Thai media is reporting that many users of the porn video sharing website Pornhub were unable to access the site since Monday.
The Thai authorities have banned 191 URLs of porn websites and have instructed Thai ISPs to block users from accessing the
censored websites. The news service Manager reported that this was the action of the Digital Economy and Society Ministry. Manager said that the DE would soon be banning many gambling websites too.
The censorship seems to be implemented by
compromising the negotiation of HTTPS encryption certificates leading to the illustrated error message which will vary from browser to browser.
Thai internet users will will surely now be researching methods to evade the ban, such as by using the
TOR browser or installing a VPN. However it must be said that ISPs can still throttle the bandwidth for unrecognised video even when they don't see where the video is coming from. (I spotted this when using VPNs on a 3BB connection).
Thailand's internet users are revolting over their government's recent censorship of major porn tubes websites.
On Twitter, the hastag #SavePornhub trended in Thailand with the majority of post speaking out against the censorship.
An activist
group called Anonymous Party said:
We want to reclaim Pornhub. People are entitled to choices.
A few dozen brave activists protested outside Thailand's digital ministry, holding banners saying free Pornhub
and reclaim Pornhub.
Internet research firm Top10VPN said it saw a spike in searches from Thailand for Virtual Private Networks (VPN), which help circumvent censorship.
Thailand's government has faced months of youth and student-led protests
demanding the removal of military ruler/Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, as well as reforms to reduce King Maha Vajiralongkorn's powers.
A Thailand language hashtag that translates as #HornyPower is trending on Thai Twitter with comments that the
censorship will only add to the number of people angry with the current elite. eg tweeting:
If someone doesn't hate the current military government, now they probably do.
Emilie Pradichit, director
of the Manushya Foundation, which campaigns for digital rights, said the decision showed Thailand was a land of digital dictatorship, with conservatives in power trying to control what young people can watch, can say and can do online.
Thai media is reporting that many users of the porn video sharing website Pornhub were unable to access the site since Monday.
The Thai authorities have banned 191 URLs of porn websites and have instructed Thai ISPs to block users from accessing the
censored websites. The news service Manager reported that this was the action of the Digital Economy and Society Ministry. Manager said that the DE would soon be banning many gambling websites too.
The censorship seems to be implemented by
compromising the negotiation of HTTPS encryption certificates leading to the illustrated error message which will vary from browser to browser.
Thai internet users will will surely now be researching methods to evade the ban, such as by using the
TOR browser or installing a VPN. However it must be said that ISPs can still throttle the bandwidth for unrecognised video even when they don't see where the video is coming from. (I spotted this when using VPNs on a 3BB connection).
Chinese officials are taking steps to censor parts of China's first Gay Pride, the BBC reported.
Shanghai Pride is mainland China's first large-scale Gay Pride celebration but it does not include a march or parade. Instead organizers are
holding a series of cultural events to take place at privately-owned venues.
But that's not stopping the Chinese government from banning certain events. Officials have ordered certain owners to cancel events or face severe consequences.
At ShanghaiPride.com, the event's official website, a blog post simply titled Sorry alerts readers that the film screening of the lesbian-themed Lost in You has been canceled.
The BBC reports that a second event appears to be in
trouble. Officials have targeted the staging of T he Laramie Project for closure. The play reconstructs the gruesome 1998 murder of Matthew Shepard, the University of Wyoming student beaten, shackled to a post and left to die in a field by two men
he had met in a gay bar.
Other events to be held throughout the week, art exhibits, food events and panel discussions, appear to remain on track. The official Gay Pride party takes place Saturday, June 13.
Thai media is reporting that many users of the porn video sharing website Pornhub were unable to access the site since Monday. 
Thailand's internet users are revolting over their government's recent censorship of major porn tubes websites. 
