Init7 rebels against the public prosecutor's request to block networks
Prosecutors in western Switzerland demand DNA blocks against "Grondements des Terres". Init7 refuses - and goes to court.
In French-speaking Switzerland, a criminal investigation is currently causing a legal dispute over network blocking. The public prosecutors of the cantons of Vaud and Valais are demanding that Swiss internet providers block access to certain websites via DNS blocking. One specific case involves the website of French-speaking Swiss environmental activists «Grondements des Terres». While the «big players» Swisscom and Sunrise are complying with this order, there is resistance elsewhere. The Winterthur provider Init7 is refusing to implement this order.
Init7 considers the block to be censorship
Fredy Künzler, Managing Director of Init7, sees the order «as political censorship» and questions its legal basis. The mere fact that other providers are apparently implementing the block without questioning it does not legalise it. Lawyer Simon Schlauri, who is advising Init7 in this case, agrees. He argues to the portal Inside IT that such a blocking order significantly interferes with the freedom of communication and therefore requires a clear legal basis. However, these only exist in Switzerland in clearly defined areas, such as access to child pornography content or unauthorised online gambling services. In the case of «Grondements des Terres», however, the authorities are not invoking these special laws. They argue that the website is linked to criminal offences and that «can be regarded as a means or instrument in support of the offence». Therefore, a block is permissible under Article 267, the so-called seizure paragraph of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
Source: parlament.winterthur.ch
Init7 and Simon Schlauri see things differently. They explain to «Inside IT» that the Code of Criminal Procedure does not provide any general authority to oblige providers to block networks. A seizure is directed against specific objects or data, not against the «technical mediation of access by third parties». Künzler also argues from a technical perspective: on the one hand, a DNS block is technically easy to circumvent anyway. Anyone using alternative DNS servers or accessing the Internet via a different connection could still reach the site. In addition, blocking entire domains violates net neutrality, Schlauri adds.
Because Init7 did not implement the orders, a public prosecutor imposed a fine of 6,000 francs. Künzler has now lodged an appeal against the ordinance and the fine.
I've been tinkering with digital networks ever since I found out how to activate both telephone channels on the ISDN card for greater bandwidth. As for the analogue variety, I've been doing that since I learned to talk. Though Winterthur is my adoptive home city, my heart still bleeds red and blue.
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