Centre for Internet and Society

Universal Design Awardees

praskrishna — 2016-08-17T13:29:40Z

Awardees

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/home-images/UniversalDesignAwards.png

Universal Design & Accessibility Conclave

praskrishna — 2016-08-27T04:34:41Z

Nirmita Narasimhan is a speaker at this conclave organized by IIMA in collaboration with Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Government of India.

Download the brochure of the event here.

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/news/universal-design-accessibility-conclave

United

praskrishna — 2022-11-21T16:06:57Z

United

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/home-images/United.png

Unique Identity Number (UID), National Population Register (NPR), and Governance

praskrishna — 2013-03-01T04:32:06Z

The Centre for Internet and Society and the Say No to UID campaign invite you to a workshop to discuss and learn about the present state of the UID and the NPR schemes. The event will be held on Saturday, March 2, 2013, at TERI, Bangalore, from 10.30 a.m. to 2.00 p.m.

Among other questions, the workshop will address:

What is the UID and NPR?
How do the UID and NPR impact citizenship?
Will NPR and UID schemes transform governance?
Why and how is national security linked with UID / NPR?
What is the relationship between UID and Big Data?

Speakers:

Usha Ramanathan, Independent Law Researcher and Human Rights Activist
Anant Maringanti, Hyderabad Urban Labs & Right to the City Foundation
Kaveri R, Researcher, CES, IISc

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/events/uid-and-npr

Unique Identity (UID) Project: A Debate on Fundamental Rights

praskrishna — 2011-04-05T04:08:17Z

A half day workshop on unique identity number and fundamental rights is being held on Friday, 16 April, 2010 at the Institute of Agricultural Technologists in Bangalore. The event is being co-organised by Citizen Action Forum, People's Union for Civil Liberties - Karnataka, Slum Janandolana – Karnataka, Alternative Law Forum and the Centre for Internet and Society.

In the past eight to ten months, there has been much talk about the introduction of the Unique Identification for all Indian residents, i.e., the UID. The scheme proceeds from the standpoint that solving the problem of identity will result in the fixing of many other social and economic problems. However, seen against the backdrop of work on a National Population Registry, the National Intelligence Grid and other schemes that focus on the collection of data on individuals, the potential dangers to privacy and other civil liberties need to be discussed along with the stated benefits of the UID project. Given that the key laws relating to the project are not yet enacted, this is a timely exercise and an opportunity to influence change.

While the project has been hailed as a 'gamechanger' and a welfare measure, many have expressed growing concerns about the UID and its implications for ordinary citizens. Many questions are being asked about the nature, status and aims of the scheme and its implementing authority. Countries such as the UK, Australia and the USA have found similar measures unworkable with serious probability of abuse. The cost of the UID scheme is estimated at several thousand crores of rupees. Given the risks that plague identity schemes generally, we felt the need to engage the larger public in an open debate about the UID and its proposed scope, implementation, benefits and risks. The UID would affect every citizen. How it would affect each individual is something everyone should consider before deciding how to engage with the government on this issue. With the viewpoint of different panelists, we hope to provide as much information as is available now to you and take the debate forward to make the spectrum of issues transparent. The organizers listed below would like to provide a platform to kickstart a healthy, open discussion about the potential benefits and pitfalls of the scheme. This event has been jointly organized by the Citizen Action Forum, People's Union for Civil Liberties-Karnataka, the Alternative Law Forum, and the Centre for Internet and Society.

Agenda

Social/Ethical Panel- 2:30-3:30 pm
Lead Presentation	Usha Ramanathan, Centre for the Study of Developing Societies
Panelist 1	Ashok Kamat, Pratham Books
Panelist 2	Dr. Dominic, Bangalore University
Moderator	Prof. Trilochan Sastry, IIM-B
Economics Panel- 3:30-4:30 pm
Lead Presentation	R. Ramakumar, Tata Institute of Social Sciences
Panelist 1	Mathew Thomas, Citizens Action Forum
Panelist 2	Nandana Reddy , Concerned for Working Children[*]
Moderator	Rajeev Gowda, IIM-B
Legal Panel- 4:30-5:30 pm
Lead Presentation	B K Chandrashekar, former Minister of Information, INC
Panelist 1	AN Jayaram, Former Additional Solicitor General of India and Advocate General
Panelist 2	Malavika Jayaram, Centre for Internet & Society
Panelist 3	AR Nizamuddin, Former Director General of Police
5:30-6:00 pm- Wrap-up moderated by Vinay Sreenivasa and close with tea, coffee and snacks

[*] = To be confirmed

Please contact/RSVP at

Ajoy Kumar / Radha Rao

Centre for Internet and Society

No.194, 2nd 'C' Cross,

Domlur 2nd Stage,

Bangalore 560071

P: +91 80 25350955

W: www.cis-india.org

E: ajoy@cis-india.org, radha@cis-india.org

M: +919845492122

Videos

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/events/unique-identity-project

Unicode

praskrishna — 2014-07-02T09:51:44Z

Akruti Sarala

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/home-images/Unicode.png

UNICEF & Nasscom Foundation Workshop on Child Online Protection

praskrishna — 2016-02-14T11:01:15Z

Jyoti Panday attended UNICEF & Nasscom Foundation Workshop on Child Online Protection (COP) held on 8 February 2016 at Hotel Claridges in New Delhi.

The workshop was organized to raise awareness of the Child Online Protection and the UNICEF -International Telecom Union COP Guidelines for Industry. The COP Guidelines offer general recommendations for industry on protecting children's safety when using ICT technologies. The guidelines also provide a sector specific checklist that recommend actions to respect and support children's rights. Recommendations are provided for mobile operators, ISPs,content providers, online retailers and app developers,UGC interactive and social media service providers, national and public service broadcasters, hardware manufacturers, OS developers and app stores.

At the workshop the preliminary findings of the Rapid Assessment on Child Online Protection in India, carried out by UNICEF was shared. The discussions were structured as the beginning of a dialogue on Children and Internet with the private sector and other stakeholders and to discuss the incorporation of children’s rights dimensions into key ICT industry initiatives on COP. I participated in the panel discussions on the current scenario on child online protection in India and the role of the industry. I raised the issue of lack of transparency in blocking and taking down content online that deemed is harmful for children.

See the Concept Note
Click for the Agenda

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/news/unicef-nasscom-foundation-workshop-on-child-online-protection

UNESCO's Open Forum

praskrishna — 2011-04-05T03:58:47Z

As UNESCO organized Freedom of Expression related workshops, this Open Forum will be dedicated to other key IGF topics, notably multilingualism in cyberspace, open access to scientific information, open educational resources, and accessibility for marginalized groups. In addition, UNESCO will take this opportunity to announce new initiatives and share experiences with participants. The interactive panel format will start with brief presentations from experts, followed by a moderated discussion with participants.

Organizer: UNESCO

Moderator:
Mr Jānis Kārkliņš, Assistant Director-General for Communication and Information, UNESCO

Opening by Mr Jānis Kārkliņš

Introductory remarks

Mr Nitin Desai, Chair of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF) will speak about: The future of the IGF and UNESCO’s opportunities
Mr Rod Beckstrom, CEO ICANN, on cooperation with UNESCO, next steps

1. Multilingualism in cyberspace

Proposed speakers:

Mr Baher Esmat, Manager, Regional Relations – Middle East, ICANN
Mr Daniel Pimienta, President of FUNREDES (Fundacion Redes y Desarrollo) Saint Domingue, Dominican Republic

Open discussion

2. Open access to scientific information and open educational resources

Proposed speakers:

Mr Indrajit Banerjee, Director, Information Society Division, Communication and Information Sector, UNESCO
Mr Abel Packer, Director of the SciELO.org Open Access (OA) initiative

Open discussion

3. An initiative on developing inclusive information policies using ICTs in education for persons with disabilities

Proposed speakers:

Mr Axel Leblois, Executive Director, the Global Initiative for Inclusive Information and Communications Technologies 9G3ict), An Advocacy Initiative of the United Nations Global Alliance for ICT and Development
Ms Anja Kovacs, Centre for Internet and Society (India)

Open discussion

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/events/unesco-open-forum

UNESCO's Open Forum

praskrishna — 2010-09-15T09:10:55Z

Fifth IGF

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/publications/unesco-open-forum

UNESCO Internet Universality Indicators consulted at the 8th Asia Pacific Regional Internet Governance Forum

praskrishna — 2017-08-23T02:05:44Z

“Internet Universality indicators should measure broad social implications of the Internet and serve as a powerful tool to foster sustainable development,” was a strong message delivered by Asia-Pacific stakeholders at UNESCO consultation to develop Internet Universality indicators during the 8th Asia Pacific Regional Internet Governance Forum (APrIGF) in Bangkok (Thailand), 29 July 2017.

This was published by UNESCO on August 9, 2017.

The Bangkok consultation event, co-moderated by Ms. Xianhong Hu (UNESCO) and Ms. Chat Garcia Ramilo (Association for Progressive Communications, APC), brought multi-stakeholders and experts from the Asia Pacific region to contribute to prioritizing issues within the five categories indicators along the Internet Universality R.O.A.M principles, namely on human Rights, Openness, Accessibility, Multi-stakeholder participation, as well as concerning Crosscutting issues.

“Rights entail a number of digital rights including freedom of religious and political expression and right to assembly and association online. Privacy concerns on the Internet are extremely important as well”, stated Ms Gayatri Khandahi from APC on human Rights indicators. In addition, she noted the importance of social and economic rights exercised on the Internet, such as the right to work and the right to political participation, and the jurisdiction challenges of these rights in the pretext of Internet. She emphasized the need to consult also with vulnerable groups, such as women, trans-gender groups and migrants.

Dr. Anja Kovacs from Internet Democracy Project pointed out that rights have impact on other themes or indicators, for instance online abuse of women impacts access in India. She also noted that in the course of developing these indicators, it is crucial to take into account future trends because digital rights are evolving and these indicators might not be useful in 10 years.

“Open Internet is a top concern since it is being limited by many localized requirements. Thus openness requires open and transparent policy and decision making process which is at the core of multi-stakeholder approach”, commented by Prof. Xue Hong from Beijing Normal University on Openness indicators. She suggested “open access” needs to consider people’s various barriers to access Internet, including legal barriers. She suggested that “open source”, “open innovation” and “open market” are also important aspects to measure the level of openness.

On Accessibility indicators, Mr Winston Roberts from the International Federation of Library Associations & Institutions (IFLA) suggested that the definition of universal access needs to be updated and access in various forms can be used as an indicator, such access to broadband. He stressed the importance to include quality access and access in rural areas.

“Access and accessibility should be defined clearly. Access should include indicators to assess quality of service and openness should include assessment of the market”, stated Ms. Bishakha Datta. Mr. Naveed Haq from Internet Society suggested those accessibility indicators could check how many government websites are available to people with disabilities.

“Internet is a classic example where various communities are represented and thus multistakeholderism becomes important”, said Mr. Naveed Haq from Internet Society on Multistakeholder indicators. Mr. Sunil Abraham from Center for Internet Society raised challenges that the government needs to deregulate policies and laws and redo them with a multi-stakeholder process, but on the other hand, private sectors fail to mitigate harm through the self-regulatory model. Mr. Joyce Chen, ICANN representative, highlighted the importance to engage with governments, who need to facilitate more dialogue.

“The rights and interest of those vulnerable groups, such as transgender and women should be considered by the indicators, particularly to assess how rights, such as the right to privacy intersect with their agenda”, suggested by Ms. Bishakha Datta from Point of View on Crosscutting dimension indicators. Dr Anja Kovacs pointed out that it is crucial not miss out groups of people whose interests might not be directly aligned with their governments, for instance refugees or migrants.”

In addition to the ongoing on-site Multistakeholder consultation sessions, UNESCO is now also offering the possibility for interested actors, including Member States, to participate in the consultation online at https://en.unesco.org/internetuniversality.

As an ongoing project developed by UNESCO, Internet Universality Indicators aims to serve as a recognized and authoritative global research tool for national assessing Internet development along the lines of UNESCO’s Internet Universality concept as endorsed by UNESCO 38^th General Conference in 2015. The final indicators will be presented in 2018 and will be submitted to the UNESCO Member States in the International Programme for the Development of Communication (IPDC) for endorsement.

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/news/unesco-internet-universality-indicators-consulted-at-the-8th-asia-pacific-regional-internet-governance-forum

UNESCO Global Report

praskrishna — 2013-09-04T06:53:18Z

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/blog/unesco-global-report

UNESCO

praskrishna — 2016-01-26T15:30:36Z

UNESCO

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/home-images/UNESCO.png

Understanding WebAccessibility - A Guide to create Accessible Work Environments

praskrishna — 2011-12-07T09:49:39Z

NASSCOM Foundation has published the Understanding WebAccessibility — A Guide to Create Accessible Work Environments. Nirmita Narasimhan has written one chapter, 'The Business Case for Web Accessibility'

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/accessibility/understanding-web-accessibility.pdf

Understanding the Freedom of Expression Online and Offline

praskrishna — 2016-01-03T10:24:20Z

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/blog/understanding-the-freedom-of-expression-online-and-offline

Understanding Surveillance and Privacy in India

praskrishna — 2014-09-08T06:08:49Z

Bhairav Acharya delivered a lecture at the Jamia Millia Islamia in New Delhi on August 28, 2014.

Abstract
While privacy seems intuitive to most people, its legal codification and protection is complex. This is because varying expectations of privacy exist in different social contexts demanding different forms and degrees of protection. In India, an unambiguous and enforceable constitutional right to privacy does not exist. The Supreme Court of India has, intermittently and unconvincingly, recognised a limited right to privacy in certain situations. Recent debates on privacy focus primarily on two areas: surveillance, and data protection. The interception of communications – phone calls, emails, and letters, – which is a type of surveillance, is statutorily regulated in India in an uneven way. A colonial law permits and regulates wiretaps in India. A derivative law governs emails and electronic communications. Both these laws suffer serious shortcomings. Indian law permits executive authorisations – by bureaucrats – of wiretaps without an independent audit and oversight mechanism. No legal provisions exist to redress improper wiretaps or information leaks – the Radia tapes controversy illustrates this. These lacunae remain unaddressed even as large-scale techno-utopian projects, such as the Central Monitoring System, move forward. However, the recent governmental push for privacy law does not stem from surveillance concerns but from international commerce in personal data. There is also a growing domestic constituency that is alarmed by the state’s collection of personal data without regulatory safeguards.

About the Speaker
Bhairav Acharya is a constitutional lawyer in India who joined the Bar in 2004 after graduating from the National Law School of India University, Bangalore. From 2004 - 2009, he was the Deputy Director of the Public Interest Legal Support and Research Centre (PILSARC), an organisation established to provide institutional legal support and credible research to popular movements, and to ideas and communities marginalised by law. He headed a UNHCR project to draft a refugee protection law for India and is a member of the NHRC’s National Experts Group on Refugee Law. He litigated – mostly constitutional law – in the chambers of a senior counsel in the Supreme Court of India, where he became especially interested in free speech law. From 2009 - 2010, he advised a leading Indian multinational information technology major on privacy law and data protection. At present, he independently advises the Centre for Internet and Society, Bangalore, on privacy law, and is drafting a proposed privacy statute to regulate data protection and surveillance in India to provide a participatory and consensus - based legal submission to the Indian government.

Event Details
Venue: CCMG Network Governance Lab,
Date: Thursday, August 28, 2014
Time: 11.30 a.m.

For more details visit http://editors.cis-india.org/internet-governance/news/understanding-privacy-and-surveillance-in-india

Centre for Internet and Society

Universal Design Awardees

Universal Design & Accessibility Conclave

United

Unique Identity Number (UID), National Population Register (NPR), and Governance

Unique Identity (UID) Project: A Debate on Fundamental Rights

Agenda

Social/Ethical Panel- 2:30-3:30 pm

Economics Panel- 3:30-4:30 pm

Legal Panel- 4:30-5:30 pm

5:30-6:00 pm- Wrap-up moderated by Vinay Sreenivasa and close with tea, coffee and snacks

Unicode

UNICEF & Nasscom Foundation Workshop on Child Online Protection

UNESCO's Open Forum

UNESCO's Open Forum

UNESCO Internet Universality Indicators consulted at the 8th Asia Pacific Regional Internet Governance Forum

UNESCO Global Report

UNESCO

Understanding WebAccessibility - A Guide to create Accessible Work Environments

Understanding the Freedom of Expression Online and Offline

Understanding Surveillance and Privacy in India