Current mood:	uncomfortable
Entry tags:	future, internet, netabuse, network, privacy, security

Barage baloons
Some discussion on the mailing lists about Psiphon, a home software tool that enables students to bypass proxy filter settings at school.

We have known about this for a while. It was easy enough to spot from a spike in usage. As I pointed out to parents, their generous provision of Internet enabled mobile telephones makes it nearly impossible for us to responsible all Internet usage at school. Imagine a P2P solution running over a phone network that skips around any software traps we might set?

We had some success reminding students that they are using school computers in a public school. Even if we suspected abuse, we dealt with it by openly talking to student, friends etc and on occasion involving the parent. Our general code of conduct has worked well enough.

The discussion is good but I would like my colleagues to strictly qualify it in the context of our schools. My vision of our global techno-future isn't entirely sugar coated. In a world filled with hostile and suspicious regimes, there is probably a good place for these solutions to protect legitimate researchers and dissidents. Lets not shoot down all free speech and communication so we can float a few clean speech balloons or hand out the arms for those that wish to.