As a policymaker or executive, do you worry about your data getting stolen or intercepted? Or your website suffering an attack? Or your services being shut down? Today on the MANRS blog, we’re introducing new primers that explain why you should care about routing security and simple steps you can take to decrease routing security The post New MANRS Routing Security Primers for Decision-makers appeared first on Internet Society.

In the 2016 Internet Society AGM (Annual General Meeting), I was elected Chair of the Board by the trustees of the Internet Society. I have had the honor and the privilege to serve in that capacity during the last five years. In the upcoming 2021 Internet Society AGM I will reach my term limit as The post Passing the Torch to the next Internet Society Board Chair appeared first on Internet Society.

Spyware on the loose: Military-grade spyware from Israeli company NSO Group has been used to spy on journalists, human rights activists, and business leaders, according to an investigation from the Washington Post and media partners. Among the people being spied on were several Arab royal family members, at least 65 business executives, 85 human rights The post The Week in Internet News: Spyware Targets Human Rights Activists, Journalists appeared first on Internet Society.

Bad information: The U.S. surgeon general, the nation’s top public health spokesman, is calling on social media outlets to crack down on misinformation about COVID-19 and the safety of vaccines, The New York Times reports. Misinformation about the pandemic and the vaccines available is “an urgent threat to public health,” Dr. Vivek Murthy said. “Modern The post The Week in Internet News: U.S. Health Official Warns of COVID Misinformation Online appeared first on Internet Society.

At the Internet Society, we’re committed to building a bigger and stronger Internet. To make sure it remains open, globally connected, secure, and trustworthy, we connect the right people to discuss different aspects of key legislative proposals. It’s a healthy way to create debate, setting up the right conditions for different parties to find common The post Encryption: A Building Block of a Trustworthy Internet appeared first on Internet Society.

A big-league lawsuit: Former U.S. President Donald Trump has filed a lawsuit against Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube for being kicked off the social media outlets for violating their terms of service, the Washington Post reports. Most legal experts say the lawsuit has little chance of success; the U.S. First Amendment protects people like Trump against The post The Week in Internet News: Trump Sues Social Media Giants appeared first on Internet Society.

In the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), some countries have responded to the challenges of the global pandemic by enacting policy changes, like temporarily lifting VoIP bans so citizens can communicate more easily. It’s giving the region a glimpse of the instant social and economic benefits of a thriving Internet. But are there other The post How Working ‘The Internet Way’ Helped the Middle East and North Africa Score Social and Economic Benefits appeared first on Internet Society.

The Internet is a critical enabler for sustainable development. It unlocks human capabilities and provides the platform upon which an emerging digital economy can thrive. As the Internet and digital technologies become more essential, it also becomes more urgent to connect the people who are being left behind. The post We Can’t Achieve the Sustainable Development Goals without the Internet appeared first on Internet Society.

Less protection for kids: The U.K.’s Department of Digital, Media, Culture and Sport has recommended that children’s accounts on social media platforms and messaging services should not use end-to-end encryption, TechCrunch reports. In the effort to protect kids against online predators, cyber bullying and other bad stuff, the agency says children shouldn’t be protected against cybercrime, The post The Week in Internet News: U.K. Government says ‘No Encryption for Kids’ appeared first on Internet Society.

Competing for ads: The European Union has launched an antitrust investigation of Google’s advertising practices, with investigators looking into whether the company favored its own online advertising technology, CNBC reports. The probe will look into whether made it harder for other online advertising services to compete. Blocking the ads: In a related story, Google has The post The Week in Internet News: EU Launches Antitrust Investigation of Google appeared first on Internet Society.

No-go zone: U.S. President Joe Biden told Russian President Vladimir Putin that some types of cyberattacks are off-limits during a meeting at the G7 summit in Switzerland recently, Reuters reports. Destructive attacks by Russian hackers on U.S. critical infrastructure must end, Biden said. It’s unclear if the talk will have much of an effect. Banned The post The Week in Internet News: Biden Warns Putin About Some Cyberattacks appeared first on Internet Society.

Paying by phone: The Somalia chapter of the Internet Society is focusing on educating Internet users, particularly young people, about mobile payments. The chapter is working with technology stakeholders to improve digital literacy. The chapter notes that 70 percent of adults in Somalia use mobile money services regularly, and more than two thirds of payments The post Member News: Somalia Chapter Focuses on Internet Education appeared first on Internet Society.

My country, Zambia, has more than 18 million people. Our new Internet Society chapter wants all of them to be online. Why? Because we need the Internet now more than ever. Globally, UNICEF and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) estimate that 1.3 billion children between the ages of 3 and 17 – or two thirds The post Zambia Needs the Internet More than Ever appeared first on Internet Society.

From the environment to the economy, the Internet is reshaping several sectors of our society. What might future patterns of disruption look like? How will these changes affect all of us? At the Internet Society Foundation, we believe the answers to these questions and many others can be found in research. That’s why in September The post Second Round of Grant Funding Awarded to Researchers Studying the Future of the Internet appeared first on Internet Society.

How has peering evolved across Asia-Pacific to provide faster, affordable, and resilient connectivity to people? In partnership with the Asia Pacific Internet Exchange Association, we set out to find effective strategies for building and growing IXPs in the region. The post Successful Strategies for Building and Growing IXPs appeared first on Internet Society.

No more tweets: After Twitter removed a tweet by Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari, the federal government there banned the platform, at least temporarily, because of “the persistent use of the platform for activities that are capable of undermining Nigeria’s corporate existence,” DW.com reports. Some Nigerians are tweeting anyway, but they risk arrest for doing so, The post The Week in Internet News: Twitter Deletes Tweet, Nigeria Bans the Whole Platform appeared first on Internet Society.

When the Internet Society, Asian Development Bank, and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific examined the regional digital economy of Central Asia in 2015, it recommended investing in the development of Carrier-Neutral Internet Exchange Points (IXPs) to drive down connectivity costs and enable more people to connect on the The post In Central Asia, Experts Discuss Opportunities to Grow IXPs appeared first on Internet Society.

The Internet Society and the Asia Pacific Internet Exchange Association (APIX) commit to work together to support communities that build the Internet and improve digital infrastructure in the region. The post Supporting IXPs in Asia-Pacific: New Partnership with the Asia Pacific Internet Exchange Association appeared first on Internet Society.

In late 2020, as Portugal prepared to take over the rotating Presidency of the Council of the European Union (EU), the Internet Society’s Portugal Chapter began ramping up its advocacy against worrying new plans to create encryption backdoors. The Council of the European Union, in a resolution in November 2020, and the European Commission (EC), in a The post Confronting European Encroachment on Encryption appeared first on Internet Society.

Where’s the beef? Cybercriminals, likely from Russia, shut down a Brazilian meatpacker’s operation for a couple of days using ransomware, Reuters reports. The attack on JBS, the world’s largest meatpacker, came just weeks after ransomware, also likely from Russia, shut down the Colonial Pipeline in the U.S. for several days. The U.S. FBI blamed the The post The Week in Internet News: Yet Another Ransomware Attack appeared first on Internet Society.