The company was best known for web gateway appliances that scan internet traffic for security threats, authenticate users and manage encrypted traffic, as well as products to monito. Citizenlab is an online citizen participation platform for local governments. Those companies products have a dualuse nature that. In its investigation, the citizen lab focused on two blue coat devices. Jul 10, 20 according to a citizen lab report, security firm blue coat may have violated u. As with systems sold by companies like blue coat systems, smartfilter, and. As a followup to our post about the number of sites miscategorized by smartfilter, our tests with blue coat show that miscategorization is not a. The citizen lab report said several weeks of scanning and analysis that ended in january 20 uncovered 61 blue coat proxysg devices and 316 blue coat packetshaper appliances with specific. Finplan is a great allround tool helping us manage compliance, crm, portals and accounts as well as our client data. Blue coat is just one of a handful of companies who make similar software, including mcafee, cisco, websense, and zscaler, the report said. Im 20 the commercialization of censorship and surveillance. Proxysg devices that work with webfilter, which categorizes web pages to permit.
Security researchers found evidence that a blue coat device was used on a public network in egypt in 20. Several dozen other blue coat installations were found in 19 countries of interest that were known to have a history of. Blue coat devices capable of filtering, censorship, and. In 20, citizen lab of the university of toronto found evidence that packetshaper, produced by the usbased security firm blue coat systems inc, was in use in singapore. Investigations of commercial filtering in syria and burma 2011. Jan 16, 20 in 2011, several groups, including telecomix and citizen lab, raised concerns that blue coat products were being used to find and track opponents of the syrian government. Behind blue coat report, the citizen lab is deeply concerned about the growing trend among private companies in the surveillance and filtering technology industry to equip regimes and other entities that violate human rights with the tools to do so. An analysis of canadabased netsweepers role in pakistans censorship regime 20, 74 and. Rights group reports on abuses of surveillance and censorship. Tests of internet filtering conducted within burma running on open net initiative oni developed software provided evidence that blue coats devices were being used to actively filter internet content in. The citizen lab is pleased to announce the release of some devices wander by mistake. Think tank presses blue coat over censorship concerns. We use cookies and other similar technologies to improve your experience on our site. Citizen lab researchers have documented evidence that suggests blue coat devices are also used to filter internet content in burma.
An analysis of canadabased netsweepers role in pakistans censorship regime 20, 59 and. Forbes takes privacy seriously and is committed to transparency. Blue coat has blood on its hands, people rounded up and tortured and even killed thanks to it and products like it, and its a disgrace for teachers whose. The following is the list of countries of interest in which blue coat. Bluecoat software has provided us with the platform to expand our business using intuitive and well thought out technology. Figure 1 global map of blue coat devices on public networks. Mary avenue sunnyvale, ca 94085 united states of america 5 lee jackson memorial hwy suite 220. Planet blue coat redux 20, 73 o pakistan, we stand on guard for thee. Blue coat devices capable of filtering, censorship, and surveillance are. Blue coat systems was a company that provided hardware, software, and services designed for cybersecurity and network management.
Syrian blue coat logs unencrypted web traffic ohchr similar to the confidentiality assurances of encryption, protecting the integrity and accessibility of communications over the internet requires cryptography, and even anonymity. The citizen lab conducts groundbreaking research on the global proliferation of targeted surveillance software and toolkits, including finfisher, hacking team and nso group. Rights group reports on abuses of surveillance and. Reporters without borders also cited a study by the university of torontos citizen lab which found that blue coat software is in use by multiple governments. Blue coat and kaspersky lab blue coat content analysis system cas, powered by kaspersky security technologies, is a layered platform that offers you the best protection against known, unknown, and targeted attacks. Packetshaper allows the surveillance and monitoring of user interactions on various applications such.
Still, blue coat has attracted particular scrutiny from the citizen lab, whose latest. The company had a broad security portfolio including hardware, software and services. The citizen lab is an interdisciplinary laboratory based at the munk school of global affairs at. In 2011, several groups, including telecomix and citizen lab, raised concerns that blue coat products were being used to find and track opponents of. Blue coat systems is a californiabased provider of network security and optimization products. During several weeks of scanning and validation that ended in january 20, we uncovered 61 blue coat proxysg devices and 316 blue coat packetshaper appliances, devices with specific functionality permitting filtering, censorship, and surveillance. Recent research from the citizen lab has detected the presence of devices capable of surveillance on networks operated by nigerian internet service providers. Tests of internet filtering conducted within burma running on open net initiative oni developed software provided evidence that blue coat s devices were being used to actively filter internet content in myanmar. Whether you organise participation via surveys or polling, via ideas for specific projects, or via a participatory budget, you can centralise it all on one easytouse engagement platform. Blue coat systems added they did not have a kill switch to remotely disable the devices. Lab jackets blue, 30pkg maytex corp lab coats are made of sms material, which is spunbond, meltblown and then spunbondfused together for better protection while. An app for protecting kids online is growing popular with. The citizen lab contacted blue coat systems on october 27, 2011, requesting more information regarding the sale and use of blue coat technology in countries against which u. Although blue coat has recently acknowledged the presence of their devices in syria, this brief contributes to previous findings of devices in the country, documents additional devices in use in syria, and identifies blue coat devices actively in use in burma.
Jul 08, 20 the citizen lab said it has found blue coat devices in at least a dozen other countries that have poor human rights records, although those countries are not necessarily subject to u. Citizen lab research has repeatedly exposed the ways in which deep packet inspection dpi technology and internet filtering softwareservices offered by technology companies like sandvine and netsweepercan be used to censor speech and threaten freedom of expression online. In 2016, it was acquired by and folded into symantec the company was known as cacheflow until 2002 the company had a broad security portfolio including hardware, software and services. Apply the technology and software unrestricted tsu license exception to cybersecurity software.
Blue coat has attracted particular scrutiny from the citizen lab, whose latest report marks the third time it has found the firms technology in countries with governments linked to human rights abuses. In november 2011, following blue coat systems admission, citizen lab researchers documented the use of blue coat systems commercial filtering products in both syria and burma, in the report behind blue coat. Blue coat systems singapore pte ltd, the heeren 260. Deployments range from small isps to tier1 providers that utilize dozens of blue coat proxy appliances.
Three of these have security certificates identifying them as blue coat sg8100 series devices figure 1. Fluidresistant lab coats are specially formulated so that liquid quickly beads and rolls off fabric. A report later that year by citizen lab also found blue coat technology active in online networks in sudan. Citizen lab research on blue coat cited in article on censorship in syria. Blue coat may be selling monitoring technology to additional. Investigations of commercial filtering in syria and burma. Products used for managing network traffic and restricting access to web content represent a dualuse technology. As a followup to our post about the number of sites miscategorized by smartfilter, our tests with blue coat show that miscategorization is not a problem limited to a single product. Those companies products have a dualuse nature that demands oversight to ensure against human rights abuses, citizen lab said. Content analysis system uses a cuttingedge, layered approach to protecting against known and unknown threats, and includes kaspersky. Blue coat devices capable of filtering, censorship, and surveillance are being used around the world. Blue coat systems, software cryptographic module sw version. Guelphbased software censors the internet in the middle east.
Commercial filtering in syria and burma summary citizen lab research into the use of commercial filtering products in countries under the rule of authoritarian regimes has uncovered a number of devices manufactured by u. Our healthcare professionals will appreciate the style and comfort of beyond scrubs lab apparel. A method for identifying and confirming the use of url. Guelphbased software censors the internet in the middle. The citizen lab said it has found blue coat devices in at least a dozen other countries that have poor human rights records, although those countries are not necessarily subject to u. A canadian think tank called on tuesday for continued scrutiny of u. Finfisher is a suite of remote intrusion and surveillance software developed by munich based gamma international gmbh and marketed and sold exclusively to law enforcement and intelligence agencies by the ukbased gamma group. The citizen lab, based at the munk school of global affairs at the university of toronto, published a report that showed blue coat technology widely deployed at key choke points in. Major reports include some devices wander by mistake. The citizen lab, for example, documented specific country implementations in behind blue coat. An app for protecting kids online is growing popular with autocrats.
Why the us firm is among topfive corporate enemies of internet 04 aug, 20, 04. Taylor eddie womens white full length lab coat with three pockets. Reporters without borders gave blue coat a prominent entry on its list of corporate enemies of the internet. The citizen lab research brief november 2011 behind blue coat. Testers within burma ran onideveloped software that tested access to 1,669 urls, both within burma and from a country that does not filter. In january 20, citizen lab researchers found installations of blue coat systems packetshaper device on netblocks associated with ipnx isp and cobranet. Citizen lab found blue coat devices of interest packetshaper and proxysg on public networks in a wide range of countries see figure 1, and was able to confirm their presence in 83 countries see table 2. As of november 9, 2011, we have received no response.
Authoritarian regimes use silicon valley software to censor. The devices, made by blue coat systems, were found on. Planet blue coat redux 20, 58 o pakistan, we stand on guard for thee. In more recent work, the citizen lab has revealed evidence of netsweepers filtering products in pakistan, qatar, the uae, and yemen.
We have since employed more refined methods and signatures that have enabled globalscale scanning for blue coat appliances. The technologies developed in bluecoat are uniquely placed to solve the current security challenges in areas of mobile, byod, cloud and social networking. For its part, blue coat asserted that it wasnt selling directly to the prohibited. The blue coat solution also enables content filtering options for regulatory or cultural reasons.
These awesome men and womens lab coats are made with a superior blend of stretch fabric that feels great to wear throughout the workday. Antistatic lab coats feature a carbon fiber for static dissipation. Think tank presses blue coat over censorship concerns cio. On any network where the software is installed and configured to block sites categorized as pornography, users will be denied access to such sites. While they were designed to improve performance and protect users from inappropriate content, these products are also used to censor the web by authoritarian regimes around the globe. The power and relevance of the citizen labs work has been illustrated in groundbreaking reports that exposed monitoring activities and privacy breaches by governments and other entities, including a report exposing chinese malware, or malicious software, that infiltrated highprofile political, economic, and media organizations in 103 countries. Blue coat provides caching solutions in internet service provider isp environments to improve user experience and upstream bandwidth savings. Packetshaper is integrated with webpulse, blue coat systems realtime network intelligence service that can filter application traffic by content category. Gamma internationals finfisher surveillance software has had command and control servers identified in 36 countries. Android becoming mobile malware magnet, says report zdnet. Citizen lab has also published a series of reports on blue coat. Shedding light on the surveillance industry citizen lab. Shop a large range of blue lab coat at msc industrial supply. Msc industrial supply is here to support all your metalworking and maintenance repair needs with over 1.
The digital infrastructure that enables municipal governments to connect with. According to a january 15, 20 report by citizen lab researchers, blue coat technology continues to turn up in problematic countries such as china, burma, india, thailand, turkey, venezuela and nigeria. In 2011, citizen lab research uncovered the use of commercial filtering devices manufactured by u. The company was previously the subject of an indepth report published by the citizen lab in january 20, describing the use of blue coat devices in syria and burma for mandatory countrywide internet censorship. Mar 10, 2014 blue coat systems is based in sunnyvale, california and manufactures a range of internet filtering products, often used in schools and workplaces. Embroidered lab coats personalized scrubs tops and pants. Citizen lab had previously discovered installations of blue coat internet blocking software in 19 countries of interest with poor human rights records, but none of them appeared to be set up to filter internet traffic in and out of the country. From small to big repair, equipment calibrations, and preventative maintenance on a wide assortment of medical equipment, were here to help. After arab spring, surveillance in egypt intensifies. Citizen lab uncovered nsos pegasus malware targeting iphones of a mexican journalist and a. Android becoming mobile malware magnet, says report. The citizen lab has received donations of software and support from palantir technologies, virustotal, and. Dod uses same blue coat internet censor as syria, saudis. Produced by the citizen lab at the munk school of global affairs.
Investigation data from two reports around the blue coat networking kit. Founded and directed by professor ronald deibert, the citizen lab studies information controlssuch as network surveillance and content filteringthat impact the openness and security of the internet and that pose threats to human rights. Citizenlab helps governments of all sizes to reconnect with their citizens. Flameresistant lab coats are ideal when working with flammable chemicals for an extra level of protection. May 28, 20 according to a january 15, 20 report by citizen lab researchers, blue coat technology continues to turn up in problematic countries such as china, burma, india, thailand, turkey, venezuela and nigeria. The university of torontobased citizen lab research group says there is evidence that the message is generated by blue coat, a californian company that offers, among other things, content.
Bluecoats product strategy is well aligned with the changes in security marketplace. Jan 16, 20 citizen lab says it found blue coat filtering technology capable of censorship operating in countries including egypt, kuwait, qatar, saudi arabia, and the united arab emirates. Issue broad license authorizations for transfers of penetration testing software and hardware that does not qualify for license exceptions to nongovernmental use and users. In 2016, it was acquired by and folded into symantec. Jan 16, 20 blue coat is just one of a handful of companies who make similar software, including mcafee, cisco, websense, and zscaler, the report said.
In this report, we use a combination of network measurement and scanning methods and tools to identify instances of blue coat proxysg and packetshaper devices. The power and relevance of the citizen lab s work has been illustrated in groundbreaking reports that exposed monitoring activities and privacy breaches by governments and other entities, including a report exposing chinese malware, or malicious software, that infiltrated highprofile political, economic, and media organizations in 103 countries. Reach out to more citizens, manage their input efficiently, and drive better policy decisions. The citizen lab is an interdisciplinary laboratory based at the munk school of global affairs at the university of toronto, canada. As for the breakdown of android malware, blue coat noted 58 percent was android root exploits and rogue software. The citizen lab has conducted research into companies such as blue coat systems, netsweeper, and smartfilter. Egypt, kuwait, qatar, saudi arabia and the united arab emirates all reportedly use a blue coat system that could be used for digital censorship, the organization stated.
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