Internet Security Agencies Worldwide | HackThatCORE

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The Internet services and security are controlled and maintained by various agencies worldwide. The main of them and their mives about the privacy and security on the internet are as follows:

National Security Agency (NSA)

United States

Weakening Privacy
Project Bullrun aimed to weaken online privacy by inserting vulnerabilities into commercial encryption systems.

Monitoring citizens
Under the auspices of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, the PRISM surveillance program set out to monitor electronic exchanges among users of Google, Facebook and Skype.

Smartphone spying
The NSA is capable of accessing users' data from leading manufacturers of smartphones, including iPhones and Android mobile operating systems.

Center for Development of Telematics (C-DOT)

India

Privacy at stake
Under Section 69 of the Information Technology Act, anyone who refuses to decrypt private information upon official request faces up to 7 years in prison.

Automated inception
A 'Central Monitoring System' automatically monitors all online communication, giving government agencies direct access to web users' data.

Spyware
NETRA, a hardware device, will be capable of tracking internet calls and messages. The government is planning to install it at ISP level at 1,000+ locations.

Government Communication Headquarters (GCHQ)

United Kingdom

Tempora program
With help from telecom firms, including BT and Verizon, GCHQ placed data interceptors on fiber-optic cables carrying internet data in and out of the UK.

Edgehill program
This program aimed to break encryption codes used by 15 major internet companies and 300 virtual private networks (VPNs) by 2015.

Anonymity attacks
With the help from the NSA, GCHQ made repeated attempts to develop attacks against users of Tor, an anonymity network.

Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation (FSB)

Russia

Bloacking
According to rublacklist.net, 35,000 sites have been blocked accidentally for sharing an IP address with others containing 'harmful' content.

Surveillance
Putin's 'bloggers law' requires all web-based writers with over 3,000 daily page his to register with the government.

Censorship
Russian law allows state agencies to block websites without a court order if they call on people to attend unsanctioned protest rallies.

Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA)

Pakistan

Censorship
The government has blocked up to 40,000 websites, including YouTube and Pakistan's gay community support site queerpk.com.

Filtering
According to a report by Citizen Lab, the government is using Canadian-based Netsweeper, alongside Domain Name System (DNS) tampering for political and social filtering.

Unwarranted surviellance
The proposed Electronic Documents and Prevention of Cybernetics Act permits authorities to intercept electronic transmission without a warrant.

Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC)

Vietnam

Social Media Restrictions
Decree 174, in effect since January 2014, fines those posting 'propaganda against the state' on social media $5000.

Blogging restrictions
The Vietnamese government routinely prospectus bloggers for violating Article 258. This vague code sentences those who "abuse democratic freedoms" to 7 years' prison time.

Journalism restrictions
According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, Vietnam is holding 18 journalists behind bars, mostly for their work online.

Syrian Communications Establishment (STE)/ Syrian Computer Society (SCS)

Syria

Blackouts
Syria is prone to internal blackouts. Though the government blames technical issues, foreign outsiders note blackouts tend to coincide with military operations.

Filtering
According to a research paper, URL keywords that trigger censorship include 'proxy' and 'Israel'.

Hacking opposition
The Syrian Electronic Army has hacked websites including the Washington Post and CNN. Though not officially linked to the government, the group's website was registered by the SCS.

State Internet Information Office (SIIO)

China

Internet as a propaganda machine
SIIO is responsible for distributing propaganda. It pays bloggers 50 cents for every post advancing the Communist Party line.

Censorship
Internet companies employ 5,000-75,000 people to inspect content. Websites deemed politically sensitive, such as Facebook, Twitter and the New York Times, are blocked.

Imprisonment
At least 70 netizens, including Nobel peace laureate Liu Xiaobo, are currently in prison as a result of their online activity.

Working Group to Determine Instances of Criminal Content/ Supreme Council for Cyberspace Revolutionary Guards

Iran

Censorship
The current government claims it has reduced censorship, blocking only websites deemed "depraved and immoral". Twitter and Facebook remain blocked.

Imprisonment
In May 2014, 6 Iranians who recreated Pharrell William's 'Happy' video were arrested, forced to apologize on national television and later freed on bail.

'Halal Internet'
Iranian authorities have been working to establish a national intranet. the content available would be controlled to conform to Islamic values.

Central Scientific Technological Information Agency (CSTIA) / Group 109 / Department 27

North Korea

Kwangmyong
The national intranet is closely contolled. It has around 1,000-5,000 websites, mainly for universities, libraries adn state-run corporations.

Surveillance
For the few who can access the internet, activity is closely monitored. Computer owners must register with authorities.

Group 109
According to a UN report, Group 109 is in charge for inspecting homes for illegal media, such as CDs and DVDs.

*All the information given above is collected from different statistical sources on the internet and is only for eduactional purpose.