Russia considers brief switch-off from global internet to test defences

Russia is considering whether to disconnect from the global internet briefly, as part of a test of its cyber-defences. The test will mean data passing between Russian citizens and organisations stays inside the nation rather than being routed internationally. A draft law mandating technical changes needed to operate independently was introduced to its parliament last …

Magna Carta for the web: Tim Berners-Lee in new campaign to rescue the web from abuse

The internet today isn’t what Tim Berners-Lee pictured when he invented the World Wide Web nearly three decades ago. In a talk at the opening of the Web Summit in Lisbon on Monday, the inventor of the web called on governments, companies and individuals to back a new “Contract for the Web” that aims to …

Survey: Internet Connectivity Builds Positive Impact on Life in Sub-Saharan Africa

In a new Pew Research Center analysis, Sub-Saharan Africa has experienced dramatic gains in internet use in recent years. With this rapid growth in connectivity have come a host of potential problems, including fake news, political targeting and manipulation and financial scams, among others. Yet according to the Pew Research Center analysis, most sub-Saharan Africans …

Internet Third Quarter of 2017 Closes with 330.7 Million Domain Name Registrations

VeriSign, Inc. (NASDAQ: VRSN), a global leader in domain names and internet security, today announced that the third quarter of 2017 closed with approximately 330.7 million domain name registrations across all top-level domains (TLDs), a decrease of approximately 1.2 million domain name registrations as of Sept. 30, 2017.1 The decrease of approximately 1.2 million domain …

Iran Blocks the Internet, Social Media sites shut down

As protests over economic instability and government censorship persist in Iran, the Hassan Rouhani government has reportedly wielded its favorite suppression tactic: blocking the internet. Multiple reports say the government was blocking internet on mobile networks starting on Dec. 30, including social media services like Instagram and messaging services like Telegram, to try and stop …

Charts show broadband internet still too expensive for many Africans

In parts of the continent, monthly broadband packages cost more than national minimum wage. In Nigeria, for example, the $80 average cost of monthly broadband packages is nearly double the national minimum wage of $50 (18,000 naira), data from the broadband pricing league table compiled by Cable.co.uk show. Of the 36 African countries analyzed, only …