Since the Internet went mainstream some 15 years ago, debate has raged over the balance between privacy and the ability of governments to enforce laws online.
Those who hailed the Internet as the conduit for a new era of freedom of expression welcomed the Arab Spring uprisings earlier this year as vindication of their ideals. But while people fight to get out from under the thumb of repressive regimes around the world, Western governments today are engaged in unprecedented efforts to exert control over the Internet and digital communication.
While efforts to censor the Internet in places like China and Iran come as no surprise, many civil liberties advocates are now raising the alarm about the world's democracies, saying recently passed or proposed laws in numerous countries could place traditionally liberal countries in the same category as some repressive regimes.
The recent controversy over the use of BlackBerry Messenger and other texting services during the London riots is just the latest issue in the debate about the extent to which governments should snoop on private communications.
And days after British Prime Minister David Cameron suggested shutting down message services during riots to frustrate organizers (drawing praise from China in the process), San Francisco’s Bay Area Rapid Transit did just that during a peaceful protest at a train station.
While politicians and civil servants say they are working to balance freedoms with the need to enforce the law online, civil liberties advocates argue these sorts of maneuvers are little more than an effort to vastly expand government power and curtail freedoms.
Are Western governments going too far in trying to enforce the law online? HuffPost’s rundown of the latest efforts by selected Western governments to control the web ranges from the potentially Orwellian to the downright silly:
Vote in our poll below: Are the world's democracies going too far in trying to legislate the Internet?
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this article reported that the U.S. House of Representatives last month passed the PROTECT IP Act. In fact, a House committee passed the Protecting Children From Internet Pornographers Act. The Protect IP Act is a separate item of legislation.