Pak Blocked 20,000 objectionable websites Including Youtube

Pakistani authorities have blocked about 20,000 websites, including YouTube, for hosting "objectionable" material like footage from the anti-Islam movie "Innocence of Muslims", an official said on Monday.

"We have blocked 20,000 objectionable websites and blogs since the blasphemous film surfaced on the Internet," an official of the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority said.

"We are strictly following the court's orders in this regard," said the official who did not want to be named.

He was referring to a sessions court in Lahore that ordered the registration of a case against the PTA Chairman for the organisation's failure to block footage from the anti-Islam film on the Internet.

"The PTA has not only blocked websites featuring the anti-Islam film but thousands of others with objectionable material," the official said.

Facebook, YouTube blocked in Kashmir

Internet users in Kashmir are unable to access Facebook and YouTube. The government had issued orders to Internet service providers to restrict access to the websites. This move is believed to be in response to the protests against the anti-Islam video on YouTube.

It was previously reported that the certain URLs with offensive content had been blocked, but it now seems that access to the entire websites have been restricted. Last month the Government of Jammu & Kashmir had directed service providers to ensure that the controversial YouTube video was not accessible from the state.

The order was issued by the state Home Department, invoking the powers conferred under section 5(2) of the Indian Telegraph Act 1885.

"In the interest of public safety and for maintaining public order, the government directed all licensed Telecom Service Providers and Internet Service Providers to make arrangements to ensure that their subscribers in Jammu and Kashmir should not be able to download or upload the contents" with regard to the video, the order said.

Twitter may face govt axe in India

Twitter might face legal action if the popular microblogging site does not comply with Indian government's demand to censor objectionable content posted by its users. 

Stung by the misinformation campaign thatspread like wildfire through SMS, Facebook,YouTube and Twitter in past weeks, the Indian government now seems to be moving ahead with its initial threat to tighten the noose around social media. 

Indicating this, a senior government official has said that Twitter has already been told that legal action may be taken against it as it had failed to cooperate with the Indian government in its efforts to find the source of and curtail the inflammatory messages against north-east citizens.

Internet protocol address not of Pakistan, says Himanshu Roy

MUMBAI: The Cyber Crime Investigating Cell (CCCI) probe into the SMSs and the uploaded morphed pictures circulated among theminority community which led to provocation, has so far not found any internet protocol (IP) to suggest that it had originated from Pakistan.

"Most of the clippings are morphed and so far investigations we have found that it has been generated from within India itself. We have not come to conclusion to pinpoint any links with any foreign country though our investigations are still going on,'' said Himanshu Roy, joint commissioner of police (crime).

The police were probing how these morphed pictures showing atrocities on minorities were uploaded on the facebook and youtube which police believes instigated the mobs to protest at Azad Maidan on Saturday.

Military sexual assault is focus of YouTube series

San Diego: The enormous obstacles and emotional torment that a female solider confronts in reporting a sexual assault in the military are the focus of the three-part Web series "Lauren" debuting Monday on YouTube's new channel WIGS, which focuses on drama for women.

Featuring "Flashdance" star Jennifer Beals and Troian Bellisario, "Lauren" gives a close-up look at the challenges women service members face in trying to find justice after being raped. It's a problem that military leaders have given unprecedented attention to this year.

The Defense Department has estimated that 86 per cent of sexual assaults go unreported, an indication that some women are worried about the effect reporting an assault may have on their career and that they mistrust the military prosecution system. Nearly 3,200 sexual assaults were reported in the military last year.

Educational foundation becomes victim of cyber crime

New Delhi: A leading educational foundation, which operates across India and has its office in Saket, has become the latest victim of online slur with an unidentified man putting up videos on YouTube with derogatory tags and texts and uploading the pictures and videos of the foundation's employees meet in sections of 'rave parties' and 'orgy', said a source.

The accused reportedly captured some 'fun moments' where teachers were shown dancing and associated them with raves and sex videos leading to the organization facing queries from across the globe. The worried foundation has now approached the cyber cell of Delhi police which has registered a criminal case under section 66 of the Information Technology (IT) act and has begun its probe.

Google antipiracy measure skips YouTube, says report

New policy demotes sites in search results if Google receives a lot of take-down notices involving content on those sites. But removal requests are handled differently for YouTube and won't count against the site, according to a report.

Google's new copyright-policing policy apparently won't affect Google-owned YouTube as it does other Web sites, despite the fact that YouTube has been known to play host to illegally posted copyrighted material.

The new policy, announced yesterday, knocks sites down in search results if Google receives a lot of "valid copyright removal notices" involving content on those sites.

But Search Engine Land reports that flagging supposedly illegal content on most sites involves using an online process that starts on a page labeled "Removing Content From Google," whereas flagging content on YouTube involves using the video site's baked-in "Copyright Center." And the removal requests Google will be considering as far as search-result positioning is concerned will be those made through the Removing Content page, not through YouTube's Copyright Center.

YouTube to spend $200 million more on professional videos

The site initially spend $150 million to acquire talent for original programming, and now wants to market it more effectively to the target audience.YouTube is ready to dump more cash into its professional programming, according to a new report.
Google-owned YouTube will drop another $200 million into the programming to more effectively market the nearly 100 channels boasting professional videos, the company told the Wall Street Journal in a report published yesterday.
The Journal is reporting today, citing sources, that YouTube has so far attracted $150 million worth of advertising to its original programming. That investment, if it carries throughout the year, would help cover the startup costs YouTube incurred to get its programming off the ground