One of the greatest hopes of the Internet was that, in the process of opening up their countries to new commercial opportunities, totalitarian regimes would also open their people to new ideas. With PICS built into their network infrastructures, repressive governments can selectively choose which information to let in and which to keep out. Simply put, PICS could be the most effective global censorship technology ever designed. Talk back to Simson Garfinkel in his column's Threads . Illustration by Dave Plunkert Join the HotWired Network, it's free .
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