Turks skip suspected censorship with Internet lifelines

By Evren Ballim and Paul Sandle

ISTANBUL/LONDON (Reuters) - Turks are turning to encryption software to thwart any ramp up in censorship of the Internet after six days of anti-government demonstrations and a wave of arrests reportedly for urging people to protest on social media sites.

Hotshot Shield, a VPN (virtual private network) that disguises users' identities and encrypts traffic on the Web, said more than 120,000 people had signed up to its service in Turkey since the weekend, more than 10 times typical levels.

The software has been used in recent years by democracy movements around the world, including in the Arab Spring, to circumvent government censorship of social media services such as Facebook and Twitter, said David Gorodyansky, founder of Hotshot Shield creator AnchorFree.

Authorities in Egypt, Libya and Syria attempted to close down Internet access completely to quell protests.

Gorodyansky said authorities had not blocked access in Turkey, but they had "throttled down" speeds, making the sites unusable for periods of time.

Police raided 38 addresses in the western port city of Izmir and detained 25 people on suspicion of stirring insurrection on social media with comments on the protest, opposition CHP party deputy Alaattin Yuksel told Reuters on Wednesday.

Izmir Deputy Prosecutor Ali Haydar confirmed that a detention order was issued for 38 people, but declined to give information on charges or how many were detained.

Before the arrests, protesters in Istanbul had voiced suspicions that the Internet was being restricted.

"We had problems accessing Twitter and Facebook Saturday when the protests were intense," said Deniz Utku, a digital marketing agency founder whose office is close to Taksim Square, the center of the demonstrations.

Go here to read the rest:
Turks skip suspected censorship with Internet lifelines