An Australian government agency admitted last week to unintentionally blocking more than 1,200 perfectly legal websites in the process of shutting down one allegedly fraudulent site. In their defense, they pointed out that they have successfully blocked a number of websites in the past nine months without such digital collateral. This assertion came as no consolation to Australian netizens concerned about Internet censorship, especially opaque and hazily legal censorship.

Two decades ago, scientists at CERN in Switzerland were among the earliest non-military users of the World Wide Web, posting the first photo to what had been a purely text-based medium, among other innovations.  This week, an international group from the scientific community aims to set new precedents for the future of the Internet, with the launch of a major open data initiative for research and knowledge. 

During natural disasters, social media can be an invaluable source of information – and misinformation.  The days leading up to Hurricane Sandy brought a digital flood of faked and misattributed photos of the storm to social networks. In times of crisis, false reports are easily circulated throughout a panicked population.  Yet the rapid proliferation of these rumors can be countered just as quickly on social networks. During Australia's flood-prone summer, law enforcement officials have been using a simple Twitter solution to curb the spread of disaster rumors. Read More

When a record-breaking flooding event struck the eastern states of Australia in December and January of 2010-2011, Twitter users took to their online network to share information and communicate with fellow victims of the natural disasters. A year later, social network analysis (SNA) reports of Twitter chatter during the floods offer a picture of social media behavior in disaster response. Read More

The Department of Justice for Victoria, Australia, created a 3-minute video that explains cogently, in simple terms that do not patronize, what social media is and the steps an employee of the department must take in order to use it responsibly. Read More

Even ostensibly transparent, liberal democracies are increasingly considering legislation that would limit online freedom and privacy. To combat these measures, CryptoParties bring together ordinary Internet users at events held at cities around the world where they learn how to protect their right to online privacy. Read More

An Australian mobile phone app developer has produced Earthquake Buddy, which allows users to track down their loved ones when conventional communications break down in a disaster zone. Read More