Irish State Blocks Access to Own Websites
Ken Foxe of RTE has the news that internet blocking software in the Oireachtas (Irish Parliament) is blocking a range of legitimate websites, including sites from the Irish central government, EU and organisations funded by the Irish taxpayer.
Among the blocked sites:
- StPatricks.ie (a mental health service, wrongfully classed as pornography);
- SpunOut.ie (a teen support service funded by the Irish Health Service, blocked as sexual content);
- Per.gov.ie (the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, blocked as a blog or wiki);
- An EU Commission page on trade with Egypt (“forbidden message”, whatever that might mean);
- IslamAhmadiyya.ie (Irish Muslim Association, blocked as pornography);
This won’t surprise anyone familiar with internet blocking as a deeply flawed technology, incapable of achieving its stated aims while at the same time resulting in massive collateral damage to other sites. But it does provide a vivid illustration as to why calls for national internet blocking systems should be resisted.
