The Truth about the UN and the Future of the Internet after Dubai

By: J.D. Fuzzface and L. Bryant writers, -Terraus.com

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At the World Conference on International Telecommunications in Dubai this week, the ITU members have decided to adopt the Y.2770 standard for deep packet inspection, a top-secret proposal by way of China that will allow telecom companies across the world to more easily dig through data passed across the Web.

The ITU’s secretary general, Hamadoun Toure, has dismissed critics who have called the proposed DPI model invasive, penning an op-ed this week where he insists his organization’s meeting in Dubai poses ʻʻno threat to free speechʼʼ.

As a simple mockery to basic human rights such as freedom of speech he continues: ʻʻIt is our chance to chart a globally-agreed roadmap to connect the unconnected, while ensuring there is investment to create the infrastructure needed for the exponential growth in voice, video and data traffic,ʼʼ Toure adds: ʻʻthat it presents the UN with a golden opportunity to provide affordable connectivity for all, including the billions of people worldwide who cannot yet go online.ʼʼ

Despite his explanation, though, some nation-states and big-name businesses remain opposed to the proposal. The ITU’s conference this week has been held behind closed doors, and representatives with online service providers Google, Facebook and Twitter have been barred from attending.

According to the UN, implementing deep-packet inspection, or DPI, on such a global scale will allow authorities to more easily detect the transferring and sharing of copyrighted materials and other protected files by finding a way for administrators to analyze the payload of online transmissions, not just the header data that is normally identified and interpreted.

It is standard procedure to route packets based on their headers, after all it is the part of the packet that contains information on the packet’s intended destination, writes The Inquirer’s Lawrence Lati, ʻʻbut by inspecting the contents of each packet ISPs, governments and anyone else can look at sensitive data. While users can mitigate risks by encrypting data, given enough resources encryption can be foiled.ʼʼ

ʻIt’ll be the biggest power grab in the UN’s history, as well as a perversion of its power,ʼʼ he warns.