What is all the fuss about the BlackBerry? First it was India, then Indonesia and the United Arab Emirates that threatened to ban the very popular BlackBerry Messaging or BBM service but they were beaten to the punch by Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. Why are these countries banning it and what does it mean for freedom of speech should Thailand follow in their footsteps?
BlackBerry’s way of doing things started off life in a different era when people were stuck on slow 2.5G data and corporations were still getting to grips with mobile email and needed to make sure it was controlled. This led to a very proprietary but secure solution which had the added benefit of using very little data to avoid high roaming costs.
Only much later did Research In Motion, the Canadian company that makes and sells BlackBerry phones, move into the consumer market and offer many of the same benefits of push mail, messaging and, unfortunately in the light of today, watertight security to the consumer. Security that is so tight that is is not only impossible for officials to know what is being sent or received, but not even able to know whom the message is sent to or from.
How different? Return for one moment to the end of March and the so-called negotiations between Messrs Weng, Jatuporn and Veera on the one hand and Abhisit and Co on the other. Remember the incessant sounds of the BlackBerry beeping?
Someone was communicating with the people in that room. Suppose Jatuporn sent a message, the phone has an always-on encrypted pipe from the handset straight through to RIM’s servers somewhere in Canada and from that server in Canada to someone else using a BlackBerry anywhere in the world.
Even if someone put a gun to the head of someone in the three telcos demanding information on the messages coming and going (or perhaps not a gun, but a proper court order as per the cybercrime law), all they could say was that there may have been a spike in the information coming and going from that room to Canada, but that is all they can say. The telcos cannot read the message, cannot see who it is it to or even what kind of data is involved. It could be a message, an email or even a website or a custom application created by a secret society. There is nothing that the telcos or the international Internet gateway can do to shed light on the secrets being exchanged.
If Jatuporn and his Merry Men were using even high grade encryption on a traditional PC or other smartphone, anyone intercepting the message (legally, of course) might not be able to pry into the message, but they could at least say if it was an email or an instant message and quite probably be able to tell the nice ICT Ministry-certified Cyber Inspector that the secret message came from Montenegro or Dubai, or that it was just an I miss you letter from his poor mummy.
Given privacy concerns on the Internet, this seems like a good thing. It prevents secrets such as credit card numbers being stolen and it gives control back to corporate IT departments to keep trade secrets intact and prevent industrial espionage.
The problem for governments is that it renders them incapable of doing anything and effectively turns over all control to Canadian jurisdiction. Lovely when you want a first-world business with Sarbanes-Oxley, HEPA or any other acronym level compliance level to keep your company listed on the New York Stock Exchange and your CIO out of jail. Not so lovely when you are a government bent on making Orwell's vision of Nineteen Eighty-Four a reality, cracking down on freedom of speech and jailing dissidents who just happen to think differently from you.
Kuwait said that pornography though the encrypted pipe was the main concern and gave RIM 48 hours to comply. But if they comply, what next? The word acceptable has different meanings in different countries and Thailand is now a prime example for reasons that shall not be mentioned.
In the late nineties, the US of A tried to put the genie back in the bottle and ban encryption. Some of us might remember export-level Netscape. The idea was that secure encryption could only be used within the United States and the rest of the world would make do with 40-bit encryption can can easily be decyphered by the boffins in the US government.
Of course, that idea did not work. Not only did it lead to the encryption industry going north of the border into Canada, but it only meant that good law-abiding people lacked safety and the people who needed encryption, be it terrorists or the Burmese opposition, used it anyway.
But what of BlackBerry? Most countries either demand in-country servers or a back-door into the system to intercept messages. That sounds simple enough, apart from the can of worms that that such a move opens. Security and privacy under Thai jurisdiction is hardly the same as security and privacy under Canadian law. What of roaming? Can a businessman from Thailand access his BBM while roaming in Dubai? Can an Indian do so when roaming in Kuwait? And what of non-RIM hosted servers?
BIS, the BlackBerry Internet Service, is the main Canadian server most are connected to. But before BIS, there was the BlackBerry Enterprise Server. Many corporations choose to run their own super-secure server which has even more options. There is also Zimbra, an open source alternative to BES and many other options.
BlackBerry was targeted because it was the most popular and most visible but there are others. Grasp that line of thought, multiply it by infinity, take that do the depth of forever and you will have barely a glimpse of what I am talking about.
Gmail? Since the, er, incident with Chinese government hackers, it now encrypts web connections with the Gmail server by default. Skype promises secure end to end encrypted voice and messaging and similarly, India demanded that Skype install a backdoor for its intelligence apparatus to listen in on our secrets.
Banning BBM leads to a philosophical question. How much of our privacy do we entrust with the state in exchange for security? Definitely, BBM renders Thailand's Computer Misuse Act impotent, but if it were really, universally, unequivocally evil, Thai prosecutors could apply for a court order in Montreal. If this movement continues what of Google? What of Skype? Indeed, what of anyone big enough to be noticed that relies on encryption? Facebook? Twitter? YouTube? What of cloud computing?
Cloud computing relies on servers somewhere else, somewhere in a different jurisdiction; somewhere that cannot be raided by Thailand's cyber inspectors on the control of a Thai court.
On a more philosophical question, is anonymity in itself a crime? Is privacy without anonymity enough? Ask that to jailed Chinese dissident Li Zhi who was jailed after Yahoo provided information that linked him to a certain email address.
The temptation is high today for Thailand to follow in the footsteps of these somewhat conservative and one might even say repressive states. How the powers that be react against this backdrop will have repercussions for many years to come. Does Thailand take the high ground and accept the brave new world, or do we set up a somebody else's problem field and bury our head in the sand?
RIM's co-CEO Mike Lazaridis put it bluntly, “if they can't deal with the Internet, they should shut it off.” It is not like many countries are not trying.
Tuesday, 10 August 2010
Thursday, 15 July 2010
Unbanked masses?
Just days after I published a story about True Money which included a quote about how Thailand did not need e-money as, unlke many African countries, we do not have unbanked masses with no access to ATM machines...
Hmm... do make up your mind.
Less than a week later I receive a press invitation from the very same person entitled, "Mobile for [the] Unbanked".Remittance is not a big market in Thailand. Unlike other countries such as the Philippines or Kenya, banks are everywhere and most people have bank accounts."We talked to the GSM Association about this. In Kenya, they do not have the financial infrastructure and remittances are sent to relatives upcountry via trusted bus drivers. Now Kenya has implemented mobile transfers, which are more reliable and charges less," he said.
Hmm... do make up your mind.
Sunday, 13 June 2010
PAD lawyers to sue PTT, SCB and hundreds more over PTT privatisation
Suwat Abhaipak, PAD lawyer, announced today 13 June that he and a team of 20 PAD laywers are to sue PTT and a large network of politicians, businessmen, banks and more at criminal, civil, administrative and political courts. He said that there would be more than a hundred lawsuits filed in order to take PTT back and right an injustice.
Thailand has the world's 22nd largest gas reserves and 34th largest oil reserves (more than Dubai). The oil is of high quality with very low sulfur.
PTT has decided not to refine it and selling, rather it is exporting this low sulfur crude and is importing high sulfur oil to be refined.
In African nations, usually concessions are signed at 80:20 percent - the state gets 80 percent and the oil companies get 20 percent. Thailand only gets 6% out of the operations in the gulf of Thailand.
Suwat also questioned why PTT should export good oil, import low quality crude and also do so at Singapore prices which include lots of transportation and taxes. The ones who lose in this scenario are the consumer.
"This is fraud at every level, Thais are suffering for each and every litre sold," he said.
PTT is 51% state owned. From 30 billion Baht profit a year, now it is on 300-400 billion a year. They said it is fair as the shares will be distributed to the poeple. 8 million shares to everyone. However, the shares were sold out in 17 seconds in what was promised to have been a random selection.
The computer server for the distribution was at Siam Commercial Bank.
If it was truly random, why did people like Prayut Mahakisiri and Suriya Jungrungruengkit get so many shares? Plus lots more of Thaksin's friends such as Wiset Jupibarn and Olan Chaiprawat, both of which progressed to become Ministers, he questioned.
This is fraud and next week a team of 20 PAD lawyers who cannot be bought will launch more than a hundred lawsuits against this network. Anyone who has signed up for PTT shares can join as a co-plaintiff.
The key defendants are SCB, the Thaksin Cabinet at the time and the Energy Price Committee (rough translation - คณะกรรมการราคาน้ำมัน) as well as many individuals who were complicit in the fraud. For instance, during the valuation, a PTT committee said that the value of its refineries was zero as it was losing money on refining.
Rosana did some work and managed to get the gas pipelines back, but she was not an expert in criminal law.
Finally Suwat Abhaipak said that after announcing this on a radio programme yesterday, every one of the callers asked for a PAD mob in front of PTT to reminisce about old times.
Thailand has the world's 22nd largest gas reserves and 34th largest oil reserves (more than Dubai). The oil is of high quality with very low sulfur.
PTT has decided not to refine it and selling, rather it is exporting this low sulfur crude and is importing high sulfur oil to be refined.
In African nations, usually concessions are signed at 80:20 percent - the state gets 80 percent and the oil companies get 20 percent. Thailand only gets 6% out of the operations in the gulf of Thailand.
Suwat also questioned why PTT should export good oil, import low quality crude and also do so at Singapore prices which include lots of transportation and taxes. The ones who lose in this scenario are the consumer.
"This is fraud at every level, Thais are suffering for each and every litre sold," he said.
PTT is 51% state owned. From 30 billion Baht profit a year, now it is on 300-400 billion a year. They said it is fair as the shares will be distributed to the poeple. 8 million shares to everyone. However, the shares were sold out in 17 seconds in what was promised to have been a random selection.
The computer server for the distribution was at Siam Commercial Bank.
If it was truly random, why did people like Prayut Mahakisiri and Suriya Jungrungruengkit get so many shares? Plus lots more of Thaksin's friends such as Wiset Jupibarn and Olan Chaiprawat, both of which progressed to become Ministers, he questioned.
This is fraud and next week a team of 20 PAD lawyers who cannot be bought will launch more than a hundred lawsuits against this network. Anyone who has signed up for PTT shares can join as a co-plaintiff.
The key defendants are SCB, the Thaksin Cabinet at the time and the Energy Price Committee (rough translation - คณะกรรมการราคาน้ำมัน) as well as many individuals who were complicit in the fraud. For instance, during the valuation, a PTT committee said that the value of its refineries was zero as it was losing money on refining.
Rosana did some work and managed to get the gas pipelines back, but she was not an expert in criminal law.
Finally Suwat Abhaipak said that after announcing this on a radio programme yesterday, every one of the callers asked for a PAD mob in front of PTT to reminisce about old times.
Saturday, 29 May 2010
Frozen Yoghurt
Finally found the time to update my Nexus One (thanks again, Google Fairy, if you're reading this) to Android 2.2 or Froyo. First impression? The thing rocks. It's so much faster than on 2.1 (and that's something compared to the older Hero) not just in the benchmarks as they say, but everywhere, gallery, menu navigation, everything.
The addition of the phone and web icons to the base tab on every screen makes sense and frees up (two icons) of screen real-estate. It has built in tethering and WiFi Hotspot capabilities (as if the 5-hour battery life wasn't short enough) and is just generally more well rounded.
Email menus now have forwards / backwards buttons and with minor aesthetic changes here and there.
The on-screen keyboard (one of the weaknesses of the N1 compared to its HTC half-brother) has had quite a few improvements with easier to access commonly used punctuation the moment you press space. Small improvements here and there that make the user experience much better.
What else? A google maps active wallpaper. A power widget in which you can set the backlight back to auto without having to go through all the menus.
Oh, almost forgot. Flash. Real Adobe Flash. That means I can watch streaming flash video via tv.truelife.com or view flash heavy websites. Seems pretty slick and fast too, unlike Nokia's implementation.
It now has a dedicated data off button for when roaming or if you are (urgh) still not on an unlimited data plan. Also makes sense on networks (such as 3) that simplify configuration by working with any APN (so the old change the apn trick to disable data does not work).
Oh, and either Thai came pre-installed on the Modaco ROM I used or it didn't wipe the old Thai fonts. Must check that out.
Camera control is much less clumsy with everything accessible from the shooting screen rather than the slow slide-out panel and it now has manual exposure compensation.
Now, back to exploring the NexusOne god phone. See you later, all your Eclair and Donut eaters.
The addition of the phone and web icons to the base tab on every screen makes sense and frees up (two icons) of screen real-estate. It has built in tethering and WiFi Hotspot capabilities (as if the 5-hour battery life wasn't short enough) and is just generally more well rounded.
Email menus now have forwards / backwards buttons and with minor aesthetic changes here and there.
The on-screen keyboard (one of the weaknesses of the N1 compared to its HTC half-brother) has had quite a few improvements with easier to access commonly used punctuation the moment you press space. Small improvements here and there that make the user experience much better.
What else? A google maps active wallpaper. A power widget in which you can set the backlight back to auto without having to go through all the menus.
Oh, almost forgot. Flash. Real Adobe Flash. That means I can watch streaming flash video via tv.truelife.com or view flash heavy websites. Seems pretty slick and fast too, unlike Nokia's implementation.
It now has a dedicated data off button for when roaming or if you are (urgh) still not on an unlimited data plan. Also makes sense on networks (such as 3) that simplify configuration by working with any APN (so the old change the apn trick to disable data does not work).
Oh, and either Thai came pre-installed on the Modaco ROM I used or it didn't wipe the old Thai fonts. Must check that out.
Camera control is much less clumsy with everything accessible from the shooting screen rather than the slow slide-out panel and it now has manual exposure compensation.
Now, back to exploring the NexusOne god phone. See you later, all your Eclair and Donut eaters.
Wednesday, 12 May 2010
AIS launch Micro SIM (for iPad users)
AIS today issued a press release launching its new Micro "Net" SIM. Obviously it is aimed at the one and only Micro SIM device available on the (grey) market today, the Apple iPad. Press photos included the iPad too. Question is, does that mean that come next month with the global launch, will AIS be the official iPad carrier? Or are they just doing some ambush marketing?
SIMs are available in both prepaid and postpaid on all data plans such as the new 650 Baht unlimited plan or a new 150 Baht plan with 500 MB of 3G and 50 MB of EDGE / GPRS.
Now if only AIS expanded their 3G coverage, that might be a good plan to take out.
SIMs are available in both prepaid and postpaid on all data plans such as the new 650 Baht unlimited plan or a new 150 Baht plan with 500 MB of 3G and 50 MB of EDGE / GPRS.
Now if only AIS expanded their 3G coverage, that might be a good plan to take out.
ข่าวประชาสัมพันธ์
AIS MICRO NetSIM ซิมจิ๋วเอาใจสาวกไฮเทค
AIS พัฒนาเทคโนโลยีซิมการ์ดล้ำหน้
ลูกค้า AIS สามารถเปลี่ยนหรือ สมัครเพิ่มเป็น Multi SIM ในราคาปกติ ได้ที่ AIS Shop ทั่วประเทศแล้วตั้งแต่วันที่ 14 พฤษภาคม ศกนี้ เป็นต้นไป สอบถามรายละเอียดได้ที่ เอไอเอส คอลล์เซ็นเตอร์ 1175
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Friday, 16 April 2010
RIP 3Com
HP has completed its takeover of 3Com. Sob. Memories of modems, Palm Pilots and a brief resurgence a few years back based on open standards and Linux flash by my mind.
Actually my first PDA was pre-3Com, still branded USRobotics, come to think about it.
Another tech pioneer is ingested and now remains only in our memories and as a name as part of a larger faceless empire.
...
HP Completes Acquisition of 3Com Corporation, Accelerates Converged Infrastructure Strategy
ASIA PACIFIC, April 16, 2010 – HP today announced it has completed its acquisition of 3Com Corporation at a price of $7.90 per share in cash or an enterprise value of approximately $2.7 billion.
HP will integrate 3Com’s network switching, routing and security solutions with its existing HP ProCurve solutions, creating a comprehensive portfolio for customers. Combined with HP’s global reach, the expanded portfolio solidifies HP’s Converged Infrastructure strategy, which is built on the integration of servers, storage, networking, management, facilities and services. With this integration, customers will be able to simplify their networks, deploy an edge-to-core network fabric for the enterprise and improve IT service delivery capabilities.
The acquisition of 3Com expands HP’s Ethernet switching offerings, adds routing solutions and significantly strengthens the company’s position in China. 3Com also brings to HP network security capabilities through its TippingPoint portfolio. Together, HP is able to deliver one of the broadest network technology capabilities in the market to meet customer needs well into the future.
Further details on product integration will be announced at a later date.
About HP
HP creates new possibilities for technology to have a meaningful impact on people, businesses, governments and society. The world’s largest technology company, HP brings together a portfolio that spans printing, personal computing, software, services and IT infrastructure to solve customer problems. More information about HP (NYSE: HPQ) is available at http://www.hp.com.
Actually my first PDA was pre-3Com, still branded USRobotics, come to think about it.
Another tech pioneer is ingested and now remains only in our memories and as a name as part of a larger faceless empire.
...
HP Completes Acquisition of 3Com Corporation, Accelerates Converged Infrastructure Strategy
ASIA PACIFIC, April 16, 2010 – HP today announced it has completed its acquisition of 3Com Corporation at a price of $7.90 per share in cash or an enterprise value of approximately $2.7 billion.
HP will integrate 3Com’s network switching, routing and security solutions with its existing HP ProCurve solutions, creating a comprehensive portfolio for customers. Combined with HP’s global reach, the expanded portfolio solidifies HP’s Converged Infrastructure strategy, which is built on the integration of servers, storage, networking, management, facilities and services. With this integration, customers will be able to simplify their networks, deploy an edge-to-core network fabric for the enterprise and improve IT service delivery capabilities.
The acquisition of 3Com expands HP’s Ethernet switching offerings, adds routing solutions and significantly strengthens the company’s position in China. 3Com also brings to HP network security capabilities through its TippingPoint portfolio. Together, HP is able to deliver one of the broadest network technology capabilities in the market to meet customer needs well into the future.
Further details on product integration will be announced at a later date.
About HP
HP creates new possibilities for technology to have a meaningful impact on people, businesses, governments and society. The world’s largest technology company, HP brings together a portfolio that spans printing, personal computing, software, services and IT infrastructure to solve customer problems. More information about HP (NYSE: HPQ) is available at http://www.hp.com.
Tuesday, 13 April 2010
Democrat disillusion and the silver lining
Every cloud has a silver lining and in this case one of the potential benefactors of the disillusion of the Democrat party over finance, if it happens, voukf be the PAD, or rather the New Politics Party.
Of course, the end of Thailand's oldest party is not a foregone conclusion and it still has to go through both the attorney general and the courts. The immediate future will be a mess but beyond that there is some good news.
The professional politicians will need a new party to go to. TRT became PPP became PT after two disillusions. But in becoming Pua Thai parts splintered off. Actually I always argue that they did not separate as much as just return to their natural state. Thai Rak Thai was never a party but rather an amalgamated coalition of smaller parties That were merged into the fold.
So the former Democrats will need a new party. Some will no doubt form a new party like other parties have. Others might opt to join the NPP.
It makes perfect sense. One of the biggest fears of the PAD was that an election that saw Democrats and NPP fight it out would only work to the benefit of the Thaksin party as there is a broad overlap in demographics. If Democrat MPs in PAD strongholds in the south instead join NPP then the problem is solved.
Many Democrat heavyweights frequented the PAD protests. Korn and Kraisak are two, but they may face a ban from politics for five years as they are on the executive board. But others such as Kasit, Khunying Kalaya and Thavorn are not. Joining the NPP and turning it into what they want it to be could be a good career move.
Of course, the Democrats have to be disbanded first. But I am sure many are already thinking of what their next move might be if that should transpire.
Interesting bits roundup of the day.
New York Times slideshow. Lots of pictures of armed protesters here.
http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2010/04/11/world/20100411THAILAND2_index.html
Normally vehemently pro-Thaksin Economist's take on the 10th April event. Even they concluded the existence of insurgents. http://www.economist.com/world/asia/displayStory.cfm?story_id=15868034&source=features_box_main
And yet some people claim that the protesters were all unarmed and harmless.
Armed militia firing heavy ammunition and mortar shells is not a political problem. It is a security problem. The Redshirt leaders are no longer protesters, they are terrorists.
http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2010/04/11/world/20100411THAILAND2_index.html
Normally vehemently pro-Thaksin Economist's take on the 10th April event. Even they concluded the existence of insurgents. http://www.economist.com/world/asia/displayStory.cfm?story_id=15868034&source=features_box_main
And yet some people claim that the protesters were all unarmed and harmless.
Armed militia firing heavy ammunition and mortar shells is not a political problem. It is a security problem. The Redshirt leaders are no longer protesters, they are terrorists.
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