Byron Holland, the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Canadian Internet Registration Authority (CIRA), wrote an article that was published in this week’s Montreal Gazette, which warns that the Quebec government's plan to instate DNS-blocking procedures for illegal online gambling sites in competition with its exclusive Espacejeux enterprise contains social and technical issues.
"While this practice, called Domain Name System (DNS) blocking, is not uncommon - Turkey blocked Twitter and YouTube leading up to an election; it forms a part of China’s Great Firewall, and it was central to the now defunct Stop Online Piracy Act - it raises a number of social and technical concerns," Holland observed, noting that this tactic is rarely effective and simply makes sites more difficult to access.
"Anyone who watches U.S. Netflix from Canada - and there’s a lot of you - knows how easy it is to bypass IP blocking, a similar form of Internet filtering. A quick search will turn up hundreds of services to avoid DNS blocking. It’s a practice that didn’t work in Turkey, and it won’t work for the Quebec government either," wrote Holland.
Holland states that blocking involves censorship and presents a threats to freedom of expression and internet security and stability.
"The domain name system (DNS) is a fundamental part of the successful operation of the Internet. It is a global database that translates domain names (like cira.ca or lotoquebec.com) into the numeric Internet addresses used by computers," he said.
"DNS blocking interferes with that process. What the Quebec government is proposing is to block the resolution of particular domain names, those that host gambling sites not run by Loto-Québec. Many DNS experts believe that modifying the operation of the DNS through practices like DNS blocking could have long-term negative impacts on the stability, security and reliability of the Internet."
"The Internet we access in Canada is the same as the Internet in most of the rest of the world. The cira.ca domain name resolves to the same website in Montreal as it does in Kuala Lumpur or San Francisco. Practices like DNS blocking are a step toward fragmenting the Internet. It undermines the very structure of the Internet," Holland warned.
"I encourage the Quebec government to not punish the Internet for the actions of a few people. The consequences of engaging in DNS blocking are not worth the gains it expects to see, especially in terms of the security vulnerabilities users may face."
Internet Regulator Opposes Quebec’s Website Blocking Plan
Back
Gambling Law & Society News
Back to articles
Was this article helpful?
Your Feedback
Please enter your comment.
Your comment is added.
Member's feedback (5)
All Article Categories
- General Gambling News (6764)
- Casino Games (5496)
- Gambling Law & Society News (3471)
- Casino Software (3040)
- Tournaments, Promos & Bonuses (1366)
- LCB News (945)
- Sports Events (835)
- Land Based Casino News (620)
- Casino Banking (289)
- Bitcoin (279)
- From the Players for the Players (164)
- Casino Warnings & Rogue Reports (109)
- LCB Monthly News Reports (86)
- Upcoming new casinos (73)
- LCB Approved Casinos (33)
- Sportsbook Sponsorship (27)
- Predatory Terms (15)
- Upcoming Sporting Events (4)
- Live Sports Betting (1)
cheztwins 8 years ago
I think the only reason that anywhere actually opposes online gambling is because they want to keep those dollars in their country or state. To me this is the same concept as having liquor stores in some states versus selling liquor openly in all stores like they do in other states. Everyone wants to be the controlling...
I think the only reason that anywhere actually opposes online gambling is because they want to keep those dollars in their country or state. To me this is the same concept as having liquor stores in some states versus selling liquor openly in all stores like they do in other states. Everyone wants to be the controlling entities so they can get those dollars in their pockets.
Show morePlease enter your comment.
Your comment is added.
jade 8 years ago
Well at least they haven't tried that in the US, yet. I really don't think that they could or would . If it's not working, then why do you think they are even trying to block these illegal sites. And the part about it hurting the internet in the long run, well, I guess I just don't understand. I agree with CATLICKER, I...
Well at least they haven't tried that in the US, yet. I really don't think that they could or would . If it's not working, then why do you think they are even trying to block these illegal sites. And the part about it hurting the internet in the long run, well, I guess I just don't understand. I agree with CATLICKER, I think that I'm going to watch and see how this all turns out in Canada. But in the meantime, Canadian players aren't stupid, they know that there are illegal sites out there and know to beware. If they are smart they are members of a gambling forum, preferably LCB........
Show morePlease enter your comment.
Your comment is added.
okotomi1 8 years ago
Regulations have seperated some countries from the gambling community, f.e. Spain and France pokerwise. Online gambling is growing more than the poker boom some years ago and unlike the poker boom here is more potential because a lot of people do play just for the fun and don't expect to win. You don't need skills, just...
Regulations have seperated some countries from the gambling community, f.e. Spain and France pokerwise. Online gambling is growing more than the poker boom some years ago and unlike the poker boom here is more potential because a lot of people do play just for the fun and don't expect to win. You don't need skills, just some money to deposti and not even that.
Show morePlease enter your comment.
Your comment is added.
pinkxxx 8 years ago
I travel back and forth to both . Some web sites are different , a lot of things you cant access in Canada . This doesn't surprise me about Quebec , they are in process of trying and wanting to be separate from Canada , their own governed country . If they do do what the article intails it will not affect all of Canada...
I travel back and forth to both . Some web sites are different , a lot of things you cant access in Canada . This doesn't surprise me about Quebec , they are in process of trying and wanting to be separate from Canada , their own governed country . If they do do what the article intails it will not affect all of Canada just Quebec . I don't live or visit there so Im not concerned for me but others who live there I don't think it would be fair .
Show morePlease enter your comment.
Your comment is added.
CATLICKER 8 years ago
This was very interesting reading. I'll be keeping an eye on how this plays out in Canada. Online gaming is growing at a phenomenal rate.
Please enter your comment.
Your comment is added.