News & Media
Govt wants to monitor Facebook, Twitter
The Union home ministry has written to the department of telecom asking it to "ensure effective monitoring of Twitter and Facebook".
Portal augurs well for transparency
Data.gov.in will have meta-data, which will facilitate discovery of data and access from portals of ministries, says T Ramachandra. The article was published in the Hindu on 25 July 2011.
Facebook, my boyfriend is lousy
While a sizeable chunk of users do not mind living their life in public, oversharing can have nasty repercussions in real life. This article by Sahana Saran was published in the Bangalore Mirror on 24 July 2011.
UID: The World’s Largest Biometric Database
At the start of his presentation, Sunil Abraham pointed to two aerial drawings of cybercafes: one where each computer was part of a private booth, and one where the computers were in the open so the screens would be visible to any one. Which layout would be more friendly to women, and why, Abraham wanted to know. Some participants selected the first option, liking the idea of the privacy, while others liked the second option so that the cybercafe owner would be able to monitor users’ activities.
NYT lauds Oommen Chandy’s 24/7 office webcast
The Kerala chief minister Mr Oommen Chandy’s much hyped 24/7 webcast of his office has received global attention with the New York Times coming out with an article on the initiative.
Transparent Government, via Webcams in India
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, India — Little Brother is watching you. That is the premise for the webcam that a top government official here has installed in his office, as an anticorruption experiment. Goings-on in his chamber are viewable to the public, 24/7.
Aadhaar’s moment of truth
It’s time for the unique identity project to answer tough questions it has dodged so far, writes MA Arun in the Deccan Herald.
Look what the state just did to you
The government's recent introduction of new rules in the IT Act allows 'offensive' material on any website to be removed within 36 hours. Did the state just arm everyone to shoot the messenger, online?Th
Tough neighbourhood tests India's e-tolerance
The combination of having restrictive neighbours as well as security threats could make freedom on the web in India a casualty, writes Anahita Mukherji in this article published by the Times of India on June 12, 2011.
Technology, Transparency and Accountability: A Bar-Camp in Delhi
Accountability Initiative (AI) held a bar-camp on “Technology, Transparency and Accountability” on 5th June at Google office in Gurgaon. Pranesh Prakash participated in this bar-camp.
India Weighing Looser Web Rules
Indian authorities are considering revisions to new Internet regulations after criticism from free-speech advocates and companies like Google Inc. that fear they could be exposed to liability under the regime. This article by Amol Sharma was published in the Wall Street Journal on May 30, 2011.
Public data on the Web leaves much to be desired
Making government data accessible to all is a vital challenge, says Deepa Kurup in her article published in the Hindu on May 28, 2011.
Mobile education comes to villages
PEOPLE living in remote villages, trekking many miles to schools and colleges before dropping out, can now look forward to a tech option — mobile education. Education over mobile phones is vital in India, where the literacy rate according to 2011 census is 74.04 per cent, observers note. This article by Shayan Ghosh was published in Mail Today on May 27, 2011.
Google now stalks your street
Bangalore is the first city in the country to be mapped for Street View. This news was published by the Hindu on May 27, 2011.
Women in love with Facebook
There’s one thing these days that determines the passion of the modern Indian woman: their ever-growing love affair with the internet. The article by L Subramani was published in the Deccan Herald on May 27, 2011.
Announcing the Asia Pacific Google Policy Fellows
Posted by Ross LaJeunesse, Head of Public Policy and Government Affairs, Asia Pacific
Google Unveils Controversial Street View Mapping in B’lore
Mapping service, under criticism in Europe because of security reasons, allows users to view pedestrian-level photos of streets, houses. This news was published in the Economic Times, Mumbai on May 27, 2011.
NGOs say eG8 report must stress internet rights
More than 35 NGOs from around th e world signed a joint declaration requesting that issues concerning freedom of speech be included in th e report set to be presented to G8 heads of government by th e organisers and participants of th e eG8 Forum held in Paris. The news was published in TELECOMPAPER on May 26, 2011.
Sunil Abraham, CIS : "Avec l’e-G8, Nicolas Sarkozy veut promouvoir de nouvelles restrictions à la liberté d’expression"
Le débat continue de faire rage en Inde au sujet d’une nouvelle législation posant des limites floues et, selon certains, potentiellement dangereuses, à la liberté d’expression sur Internet. Et alors que s’ouvre à Paris l’e-G8, sur fond de polémiques autour des intentions de son principal supporteur, le président de la République Française, Nicolas Sarkozy, Sunil Abraham, directeur exécutif de l’ONG Center for Internet & Societies, a accepté de partager son regard sur l’événement, depuis Bangalore. This news was published in LE MAG IT on May 24, 2011.
Take charge of Facebook
Want to take control of your data and the way you use your Facebook account? Then try these tricks, writes Shweta Taneja.
