Haiti: Josh Shahryar's News LiveBlog (14/15 January)

We are mirroring two LiveBlogs that EA's Josh Shahryar is maintaining on the aftermath of the Haiti earthquake. He is covering the humanitarian efforts, and this entry brings the latest news:

06:39 GMT

As images and footage from the Haitian capital comes in in trickles, Google has stepped in to help concerned citizens get a better view of what the destruction has brought upon the people of Haiti.

They have updated Google Earth so that the damage to buildings in Port-au-Prince is visible from a bird’s eye view. You can visit Mashable’s link and learn how you can use the tool to view the updated version.

05:46 GMT

FOX News speaks with an American missionary Joel Tremble in Haiti and shows videos and images from Haiti’s capital. (Images are very disturbing.)

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fz4-556tAR8&feature=player_embedded[/youtube]

Haiti: Josh Shahryar’s Humanitarian LiveBlog (14 January)

05:24 GMT

Hundreds of pictures from the calamity that has struck Haiti on Yahoo News!

(Caution is advised. Some of the photos are EXTREMELY disturbing. Do not pass them on without a stern warning.)

Please click here to go to their page.



04:38 GMT

Haitian tweeter @ RAMhaiti tweets news:

Started to do some shopping today to feed journalists.Someone opened a market for us.one of few not damaged.



Communication is frustrating.Can’t reach people in Jacmel to get news.Can’t reach people around PauP.People are still remarkably calm

Workers trickling in,so many have lost their homes,all their belongings.How many have lost family,home,job,neighbors? Now what? Stay?

I’m hearing that they’re stacking up bodies along Nazon.I saw picture of a morgue and it was a blanket of bodies.Got some help at St Gerard!

if you send people to the stadium,they’re going to need some basics.if you send people to ChampMars,they’re going to need some basics.Water?

I’m finally able to get to my office.many journalists.internet is getting a bit slow.Bodies in piles.bodies along the road.body committees..

I don’t hear as much singing and praying tonight but I do hear planes in the distance. Help is on the way. There were approx 2 million in PauP  [Port-au-Prince]

04:19 GMT

Twitter user @TroyLiveSay reports that people are still being found alive under the rubble. He reports that some people have been found alive in Port-au-Prince’s market. There is no news yet of other survivors from other sources. Hopefully, more will be rescued soon.

Read rest of LiveBlog....

Haiti: Josh Shahryar's Humanitarian LiveBlog (14/15 January)

EA's Josh Shahryar is covering Haiti on his website with not one but two LiveBlogs. One is for latest news while this entry will be for updates on humanitarian efforts:

06:27 GMT

Brazilian NGO Viva Rio also has a page on Haiti now in Portuguese. Please check their website and see how you can help if you are in Brazil.

The Embassy of Haiti in Brazil is also taking donations:

Nome: Embaixada da República do Haiti
Banco: Banco do Brasil
Agência: 1606-3
CC: 91000-7
CNPJ: 04170237/0001-71



05:36 GMT

Reuters reports:

Hollywood stars have opened up their hearts and pockets to help the people in Haiti. Here’s how much each star has donated or pledged and those who have asked for donations:

Haiti: Josh Shahryar’s News LiveBlog (14/15 January)
Haiti: Josh Shahryar’s LiveBlog of Latest Developments (13 January)

- Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have donated $1 million to Doctors Without Borders

- Alyssa Milano has donated $50,000 to UNICEF

- Actor George Clooney will host a telethon on MTV next week to raise funds for Haiti

- Shakira asked her fans for donations to help rebuild Haiti to be channeled through UNICEF and Wyclef Jean’s foundation, Yele.

- Coldplay musician Chris Martin called for donations through Oxfam

- Scarlett Johansson, a global ambassador for OXFAM, also appealed for contributions for Haiti

- Oprah Winfrey got involved on Wednesday by asking viewers of her popular show to donate to the Red Cross

- Ben Stiller also made an appeal on Larry King Live for $10 donations charged to phone bills by texting “Haiti” to 90999

- Cycling superstar Lance Armstrong’s LiveStrong Foundation also pledged $250,000 to Doctors Without Borders and Partners in Health, and will be used in Haiti

04:23 GMT

According to Business Wire, JP Morgan Chase will be offering $1 million in for relief works in Haiti:

JPMorgan Chase will provide a total of $250,000 for urgent relief care from humanitarian aid organizations The American Red Cross and CARE. This will assist with efforts such as setting up temporary shelters, offering medical assistance, helping with sanitation and handling the most pressing issues immediately following the disaster.

The bank will donate an additional $500,000 for future recovery and rebuilding efforts, split between CARE, The American Red Cross and aid organization World Vision. Exact allocations will be determined in the coming weeks following a full assessment of the earthquake’s damage and the country’s needs.

04:16 GMT

In order to aid in finding survivors or loved ones inside Haiti, ICRC has developed a page and list of names of Haitians. If you have a friend or relatives in Haiti that you are worried about, you can try their page. Let us hope everyone finds their loved ones and that not too many lives are lost in this catastrophe.

Click Here for ICRC’s page.

03:21 GMT

Heartline Ministries, Inc. is also accepting donations and would like to receive from those who want to. They have been working inside Haiti for the past 20 years and money donated to them would go where it is most needed. You can follow their efforts or donate by checking their website here.

Read LiveBlog....

Haiti: Josh Shahryar's LiveBlog of Latest Developments

Throughout the night, EA's Josh Shahryar has been covering the aftermath of the Haiti earthquake on his blog:

03:11 GMT

More efforts to help Haitians, LA Times reports:

“Amazon.com has added a box on its home page that customers can click to donate to the Haiti relief efforts of Mercy Corps, and anyone with a cell phone can donate $10 to the American Red Cross by sending a text message with the word “HAITI” to 90999.

Bank of America Corp. will give $1 million and the Walmart Foundation $600,000 to help victims of the earthquake that hit Haiti Tuesday, American Airlines is flying in relief supplies and grocers and other companies are donating funds and products, the organizations said Wednesday.”



Other charities are as follows:

Coca-Cola Co.’donated $1 million to American Red Cross for Haiti

The UPS Foundation $1 million to American Red Cross and UNICEF and others

Publix Super Markets Charities $100,000

Wells Fargo & Co. $100,000

TD Bank Financial Group and General Motors $100,000 each

Kraft Food Foundation $25,000

Sales4Souls Inc 100,000 pairs of shoes

GoDaddy.com $500,000 to Hope for Haiti

Kellogg Co. pledged $250,000 to the American Red Cross.

(For a list of all the donors, please check the LA Times article)

03:00 GMT

As night falls in Haiti’s capital Port-au-Prince, the situation still seems dire. There are no immediate reports of how many people have died. There are no reports on how many people have been injured. There are no real estimates of how many people are trapped under the rubble.

All that can be said for sure is that the lives of at least 3 million people in this impoverished nation has been shattered. The other 6 million people will also be facing tremendous woes as the economic hub of this nation turned into rubble just a day ago.

As reports from citizen journalists reach us, the catastrophe’s limits can easily be observed. The city is said to be in almost utter darkness. People are sleeping outside. Tremors and shockwaves continue to hit the capital. There was even a report that gunfire was heard in the capital.Cell phone connections are severely hampered.

As the world mobilizes and sends relief to Haiti, it is uncertain what might happen inside the country in the next few days. I will update more soon as more information about the miserable situations clears further.

02:45 GMT

Guys,

As we wait anxiously on more news from Haiti, here’s what I think we need to be doing right now:

I have covered situations like this before and I have followed news as well about earthquakes in the past. There are possibly hundreds if not thousands of people still trapped under the rubble in Haiti.

Their lives depend on the donations we make right now. Sure enough, our help will be much needed in the coming days to help survivors, but those who are waiting and praying under tonnes of concrete, mud, wood and metal can’t wait that long.

Please help raise money right now. I saw a tweet earlier that said, “I heard help is coming… tomorrow.” Let’s not waste time while we have it.

Please raise awareness about the ones trapped under the rubble, waiting for our help now. Pressure your governments to do more and quickly. This is the time to save those lives who are waiting for our help.

Here’s a good link with list of aid agencies you can donate to here. Please donate and soon.

02:33 GMT

caribnews

URGENT — CNN REPORTER IN PORT-AU-PRINCE SAYS GUN SHOTS CAN BE HEARD IN THE CITY. NO OTHER DETAILS (via @Upfront_News)

02:29 GMT

The Associated Press Reports:

The State Department has established a toll-free number (888-407-4747) for people seeking information about family members in Haiti. The government advises that some callers may receive a recording because of the heavy volume of inquiries.

If you are wondering how you could help with the relief efforts in Haiti, Catholic Relief might be of help:

CatholicRelief

If you have a cell phone and you want to help survivors of the earthquake in Haiti, please text RELIEF to 30644 and follow the instructions.

02:24 GMT

The Network for Good has released a list of aid agencies that you can donate to to directly help the people of Haiti through this catastrophe of epic proportions.

You can access the list by clicking here.

I have already posted several bona fide aid agencies’ information in the liveblog, however, this is perhaps one of the more substantial lists that are out there.

02:15 GMT

Massive world relief effort is currently underway to reach the victims and survivors of Haiti’s catastrophic earthquake.

The US, Britain and other countries are already sending supplies or are gearing up supplies to send to the country to provide assistance to rescue teams.

The Associated Press Reports:

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said the United States was offering full assistance — civilian and military — while dozens of countries including Britain, France, Canada, Germany, China, Mexico and Venezuela pledged rescue teams, doctors, cash and supplies.

Sixty-five rubble-clearing specialists and six sniffer dogs were leaving France on Wednesday for Haiti, while Spain was rushing three airplanes of rescuers and 100 tons of tents, blankets and cooking kits. Israel was sending in an elite Army rescue unit of engineers and doctors. A military reconnaissance team from Canada was arriving in Haiti on Wednesday aboard a C-130 transport plane to assess the need for donated mosquito nets, basic household goods, tents and sanitation packages.

The Irish telecommunications company Digicel said it would donate $5 million to aid agencies and help repair Haiti’s damaged phone network.

Full Story

(Having covered similar catastrophes before, I seriously think millions is not enough.)

02:12 GMT

Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have donated $1 million to Doctors Without Borders to assist in the relief effort for Haitian victims.

Where are the other celebrities?

01:56 GMT

Relief agencies on Twitter report on relief efforts in Haiti:

UNICEFLive

Tune in to @cp24newsat 9 pm for updates on Haiti. Also, keep checking our wesite for info!http://bit.ly/16ADif

ConvoyofHope

Donate your birthday to Haiti Earthquake Relief here: http://ow.ly/WbWA

MSF_USA

Doctors Without Borders has treated more than 1,000 wounded people since the earthquake hit #Haiti.

MSF_USA

We are dispatching additional emergency staff, including a 6-person surgical team expected to arrive in the coming days.

MSF_USA

See what Doctors Without Borders was doing in #Haiti before the earthquake.http://bit.ly/61BCmC

CARE

Just saw Hanesbrands has pledged $25k to @care’s Haiti disaster relief fund. Thanks!

ConvoyofHope

RT @CoxHealth: Today we donated 3 pallets of medical supplies to @ConvoyofHope for Haiti earthquake relief. Thank you, Convoy// #haitiquake

OneDaysWages

We knew the @OneDaysWages community was amazing, but 120+ donors together giving over 10k for #Haiti in less than 12 hours? Incredible!!

AmeriCares

RT @SMacLaughlin: Visa Giving sets up Haiti donation forms for OxFam and AmeriCareshttp://bit.ly/5VNgsO #haiti

AmeriCares staff & aid bound for Port-au-Prince. We pledge $5 million in relief for #Haitihttp://bit.ly/4CyCob help Haiti #earthquake

savethechildren

We need your support to help children and families recover from Haiti’s strongest earthquake in 200 years. http://bit.ly/5dDppC #HaitiQuake

unicefusa

Help us spread the word. Add a banner to your website, profile or blog. http://bit.ly/7jHLzdHelp #Haiti http://bit.ly/6gp6AP

Read rest of LiveBlog:

UPDATED Iran & Twitter: Last Words on The Hell of Heaven (Shahryar)

UPDATE 12 JANUARY: Patrick Philippe Meyer has posted a thoughtful response, "Where I disagree with Will Heaven vs Josh Shahryar", which concludes: "Digital activists really need to get up to speed on nonviolent civil resistance tactics and strategies just as the latter need to get up to speed on how to communicate more securely in repressive environments."

---
EA's Josh Shahryar, to move beyond the myths of "security" on Iran and social media so we can continue in the task of information and analysis, offers some final thoughts to Will Heaven:

Before I get to your arguments, I want to clear something up first. My first response was rather insulting --- and it was knowingly so. You had clearly gone out of your way to insult people that I have come to know and cherish both as friends and as colleagues. These people are not 13-year olds with laptops who listen to Emo music all day and cut themselves for fun. They are experienced professionals from fields as diverse as psychology, law, journalism, medicine, politics, and information technology. And they care. So any attempt at undermining their efforts will be swiftly answered. Anyone questioning their intentions or work is going to receive a reply. And any insults hurled at them will result in ridicule for the hurler.

Iran & Twitter: Myth v. Reality of Security and “Deep Packet Inspection”
Iran & Twitter 101: Rereading A Tale of Two Twitterers
Iran & Twitter 101: Getting The Facts Right — A Response to Will Heaven
The Latest from Iran (11 January): Reading the Regime

Now let’s get to your latest, hopefully last, argument, posted on The Daily Telegraph website last Friday:

Picture this scene. In Tehran, during the summer of 2007, a group of young students – male and female – are enjoying a house party. It’s a very hot day. They are drinking, smoking pot and listening to music around a swimming pool. Then, unexpectedly, there is loud knock at the front door. Men wearing the uniform of the Revolutionary Guard barge in. The music is switched off and the party falls silent. The girls are wearing bikinis, and the boys are holding beers – they’ve all been caught red-handed. But the order given by the guards is this: every one of you with a laptop or a computer must hand it over to us now.

This anecdote – passed onto me by a trusted British-Iranian source – illustrates something very important about Iran’s authoritarian regime. For a long time, it has actively hunted for compromising hard-drive data in order to assert its control over the lives of Iranians. By confiscating the students’ laptops, the Guards gave themselves access to photos, documents and emails. Enough evidence, in other words, to prosecute (or at the very least threaten) the party-goers, who attended these sorts of events frequently.

More recent stories suggest these efforts have escalated. Take, for instance, Evgeny Morozov’s Iranian-American woman, who was asked by officers at Tehran’s International Airport to log into Facebook when she arrived there in July. At first, she denied having a Facebook account – so when they proved her wrong, they also noted down all of her Facebook friends’ names. I personally know of another Iranian who was arrested and imprisoned after posting anti-regime slogans, rather naively, on a publicly-listed Facebook profile.

I personally, as someone who looks at more substantial evidence, decline to tackle the anecdote you present. As for Morozov’s story and your other Iranian friend, yes, the regime has been actively hunting for data for years. But Morozov’s opinion about social media is pretty negative, not just about Iran but in general, and so I am not going to debate someone who has made up his mind even before tackling the Twitter Revolution. That Revolution is about awareness, not provoking a political revolt or helping it directly.

You persist:

It’s overwhelmingly clear, then, that it is dangerous for Iranians to partake in online protests on sites such as Twitter and Facebook, or to post compromising information online with the intention that it is read by a Western audience. Clearer still – as I wrote in the Daily Telegraph last week – that when Westerners encourage this communication, or provoke it, they could be putting Iranian lives in danger, especially given the prolific use of “Deep Packet Inspection” (DPI). It’s terrifying to think that a simple “re-tweet” could lead to torture, but it’s also worryingly plausible.

Your perception of what foreigners are doing for Iranians is unfounded and wrong. As for your continued worries about Deep Packet Inspection, the report about the Iranian regime using DPI is hotly contested --- have a look at Mike Dunn's dissection, posted today on EA, of your flimsy evidence or responses from professionals like David Isenberg or Christopher Parsons. DPI is not something that you can detect by simply checking systems from the outside. Indeed, About the only way you can tell if DPI is being utilized is if the user actually shows it to you.

You concede:

Now, I have received a lot of criticism for putting forward this view. The most recent from Daily Nite Owl writer Josh Shahryar, an influential#Iranelection Tweeter who has also written for The Huffington Post. His argument is forcefully made (to put it mildly), and he alleges that I have misunderstood the role played by Twitter in Iran. He writes:

Shahryar is spot on about one thing: Twitter has helped to share news about what is happening inside Iran – as I made clear in my Telegraph piece, “spreading awareness” is in theory a good thing. He is also to be commended for his efforts to conceal the identities of those Iranians who spread information online, by providing them with anonymity network software such as Tor and Freegate.

Thank you for the kind words, I certainly don’t deserve any of that. But our efforts are not concentrated on making the revolution a success. That is the job of Iranian protesters. Our job is to simply let the world know what is going inside Iran. If you have to measure our results, do it at how we have managed to spread the news about the protesters. I think there is enough evidence that that we have made a difference in that specific quest.

Instead of measurement, however, you make another fling at tearing down that effort:

But those softwares, as Shahryar admits, are only used by a “select few”. And it is foolish to think that their use guarantees safety: if the Revolutionary Guard were to find someone using the software, the consequences would be dire. “No one actually communicates with people in Iran,” he contests. “They post their stuff and they leave.” But who does he think they are posting their “stuff” for? If the regime was able to match information posted by someone in Iran with similar information being passed around in the US, does Shahryar think they would be forgiven?

Your initial argument was that Westerners are encouraging Iranians to engage in those activities. Now you’re saying not that we should stand aside but that we should intervene to discourage them from posting this information online? Who are we to do that?

"The select few" of whom I spoke  currently have software that is undetectable through even DPI. The exact nature of that software needs to remain a secret for their own safety. The other Iranians already have more primitive proxy server software that they use to access information.  They don’t post anything, but they certainly get informed.

If you genuinely have concerns about DPI, read the articles that I mentioned above. But remember this as well:

It is naïve to think that Iranians are totally dependent on Westerners to protect them. More than two-thirds of Iran’s population is young and a large majority is very well-educated. They know their way around the Internet better than some folks in Britain and the US. And they  know the risks that they face. Again, it is immature --- and rather insulting --- to think that they are kids that are being manipulated by the ‘superior’ race in the West into doing things – and rather insulting.

Insulting to them when you reach desperately for evidence that they are being manipulated by "outsiders":

The idea that, as Shahryar puts it, “we aren’t encouraging anyone” could not be further from the truth. Here are a few tweets from the #Iranelection hashtag posted in the last few days, most of which have been re-tweeted numerous times:

@houmanr: How to stop basij motor bikes http://vasabaha.com/1388/04/07/mikh/ #iranelection (2 days ago)
@jefryslash: ?????? ?????? ?? ???? ? ???? ?? ????http://tinyurl.com/luex5x How to DEFEND AGAINT BASIJ & POLICE #iranelection in Streets #iranelection (2 days ago)
@PersianTechie: Two nails will stop basiji bike/car/truck. http://twitpic.com/7ychu #iranElection (3 days ago)
@fr33dom_fighter break the basiji knees with fierce strikes w/Bat and break their pride and make them humble #iranelection (4 days ago)
@tehranweekly: take all pictures of basij agents and post on twitter &facebook so we can retweet them #cn4iran#iranelection (1 day ago)

And that was just a quick search. It seems difficult to deny that these sorts of messages --- mainly posted by Iranian-Americans -- incite those inside Iran to commit very dangerous acts. Even if they are not carried out, they could be used as evidence against those Iranians who choose to re-tweet them or post them online.

Many of those who use Twitter "on the outside" are Iranian-Americans; many still retain their Iranian citizenship, and they certainly have a stake in their homeland. However, for the very few "Westerners" who cross the line with provocation, you also note my reference to how much we --- as the members of the #IranElection hashtag on Twitter --- are opposed to such childish activities. Your argument is self-defeating: it is we, not you, who are maintaining "security".

So unable to prove danger, you choose to belittle us. More importantly, by reducing Iranians to our helpless victims, you belittle them:

The positive aspects of online activism for change in Iran have been vastly overstated. And when you consider the danger posed to Iranians by online participation – compared with what online participation has achieved – the overall result is hardly tangible, and certainly not worth the risks which have been undertaken. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his brutal regime remains in power after a vicious crackdown. Tens (if not hundreds) of Iranians have been killed, dozens tortured and raped, and many more imprisoned. The Twitter revolutionaries, however, are too proud to re-think their strategy.

You ignore any counter-arguments, including those in my previous response, and just keep on beating your own drum. But let me try one more time to make you stop.

Will, the overwhelming majority of people who were arrested, killed and beaten faced that terror on the streets while protesting. No one online is responsible for that. They willingly chose to go and engage in those activities.

If you’re suggesting that Iranians are going out to protest because we’re asking them to...then I don’t know if I should mourn the lack of your common sense or the waste of my time engaging in this debate. We weren’t even around when Iranians started protesting and they came out in millions. They want to do this. If you don’t get that, then I’m not sure what you do get.

Once more, the main purpose of the Twitter Revolution is to help spread the word about news and human rights events outside Iran.

I really hope you can eventually grasp that. Because then you won't resort --- perhaps unintentionally --- to the insult of those who have faced the risks not from our manipulation but from their bravery:

Witness the demise of @Persiankiwi, a twitter-user followed by some 30,000 people all over the world. In June, he or she (apparently from inside Iran) posted regular updates about the post-election protests. Here are the account’s final tweets:

@Persiankiwi we must go – dont know when we can get internet – they take 1 of us, they will torture and get names – now we must move fast -#Iranelection (June 24th)
@Persiankiwi thank you ppls 4 supporting Sea of Green – pls remember always our martyrs – Allah Akbar – Allah Akbar – Allah Akbar #Iranelection (June 24th)
@Persiankiwi Allah – you are the creator of all and all must return to you – Allah Akbar -#Iranelection Sea of Green (June 24th)

After that, only silence. Was @Persiankiwi arrested or tortured, even killed? Was @Persiankiwi tracked down online by the Revolutionary Guard? Tragically, we’ll never know. But for me, that silence is a powerful reminder of the dangers faced by online activists working in dictatorships. I would not encourage the activity, unless the benefits clearly outweighed the enormous risks. In Iran, I’m afraid, that is plainly not the case.

First of all, you clearly have no idea who @Persiankiwi is, even if I thank you for the concern. From what I know, @Persiankiwi is safe. If you want to pay a real tribute to @Persiankiwi, note that when @Persiankiwi was tweeting, there was no Twitter Revolution. We followed him/her as we made our decisions to support those inside Iran in distribution of information.

Here are a couple of paragraphs just to remind you of something that you have ignored in your previous opinion and your current response. More than 200 years ago, when the British tried to crush the American Revolution, peasants, innkeepers, merchants, students and ordinary folk in general knew that, if they took arms and fought for their freedom against an unjust ruler, some of them would die. Many did. But they kicked the tyrants out and took their freedom through force of arms.

The same happened with revolutionaries in South America in the early part of the 19th century and it has repeatedly happened all over the world. Just because the revolutions in the Ukraine, Kyrgyzstan, and Georgia were largely bloodless doesn’t mean revolutions are all going to be as peaceful. People don’t always get their rights by sitting at home and not doing anything. People have to put themselves in danger for what is dear to them. Sometimes, people die and still don’t get their rights. But the allure of having and enjoying human rights is too great.

The fact that Iranians are dying is not the fault of Westerners. It is not even a fault. It is a sacrifice that Iranians must make to gain their freedom. They know this very well. They aren’t doing it because anyone else is telling them to do it. They’re doing it because they’re humans. They’re not sheep. And humans need more than just food, clothes and a roof on top of their heads. Maybe you don’t get this, but Iranians do.

I don’t know you. You can be a perfectly nice guy in person. Criticism is just part of being a journalist. Here’s hoping next time I read something from you, I’ll be pleasantly surprised.

Iran & Social Media: Dispelling Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt (Parsons)

Following our recent posts on Iran and Twitter, including yesterday's contributions by Josh Shahryar and Mike Dunn, Christopher Parsons posts a thorough review on his blog of censorship, surveillance, and social media.

Since the election of incumbent president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the world has witnessed considerable political tension in Iran. Protests over the questionable electoral results, beatings and deaths of political protestors, recurring protests by Iranians associated with the Green Revolution, and transmissions of information amongst civil- and global-actors have been broadcast using contemporary communications systems. Twitter, blogs, Facebook, and mobile phone video has enabled Iranians to coordinate, broadcast, and receive information. The existence of Web 2.0 infrastructure has set the conditions under which the Green Revolution operates.

Iran & Twitter: Last Words on The Hell of Heaven (Shahryar)
Iran & Twitter: Myth v. Reality of Security and “Deep Packet Inspection”

The Iranian government quickly recognized the power of cheap social coordination technologies and, in response, drastically reduced the capacity of national Internet links – the government, in effect, closed the nation’s Internet faucet, which greatly reduced how quickly data could be transmitted to, and received from, the ‘net as a whole. This claim is substantiated by Arbor Networks’ (Internet) border reports, which demonstrate how, immediately after the presidential election, there was a plummet in the data traffic entering and exiting the nation. (It should be noted that Arbor is a prominent supplier of Deep Packet Inspection equipment.)

Prior to trying to dispel the Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt (FUD) surrounding the contemporary Iranian ISP-surveillance system that is regularly propagated by the media, I need to give a bit of context on the telecommunications structure in Iran.

Read rest of article....