Sex, Politics, Murder and the Web Doug Bernard | Washington DC In other times, the political excommunication of former Chinese rising star Bo Xilai would have been a relatively simple affair. Bo, the party boss of Chongqing, had for years built himself firm control over what happened in his province, along the way winning something […]
Censorship on Tomb Sweeping Day
Posted April 10th, 2012 at 1:07 pm (UTC-4)
Alice Xin Liu Every year around this time, China marks the Qingming Festival, also known as Tomb Sweeping Day. It’s traditionally marked as a day for the living to celebrate the departed, marked by outings to cemeteries. Celebrants leave tea, burn paper or incense, and generally sweep the tomb down clean and clear. But this […]
The Coming Cyberwar With Iran?
Posted March 20th, 2012 at 11:53 am (UTC-4)
The Whens, Hows and Whys of Digital Conflict This is the first of a series of Digital Frontiers features, exploring how international tensions translate to the online world. Doug Bernard | Washington DC On January 17th, 1991, as the 34-nation coalition of Operation Desert Storm prepared for its first aerial bombardment of targets in Iraq, […]
The Internet is Stealing Your Time
Posted March 15th, 2012 at 4:31 pm (UTC-4)
Are We Spending Our Time Online Wisely? What the Internet gives, the Internet takes. There’s little question that the web has made our lives more productive. We can work at the office, at home or even on a park bench, so long as there’s good WiFi access. We can Skype or text someone instantly, rather […]
“Chopping The Head Off LulzSec”
Posted March 6th, 2012 at 8:42 pm (UTC-4)
An Internet Pirate Sinks His Comrades Doug Bernard | Washington DC For a while, it seemed that the hacker group with the silly name was running rings around the FBI. In the end, however, it appears it was the FBI running the show. In the summer of 2011, LulzSec – supposedly short for “Lulz Security” […]
More Privacy, or More Excuses?
Posted February 24th, 2012 at 10:52 pm (UTC-4)
Examining the Obama Administration’s Proposed Privacy Bill of Rights Doug Bernard | Washington DC There aren’t many things the world’s three largest web browsers – Microsoft’s Explorer, Google’s Chrome and Mozilla’s Firefox – can agree on. This week saw the unveiling of one of them. The Obama administration is putting forward a new set of […]
“Blogging While Vietnamese”
Posted February 22nd, 2012 at 11:08 pm (UTC-4)
Vietnam Cracks Down On The Internet And Free Expression Doug Bernard | Washington DC Dieu Cay knows the risks and rewards of being a blogger in Vietnam. On the risk side, he’s been tossed in and out of prison cells over the last five years, today finding himself detained once more. His reward? He’s still […]
Building An Internet Bridge To Iran
Posted February 17th, 2012 at 10:37 pm (UTC-4)
The Battles To Keep Iran’s Web Up And Running Doug Bernard | Washington DC It’s no secret the Iranian government doesn’t much care for the Internet. At least, when it comes to their own citizens. While maintaining its oil and financial industries’ links to the rest of the world via the Internet, Tehran continues to […]
Falling Into The Black Hole
Posted February 16th, 2012 at 1:18 am (UTC-4)
An Old Hack Technique Gets A New Twist Doug Bernard | Washington DC Hackers may not always be the most innovative group. But as a rule, they are sneaky. That’s exactly how the latest hack target, Cryptome.org, summed up the recent hit on its website: “sneaky.” A well known anti-secrecy site, Cryptome tends more to […]
Happy Valentine’s Day – NOT!
Posted February 14th, 2012 at 4:01 pm (UTC-4)
The Internet’s Love/Hate Relationship with the Day of Love Doug Bernard | Washington DC Update Feb. 13, 2017: Venngage Infographics, a data graphics firm, has put together a series of 30 charts on Valentine’s Day that are somehow both nerdy and sweet. You can check it out right here. Question: if someone texts “<3” […]
