Centre for Internet & Society

Developing location-based services

Developing location-based services

by Prasad Krishna last modified Feb 28, 2012 09:31 AM

For mapping enthusiasts, geeks and neogeographers in Bangalore, here's something to look forward to. Cartonama, a workshop that offers intensive hands-on training on tools to build and manage location data for location-based services, will be held in the city on March 2 and 3.

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Grooming the geek

Grooming the geek

by Prasad Krishna last modified Feb 28, 2012 09:16 AM

Generation 2.0, the iPad child, is enriched by technology, and many parents are embracing it wholeheartedly. But can technology transform the way a child’s abilities develop?

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FUEL Kannada - Workshop on Kannada Computing Terminology

by Prasad Krishna last modified Feb 23, 2012 10:32 AM

A two days workshop on the standardization of Kannada computing terminologies was organized on January 28th and 29th 2012 at the Centre for Internet and Society (CIS), Bangalore under the FUEL project. This FUEL Kannada workshop aimed at the community review and standardization of frequently encountered computing terminologies in Kannada. FUEL Kannada Evaluation meet aimed at solving the problem of inconsistency and lack of standardization in computer software translations in Kannada language. This workshop was hosted by CIS, sponsored by Red Hat and organized by Sanchaya (sanchaya.net).

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OurSay: how India’s technology is cutting into corruption

by Prasad Krishna last modified Feb 17, 2012 02:40 AM

In the world’s largest democracy, corruption has long been part of the system of governance. However, transformative new technologies are playing an exciting and powerful role in citizen engagement, good governance and in the mobilisation of the masses for social action.

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India won't censor social media: Telecom Minister

India won't censor social media: Telecom Minister

by Prasad Krishna last modified Mar 01, 2012 07:15 AM

India does not intend to censor online social networks such as Facebook, a minister said Tuesday, but he demanded that they obey the same rules governing the press and other media. The article by AFP was published in the Tribune on February 14, 2012.

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Prometheus bound and gagged

by Prasad Krishna last modified Feb 14, 2012 04:47 AM

Funny how a healthy person like me can collapse one day and end up in the hospital. The doctor who made me go through every lab test available, finally diagnosed the cause after a chat with me. Apparently, I collapsed because I’m getting angry, increasing my blood pressure. The only solution he said is to stop reading newspapers, as I’m getting agitated by headlines like ‘India can go the China way and block sites’, or by how the government says there’s no Internet censorship while all it’s actions point the other way.

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Internet Curbs

Internet Curbs

by Prasad Krishna last modified Feb 13, 2012 12:29 PM

A Delhi high court judge threatens to go the China way. The IT act is closing in. The war on the web is a war on us, writes Rishi Majumder in an article that was published in Tehelka on 18 February 2012.

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Tweeple say it pithily with hash tags

Tweeple say it pithily with hash tags

by Prasad Krishna last modified Feb 13, 2012 05:06 AM

Twitter best captures public irreverence to pomposity and the powers-that-be, writes Deepa Kurup in this article published in the Hindu on February 11, 2012. Nishant Shah is quoted in this article.

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New Bill to decide on individual’s right to privacy

by Prasad Krishna last modified Feb 07, 2012 07:19 AM

A group of experts would identify issues relating to privacy and prepare a report to facilitate authoring the Privacy Bill. Vishwajoy Mukherjee's article was published in Tehelka on 6 February 2012.

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Common man as crusader

by Prasad Krishna last modified Feb 06, 2012 04:13 AM

Tamil Nadu saw its highest poll turn out in 44 years when 75% of its adults exercised their franchise in the 2011 assembly elections. There were 48 lakh Google searches for ‘Anna Hazare’ on June 8 2011 (when he began his fast) compared to a negligible number on any day in 2010. A 42-year-old man immolated himself in Kutch last year when he was told to bribe officials to access his own ancestral land records.

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India needs an independent privacy law, says NGO Privacy India

by Prasad Krishna last modified Feb 03, 2012 11:46 AM

India needs an independent privacy law though there are a number of provisions in existing legislations that protect a citizen's privacy, according to an NGO that is lobbying for the cause. The story was published in the Economic Times on 2 February 2012.

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Freedom of Expression in Community Media and on the Internet Understanding Connections, Finding Common Ground

by Prasad Krishna last modified Feb 03, 2012 11:00 AM

A meeting co-organised by the Internet Democracy Project (Delhi) and Maraa (Bangalore) with the support of the Community Radio Forum in New Delhi on 3 February 2012. Pranesh Prakash is participating in this event.

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Google move is not good for netizens, say experts

Google move is not good for netizens, say experts

by Prasad Krishna last modified Feb 03, 2012 10:03 AM

Google's plan to merge data across 60 of its properties, which was announced last week, has drawn criticism from experts on the Internet, who are saying that this is detrimental to privacy. Balaji Narasimhan wrote this in the Hindu Business Line. The article was published on 31 January 2012.

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Twitter’s Censorship Move Aimed at Regaining China?

by Prasad Krishna last modified Jan 30, 2012 04:54 AM

Twitter, the popular social networking site for micro-blogging, has announced it is open to content censorship and region-based filtering, if required by law. The service boasts nearly 300 million users from across the world. Vinod Yalburgi writes this in the International Business Times.

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Google’s privacy policy raises hackles

by Prasad Krishna last modified Jan 30, 2012 03:58 AM

Have you ever used Google to search for a restaurant while you were logged in its network using your Google id? Or shared information about your trip to Goa with your friends on Google +? Or watched belly dance on YouTube? Or looked for Sunny Leone pictures on Google images? If yes, Google knows about it. Javed Anwer wrote on article on this. It is published in the Times of India on 26 January 2012.

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Google to change privacy policy to use personal info of users

by Prasad Krishna last modified Jan 30, 2012 05:03 AM

It is a warning for users of Google and other Social Networking sites. Who are using these sites for searching anything they want to know and sharing their personal life with friends, colleagues and relatives. If you have ever used Google for searching any place, restaurant or shared information about your personal life with your friends on Google and other social networking sites, or you have watched adult stuff on YouTube, if your answer is yes, Google knows about it. And according to its new privacy policy Google is going to put this information to some use. Sheetal Ranga's article was published in Punjab Newsline on 27 January 2012.

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Tangled Web

Tangled Web

by Prasad Krishna last modified Jan 23, 2012 08:42 AM

Government and social networking sites at loggerheads as debate rages over freedom of expression, writes Kumar Anshuman and Nikita Doval in this story published in the Week on Saturday, 21 January 2012.

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POV: Should user-generated content be monitored?

by Prasad Krishna last modified Jan 19, 2012 12:46 PM

After being in the dock for carrying 'objectionable' content, Google and Facebook, along with15 other websites, are fighting for what they call internet freedom. Wikipedia went dark to protest the Web Piracy Bill being introduced in the US. afaqs! speaks to industry experts to find out if a move to monitor content can backfire.

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Indian Internet Lawsuit Puts Spotlight on Freedom of Expression

Indian Internet Lawsuit Puts Spotlight on Freedom of Expression

by Prasad Krishna last modified Jan 19, 2012 08:59 AM

In India, Internet giants such as Google and Facebook are fighting a lawsuit after the government authorized their prosecution for online content on their sites deemed to be offensive. The case has put the spotlight on free speech in the world’s largest democracy.

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India: obscene pics of gods require massive human censorship of Google, Facebook

India: obscene pics of gods require massive human censorship of Google, Facebook

by Prasad Krishna last modified Jan 17, 2012 09:46 AM

It's hardly the sort of Internet policy statement one hopes to hear from judges in major democracies. "Like China, we can block all such websites [who don't comply]," Justice Suresh Cait told Facebook and Google lawyers in India yesterday. "But let us not go to that situation."

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