France moves to block Tor, ban free and public Wi-Fi

2015-12-07T15:00:00-05:00

According to leaked documents France's Ministry of Interior is considering two new proposals: a ban on free and shared Wi-Fi connections during a state of emergency, and measures to block Tor being used inside France. The documents were seen by the French newspaper Le Monde. According to the paper, new bills could be presented to parliament as soon as January 2016. These proposals are presumably in response to the attacks in Paris last month where 130 people were murdered.

According to the report published by Le Monde, the French Ministry of Interior has developed two frightening new security proposals that may be presented to parliament early next years.

The first, as reported by Ars Technica, would block free, public WiFi during a state of emergency. On November 20, France extended its state of emergency – implemented in the immediate aftermath of last month's terror attacks – to three months. Blocking signals could be difficult to implement, if still possible, and have potentially massive implications, leaving many without internet access for extended periods of time.

The second proposal is to block and/or forbid use of Tor. Originally developed by the US Government to protect intelligence communication, Tor is a free software that enables anonymous communication and internet access. While often used for illicit purposes, notably access to the darknet in order to purchase black market items, it's also vital for whistleblowers, journalists and politic...

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France moves to block Tor, ban free and public Wi-Fi