mainstream press, and the government now appears to be keen to revise a draft law which has led politician …

[Sean Nevin]

Governments

"...shown Italian netizens once again that their government is remarkably out of touch with the realities of the internet age."

Sigh. Aren't they all?

[Tomasz M. Klecor]

Polish bloggers need to register their blogs as an newspapers/magazines

Italian case is not first at all. In Poland bloggers need to register their blogs as a... newspaper. An Act of Press Law (Prawo Prasowe) from year 1984 says that all newspapers and magazines had to be register in court. If they're not – it is a criminal offence – in best case editor have to pay fine, but he can be also imprisoned. In July 2007 polish High Court decided that websites like blogs, etc. are also newspapers (or magazines, if they are not actualized more then three times a week) and have to registered, even if they're not printed.

[The Douros]

Mmm...

Sounds a bit like a law that the Greek government passed a few years ago. The law was intended to target gambling, especially online and by means of "one-armed-bandit" fruitmachines - but the law was so badly phrased and out of touch with reality that it also covered (i.e. outlawed) ALL forms of digital gaming (including online, on a PC, or dedicated console). The ensuing outrage caused the lawmaker to rephrase the law properly (i.e. to specify the banning of gaming that involved gambling unless properly licensed), but technically, for a few months, even playing the humble Solitaire supplied with your OEM Windows on a new PC was illegal... Governments...

[John Colby]

But of course, it couldn't happen in Britain ...

...could it?

[TeeCee]

@John Colby

It doesn't need to specifically. Britain is already cursed with the most draconian libel legislation in the world. Under the litigants charter we have posing as libel legislation anything you say in print or online can lead to bankruptcy.

It's become such a joke that certain terror-financing, image-obsessed Saudi princelings move legal mountains to get libel cases heard in the UK, even when the original publication has no connection thereto.

Of course, this sort of thing goes on all the time and it could be any one of hundreds, nay, thousands of serial litigants that I am allegedly referring to here.

If anyone out there happens to be a Saudi prince and can also prove that they finance terrorism and have a huge ego then they've got me bang to rights.

[Cambrasa]

And who said that i2p had no practical uses?

An anonymizing overlay network easily accessible to the masses is long overdue. Shame i2p isn't ready yet and Freenet is a pain to use.

[b shubin]

Cradle of "liburdy"

the US has a much more enlightened (and streamlined) approach.

since all communications are now monitored, if the Powers really don't like what you posted (or said, or filmed, or linked to, etc.), a three-letter agency will visit, and if they can convince the Emperor that you are an enemy combatant, you will "softly and silently vanish away", to be not-tortured at a secure, undisclosed location.

Europeans are so quaint.

[Anonymous Coward]

the minister of communications

..said the law needs fixing...

So, they passed a law without due diligence and only realised when they were picked up on it by the people. Seems to me this guy was not doing his job and should be fired.

Aside from this story, and in reply to the post about freenet... the future of the internet is based around using it via encryption and anonymous proxies in order to safe guard our own privacy from our own ignorant governments.

The US government are quite smart on that one by making any encrypted network in the US that is non-goverment, illegal! .. .how long before we see it here?

[Peter Mc Aulay]

So bloggers are now press...

Does this mean they'll also get a press card, and can call upon freedom of the press in court?

Gods help us.

[Morely Dotes]

"This is Italy, not Burma."

'the government now appears to be keen to revise a draft law which has led politician Francesco Caruso to remark: "This is Italy, not Burma."'

Ah, good, that's sorted, then. In Italy, the law will be enforced haphazardly and with Keystone Kops levels of competence, while in Burma, the law is enforced ruthlessly and competently.

Surely that is what Francesco meant to say, i it not?

[Andy]

@Jeremy

If you mean the UK, we allready have it. Google for RIPA.

Part III of the RIPA act means that if the police decide that you are communicating through encryption they can demand the key; if you fail to provide it -- say, if you lost it or you were sending random numbers -- they imprison you; you can't tell anyone that you are being prosecuted under RIPA, not even another policeman.

[Steve Caple]

Blog Law and Security

The Italian blog law story came up with an Intel vPro IT security ad with German shepherds that follow the cursor around the screen. Where is the secret easter egg to make them lick their balls? Or are they true Intel users and their balls have been removed?