Internet Blcakout Day

[Quantum Windbag]

Show your opposition to SOPA

https://www.google.com/landing/takeaction/

 

[ScienceRocks]

Anti-freedom power grab from our beast federal government. You're not a limited government conservative if you don't oppose this bill. This bill must DIE!

 

[waltky]

Congress blinks, backs off...

Sopa and Pipa bills postponed in US Congress
20 January 2012 - Protesters say the passage of the anti-online piracy bills would threaten the openness of the internet

The US Congress has halted debate on two contested anti-online piracy bills. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid delayed a vote on the Protect IP Act (Pipa) scheduled for Tuesday. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Lamar Smith then said his panel would not consider the Stop Online Piracy Act (Sopa) until a compromise was reached. The decisions follow protests by online encyclopaedia Wikipedia, and thousands of other websites, which went "dark" in protest for 24 hours earlier this week. "In light of recent events, I have decided to postpone Tuesday's vote on the PROTECT IP Act," Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat, said in a statement on Friday.

Mr Smith, a Texas Republican in the House of Representatives, said in a statement: "I have heard from the critics and I take seriously their concerns regarding proposed legislation to address the problem of online piracy. "It is clear that we need to revisit the approach on how best to address the problem of foreign thieves that steal and sell American inventions and products."

'Censoring the web'

Of about 40 co-sponsors for the Pipa bill, a handful withdrew their support on Wednesday, as thousands of websites participated in a co-ordinated online protest. Floods of emails and phone calls to congressmen followed the online protests, prompting some lawmakers to withdraw their support for the measures. More than seven million people signed a petition on Google saying that passage of the legislation would result in censoring the web and impose a regulatory burden on businesses.

Both bills focus on responding to online piracy, specifically illegal copies of films and other media. The bills would also outlaw sites from containing information about how to access blocked sites. The Motion Picture Association of America, a key supporter of the legislation, has campaigned strongly against the violation of copyright laws. But on Thursday evening their website was targeted by a hacking group known as Anonymous.

Celebrity backing

Anonymous also claimed credit for blocking access to the US Department of Justice and FBI websites, by launching a so-called "denial-of-service" attach that bombards their websites with traffic. The move was being seen as a retaliation after the Department of Justice shut down a major file-sharing website, Megaupload. The firm's co-founders have been charged with violating existing anti-piracy laws.

Four Megaupload employees were arrested in Auckland, New Zealand, at the request of US authorities. Police seized cash, valuable cars and a short-barrelled shotgun from the residence of the website's German founder, Kim Dotcom, formerly known as Kim Schmitz. Their Hong Kong-based site had around 150 million users and 50 million daily hits. It has received celebrity endorsements from artists such as Alicia Keys and Kanye West, making it one of the internet's most high profile file-sharing platforms.

BBC News - Sopa and Pipa bills postponed in US Congress

See also:

Hackers retaliate over Megaupload website shutdown
20 January 2012 - Hackers have targeted the US government and copyright organisations following the shutdown of the Megaupload file-sharing website.

The Department of Justice (DoJ), FBI and the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) among others have been bombarded with internet traffic. Web links have been been distributed which, when clicked, make the user's computer part of the attack. A statement attributed to Anonymous claimed responsibility.

Blackout protest

The DoJ announced on Thursday that it had taken action to force Megaupload and related domain names offline, and had charged the firm's co-founders and others with violating piracy laws. Four of the employees have been arrested in Auckland, New Zealand, at the request of the US authorities. Police also seized cash, valuable cars and a short-barrelled shotgun from the residence of the website's German founder, Kim Dotcom, formerly known as Kim Schmitz. They appeared in court on Friday. One of their lawyers initially objected to media requests for photographs, but the accused said that they did not mind "because we have nothing to hide".

Their Hong Kong-based site had around 150 million users and 50 million daily hits. It had received celebrity endorsements from the model Kim Kardashian and singers Alicia Keys and Kanye West among others, making it one of the net's most high-profile file sharing sites. The business had said it had been diligent in responding to complaints about pirated material. News of the arrests came the day after thousands of websites had taken part in a "blackout" to protest against proposed anti-piracy laws; however, the DoJ suggested the two matters were not related. A statement from the department noted that a grand jury indictment against the Megaupload employees was issued on 5 January.

'Unwanted traffic'

Hours later a statement linked to the @AnonymousWiki twitter account announced: "We Anonymous are launching our largest attack ever on government and music industry sites. Lulz. The FBI didn't think they would get away with this did they? They should have expected us." It said that 10 sites had been taken offline in response to the Megaupload shutdown including the FBI, Universal Music, RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) and Hadopi - the French government agency responsible for "protecting creative works on the internet".

More BBC News - Hackers retaliate over Megaupload website shutdown