Anonymous is taking the lead in promoting an Internet blackout to protest the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA). CISPA, a controversial bill critics claim would end online privacy and violate the Fourth Amendment, was passed by the U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday, April 18.
On Friday, April 19, hacktivists associated with the international online collective known as Anonymous issued an invitation to “citizens of the internet,” calling for a 24 hour Internet blackout to protest CISPA ( #CISPABlackout ) .
While some CISPA proponents see the bill as a strong measure to fight cyber threats and better protect citizens, organizations like the American Civil Liberties Union, The Internet Defense League and the Electronic Frontier Foundation oppose CISPA because of the jurisdiction it would provide for the federal government to procure personal information shared with private-sector entities such as Google or Facebook.
The following is an excerpt from the announcement released by Anonymous calling for an Internet blackout on April 22 to protest CISPA ( #CISPABlackout ):
Dear citizens of the internet,
We are Anonymous.
This upcoming Monday, April the 22nd, we invite you to join Anonymous in a internet blackout. We encourage all web developers and website owners to go dark on this date. Display a message as to why you are going dark, and encourage others to do the same.
We hope, just like the successful protest over the Stop Online Piracy Act, we can encourage the senate to stop this bill.
Spread the message, and inform the world.
We are Anonymous
We are the people
We are the internet
Knowledge is free
In addition to vocal and vigorous opposition to the bill from Internet activists, the Obama administration is threatening to veto the controversial bill. In a statement released Monday the White House said:
"The administration still seeks additional improvements and if the bill, as currently drafted, were presented to the president, his senior advisers would recommend that he veto the bill."
In order to apply pressure to President Obama, the ACLU has launched a petition: “ Tell President Obama: Protect My Privacy, Veto CISPA .”
For more information readers can follow the story via Twitter hashtags: #CISPABlackout and #StopCISPA .
For more news, art and information about Anonymous, check out Anonymous Examiner on Facebook.
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