Wikipedia is lost to our friends across the waters.
This means that Wikipedia has been banned in the UK, because Wikipedia refuses to require age verification from users in order to access the site. Other countries, including the US, are trying to put similar regulations in place. Basically, requiring people to identify themselves to access any content on the internet that their government considers βinappropriate for childrenβ. This was supposed to be for pornography, but now, itβs so much moreβ¦
Governments are essentially moving to make it so that they can track our internet activity. There will be no such thing as privacy and anonymity on the Internet anymore. The world governments will be watching you, not just your own, all of them, and any site that wonβt comply with the governments putting these laws into effect, will be banned in those countries.
This is a matter of privacy, of data security (how many places online do you want to be keeping your ID on file? The more that do, the more likely your data is exposed in a data breach), of censorship and of the freedom of information. The UK just banned an online ENCYCLOPEDIA. Not North Korea! Not China! The United Kingdom!!! Because they said it contained information inappropriate for minors, and it had to collect its users personal private data in order to let them see it, and they said no!
S.1748 - Kids Online Safety Act has been introduced in the United States Congress, and Australia and the EU are also looking at similar regulations.
This is just the beginning. This fight is going to be world wide. This isnβt βprotecting the childrenβ. This is censorship, and conditioning us to surrender our right to privacy!
Apparently the people of the UK are so upset over the current stuff that 700,000 people signed a petition to get them to do an immediate general election, because folks dont trust this government to do whats in their best interest, and Kier Starmer has refused. If I were in the UK i'd be preparing to revolt.
