France to Ban Public Wi-Fi and Tor Network After Paris Attacks
Alexis Villarias | | Dec 08, 2015 11:46 AM EST |
(Photo : Getty Images) French authorities are allegedly planning to ban public Wi-Fi and the Tor network in the wake of the recent terrorist attacks in Paris.
French security forces have decided to ban public Wi-Fi and the Tor network. The proposals come three weeks after Islamic extremists killed 130 people and injured more than 300 others in series of attacks in Paris.
According to Mashable, French law enforcement officials want to ban Wi-Fi and Tor in cases of emergenc,y according to leaked documents from the French ministry of Interior. This was reported by the French newspaper La Monde. This plan may be formally presented to the French Parliament together with the new legislation as early as January 2016.
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One of the reasons the ban was proposed is the difficulty in tracking individual users on a public network. Paris provides free public Wi-Fi in almost 300 locations around the city.
Meanwhile, Tor is a widely used secure web network that hides a user's original IP address through sending communications via multiple volunteer-operated servers. Tor is widely used and may also refer to software like web browsers that direct users' communications via Tor network. This has become widely popular among individuals who prefer to be anonymous.
As Motherboard cites, the network was made popular after the revelations made by Edward Snowden about NASAs spying tactics.
However, to prove that ISIS actually used Tor to plot the terrorist attacks is a whole new different story. French lawmakers believe it's a great probability that ISIS may use Tor to plan any future attack.
It would present a great challenge to the French government to block Tor entirely. The Chinese government is the only one that utterly blocks Tor. China blocks automatically connections that are publicly listed Tor entry nodes.
Most importantly, the great challenge comes from contradicting their won motto: "liberte, egalite, fraternite" which means liberty, equality, fraternity. To ban Tor would hold back the liberty of the French. Additionally, to block Tor may not really accomplish anything significant in fighting ISIS. It could still be used in the surrounding countries.
Social networking sites like Facebook, WhatsApp, Signal and Off The Record were criticized in the wake of Paris attacks since these apps can offer a way for terrorists to communicate without many interceptions from the government.
Indeed, it will be a long debate on liberty and national security this coming January.
TagsTor, Paris Attacks, public Wi-Fi, French Government, Ban Public Wi-Fi and Tor Network, Secure Network, Anonymous App
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