“We Want a Chinese Firewall Too”

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“An action plan for a electronic cloud”

A plan paper for the European Parliament phone calls on Europe to develop a “European Internet” that “like the Chinese firewall… would block off companies that condone or guidance illegal perform from third bash international locations.”

The startlingly illiberal and clumsy proposal will come in a paper [pdf] prepared by Hamburg-primarily based consultancy Long run Sweet for the Plan Section for Economic, Scientific and Top quality of Lifetime Policies at the ask for of the committee on the Interior Market and Purchaser Security (keep with us).

It suggests actions for the parliament forward of the Digital Services Act (DSA) proposed legislation supposed to “reinforce the one industry for electronic services”. (In shorter, the DSA normally takes aim at the dominance of “large on-line platforms performing as gatekeepers”. Find out additional about it right here).

The paper was printed in Might and spotted this week by Cloudflare’s head of plan, who Tweeted the proposal with a “wow”. (A consultation on the DSA is open up until finally eight September 2020. Our visitors can share their sights right here.)

A European Firewall, A European Cloud

The paper also phone calls for a European “digital cloud” [sic].

“The EU should really consist of an action plan for a electronic cloud – a European Internet – in the DSA”, the plan paper suggests to the Parliament.

“This European Cloud would foster a European electronic ecosystem primarily based on facts and innovation. It would generate opposition and set criteria.

“Foreign web companies could develop into aspect of this sort of a electronic ecosystem but ought to adhere to the principles and criteria of the EU – this sort of as democratic values, facts protection, facts accessibility, transparency and consumer-friendliness.

“Technologically”, the plan paper states vaguely, “it would involve a prime-level infrastructure, superior-pace 5G or a 6G facts community and a firewall.

“Like the Chinese firewall, this European world wide web would block off companies that condone or guidance illegal perform from third bash international locations.”

As the FT’s Beijing correspondent Yuan Yang places it, China operates “the world’s most subtle censorship and surveillance system…

“The Great Firewall blocks web-site names, misdirects visitors and can even shut off encrypted communications by figuring out to what kind of company the consumer is trying to join.”

What are your thoughts on the proposal. E mail ed dot targett at cbronline dot com