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|    CONSPRCY    |    How big is your tinfoil hat?    |    2,445 messages    |
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|    Message 1,783 of 2,445    |
|    Mike Powell to All    |
|    The Michigan bill is a da    |
|    26 Sep 25 10:07:05    |
      TZUTC: -0500       MSGID: 1532.consprcy@1:2320/105 2d3be815       PID: Synchronet 3.21a-Linux master/123f2d28a Jul 12 2025 GCC 12.2.0       TID: SBBSecho 3.28-Linux master/123f2d28a Jul 12 2025 GCC 12.2.0       BBSID: CAPCITY2       CHRS: ASCII 1       FORMAT: flowed       "The Michigan bill is a danger for the political discourse" Proton slams       verification laws turning VPNs into a liability              Date:       Thu, 25 Sep 2025 15:32:03 +0000              Description:       Proton explains why banning VPN is a bad idea and how proposals like the one       in Michigan risk changing the US approach towards this security software.              FULL STORY       ======================================================================              VPN usage is under threat in the US, and mandatory age verification seems to       be the culprit.               As more and more US states have, or plan to, pass some form of age       verification laws , the best VPN providers are expected to see a spike in       interest in their products across the country.               Since the end of August 2025, all BlueSky users in Mississippi have been       unable to access their accounts without a VPN. Arizona's fans of adult-only       content are now set to require such a tool starting from Friday (September       26), as major platforms are geo-restricting their content to protest what        they believe to be an "ineffective, haphazard, and dangerous" piece of       legislation.               Yet, it's a recently proposed Michigan adult content law that came as the        most radical by proposing a complete ban on both the use and promotion of any       circumventing tools. The proposal now risks poisoning the entire debate on       VPNs in the country and Proton VPN is worried.               "I do think there is a danger for this type of bill to be in the political       discourse. It sends the wrong message around what the US approach should be       for internet security and censorship," US Public Policy Manager at Proton,       Christne Bannan, told TechRadar.               So, from VPNs historically enjoying bipartisan support, the fact that they        can be used to bypass new age verification requirements could be enough to       turn these tools into a liability. An obstacle that needs to be dealt with       quickly, once and for all. The problem is that our internet security and       freedoms are also on the line.              How Michigan plans to get rid off VPNs and what's at stake              As per the House Bill 4938 , or simply "Anticorruption of Public Morals Act,"       internet service providers would be forced to "monitor and block known       circumvention tools."               "The promotion or sale of circumvention tools to access prohibited material"       will also be banned in the state under this law.               Fines for non-compliance are expected to be as high as $500,000.               Specifically, lawmakers define circumvention tools as "any software,        hardware, or service designed to bypass internet filtering mechanisms or       content restrictions, including virtual private networks (VPNs) , proxy       servers , and encrypted tunneling methods to evade content restrictions."               As Banned explains, this Michigan bill de facto creates a liability for ISPs       (internet service providers) that are enabling access to VPNs, regardless of       whether or not they're used to access pornography.               "This law really has such widespread implications for internet usage,       completely unrelated to the purpose of the bill," Bannen told TechRadar. "It       takes an extreme approach that would have implications for all content and        all internet security."               On a practical level, if this passes, Michigan users of Proton VPN (and any       other VPN service, for that matter) could presumably be blocked from        accessing this security software. They will then be prevented from using a       tool that millions worldwide use every day to boost their online privacy and       security.              "We don't wanna be a tool of blocking"               Despite the idea that the bill, which also seeks to outright ban any       pornography and depictions of transgender people from the web altogether,       could pass, Bannen thinks the proposal is too radical to have a real chance       throughout the legislative process.               Yet, even if the Michigan bill fails to pass, it could still be enough to        push the US to become much more open to the idea of censoring access to the       internet. Something that could make other lawmakers think that it's        legitimate to issue new requirements to all those companies that enable the       circumvention of online restrictions. Did you know? (Image credit: Pixabay)        In 2024, the US-backed Open Technology Fund (OTF) urged Big Tech giants to       step in and better support circumvention software. A made-in-the-US VPN ban       would violently crash with such a proposition.               Being designated as the reason behind the failure of age verification       policies, Bannen explains, could then become the pretext to force VPNs to       block certain content.               That's an idea that, for example, the children's commissioner for England,       Dame Rachel de Souza, has also raised when she deemed VPNs as " a loophole       that needs closing."               All in all, Bannen said: "We don't want to be forced to track content, nor do       we want our users to accept having their information tracked. We don't wanna       be a tool of blocking, and that's the bigger risk.               "VPNs are primarily used for internet security, and just because they can be       used to circumvent restrictions, it doesn't mean they aren't essential.       Especially for those users who face authoritarian crackdowns on freedom of       expression. Democracies should not be using the same techniques as       authoritarians."               Proton certainly isn't the only one feeling this way. Fight for the Future        has launched the Defend VPNs Day of Action initiative exactly to call       lawmakers on taking a "principled leadership" against VPNs. If you are also       worried about a future where VPNs get restricted, you can sign the petition       (in the link below) .              ======================================================================       Link to news story:       https://www.techradar.com/vpn/vpn-privacy-security/the-michigan-bill-is-a-dang       er-for-the-political-discourse-proton-slams-verification-laws-turning-vpns-int       o-a-liability              $$       --- SBBSecho 3.28-Linux        * Origin: capitolcityonline.net * Telnet/SSH:2022/HTTP (1:2320/105)       SEEN-BY: 105/81 106/201 128/187 129/14 305 153/7715 154/110 218/700       SEEN-BY: 226/30 227/114 229/110 111 206 300 307 317 400 426 428 470       SEEN-BY: 229/664 700 705 266/512 291/111 320/219 322/757 342/200 396/45       SEEN-BY: 460/58 712/848 902/26 2320/0 105 304 3634/12 5075/35       PATH: 2320/105 229/426           |
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