[PLUG] Canadian major ISP appear to be blocking a website

[Carla Schroder]

On Tuesday 30 September 2003 1:16 pm, Marc Pootmans wrote:
> Hi all,
>   I'm tech rep on a website hosted in Portland by a linux group
> (linuforall) maintainer who has a direct dsl line to the net. The website
> owner has no, or irregular access to the site, and thus to his mail server
> as well. All other customers of the same isp Shaw Cable in Vancouver Canada
> have no access to his site either. Customers of ISP Telus DSL all have
> access. I have reliable access here, as do friends in Canada, USA and
> abroad. His ISP claims the web host may be blocking them, or a DNS "push"
> may be the problem. So far they are looking into it, but claiming it isn't
> their problem. The LUG web-hoster has confirmed he blocks no one.

First of all check to see if the site is on any RBLs. samspade.org checks all 
the major ones at once.

>   Without asking legal advice, my questions are
> 1) Does the technology exist (major ISP hardware and software) to block
> access to individual sites? Is it possible? Can it 'reasonably' happen by
> accident, or only intentionally? 

Sure, it's common to block by IP as a means of spam or content control. It 
could happen 'accidentally' if the site is part of larger netblock that is 
being blocked. There are also all kinds of content filters, like Net Nanny.

2) Who would be best web contact orgs
> responsible for controlling, preventing or stopping such censorship, not
> just whining about it? (yes I am googling - so vast) The website owner
> previously discovered this same company doing religious censorship in their
> public kiosk computer terminals and has a Canadian Radio telecommunications
> Commision (CRTC) complaint over those events as do I. His business is
> suffering due to his inability to access his website and mail.
>

"My server, my rules". If a private ISP wishes to filter traffic, that's their 
privilege. Absent any law compelling them to allow your traffic on their 
network, they don't have to. But you probably want to find out for sure 
before anything else. Like ask them directly?

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Carla Schroder
www.tuxcomputing.com
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