Filtering Debate - Australian Issues aired on TV

The ISP filtering trials now underway in Australia will reveal the latest developments in technology. With blacklist filtering, general filtering and filtering peer to peer technologies being tested the outcomes are likely to surprise many. The debate in Australia has many participants and the issues being debated may at this stage be wider than the initial objectives of the trial. Two programs recently aired on Australian TV highlight the many protagonists and antagonists in the filtering debate as well as the many stakeholders involved in making filtering work effectively.

SBS Insight

ABC Q&A

Hosted ISP Filtering Solutions

ISP Filtering Illegal and General Filtering Services

Trial One or Both Externally Hosted Solutions

We have a NetClean Whitebox filtering server hosted in a data centre for the purpose of this trial. This server contains the block list of sites to be blocked. It also supports BGP routing. To implement the filtering, you simply set this server to be a neighbour to your edge router and set up a simple tunnel to it using IPIP or BGP. This takes about 10 minutes on a Cisco to set up. As soon as this is set up then only the traffic on your network that is destined for the IP addresses that correspond to the block list URLs will be routed down the tunnel to the filter. The filter will then send a blocking page to the source IP of the request. It is as simple as that and, no, we do not store IP addresses on the server. I attach a more detailed description to this email for you or your technical people if required.

2. Externally Tunnelled 8e6 Filtering solution
For this option we have a large hosted array of filtering servers installed in a data centre. We send you a Cisco 871 router preconfigured for your network. You install this so it can see the traffic from the customers who you wish to filter. It then tunnels the outgoing web requests to port 80 TCP (http) and port 443 TCP (https:) through to our filter. Then all the web requests are checked for a blacklist. If a match is made, the filter sends a blocking page to the source IP of the request. If a match is not made, the request goes out to the destination web site as normal. All responses from the destination web sites get routed back through your network as usual. I also attach a more detailed description of this for you. In order to do this we need the following information:

• IP address, subnet mask and gateway address for router.
• Source IP address range to be filtered.
• Delivery address for router

Watchdog ISP Filtering Trial Information Sheet

WATCHDOG INTERNATIONAL FILTERING TECHNOLOGY INFORMATION SHEET

Best Technology Solutions

NetClean Whitebox is the best solution for the blocking of illegal web sites such as the ACMA blacklist because:

• It uses hybrid filtering (IP filtering via BGP then URL filtering) to reduce the risk of overblocking
• It has no effect on network performance
• It is scalable and is currently being used in the largest filtering implementation in the world at Telia Sonera.  Telia's network is one of the largest in Europe covering 53 ISPs with network speeds up to 140Gbps in the backbone.
• It has a very low cost per user
• It is very easy to install with no changes required to your network except for minor router configuration
• It is the only commercial solution specifically designed for blocking of illegal content
• It is currently being used by ISPs in New Zealand, the UK, and across Europe
• It is totally fail safe where server failure will stop the filtering but have no effect on your network
• It is a turnkey, appliance-based solution

8e6 R3000 is the best solution for general ISP filtering because:

• It uses "pass-by" filtering technology - this ensures high performance and fail-safe operation
• It is scalable as servers can be installed in fully-redundant load-balanced configuration
• It is very easy to manage through a simple Web interface and all servers synchronise with the master
• The only major filtering ISPs in Australia and New Zealand, WebShield, Watchdog and Maxnet all use the 8e6 R3000 and have built successful businesses on the technology The R3000 is an appliance with a highly-robust operating system and redundant power supplies for high availability
• It offers advanced features such as proxy pattern blocking, peer to peer and IM blocking, time of day and quota filtering, wildcard URLs 8e6 offer excellent remote support as well as 24x7x365 telephone support for urgent issues.

Watchdog is the best Partner

We are the best partner for you to work with because:

• We are an ISP so we know the ISP business We are independent of filtering vendors so can choose the best technology for the purpose.
• We are running both 8e6 and NetClean technologies on our network successfully.
• We have been working with 8e6 since 1999 and NetClean since 2004
• We have been working in Australia since 2005 and have built relationships with ChildWise, ACMA, the AFP, IIA, DBCDE and Senator Conroy's advisers so we are very familiar with the current issues.
• We are members of the IIA We can provide you with the technology, training, installation and implementation assistance required.
• We work with ISPs around the world 
• We can provide equipment for the trial at no charge should you not receive funding

Implementation Summary

Installing the WhiteBox is as simple as plugging it in, loading up the ACMA list, then setting it up as a BGP peer with one of your gateway routers, and setting up a tunnel to a point outside of your BGP for the outgoing traffic from the filter server. The filtering will then take place. The speed of the connection is not an issue as the filter connects via BGP and will only be passing the traffic destined for the IP addresses relating to the URLs on the blocking list. This is usually a maximum of 0.05% of the total traffic. For example, on a 100Gbps connection it would be peak at 50Mbps. Installing the 8e6 requires the filtered customers to be routed to a device on your network such as a core router or switch, and setting up a mirrored port to monitor the traffic from these customers. The R3000s are then connected to this port and are set up to match the IP range and filtering requirements. Again, the R3000s can be connected to Gigabit Ethernet connections so the connection speeds are not an issue.

The Trial Response

Watchdog is working with a number of ISPs in the trial and believe that our technologies will resolve many of the outstanding questions regarding filtering technologies at ISP level. Whether you are considering taking part in the Australian Government's trial or wish to test out our filtering technology solutions independently, Watchdog can assist you.

To arrange a trial of our technologies please contact either:

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