No Fake Internet

Zuckerberg's Internet.org will control what billions do online

People in countries like India,^1,^2,³ Zimbabwe,⁴ Brazil,⁵ Pakistan⁶ and Paraguay⁷ are speaking out about Facebook's so-called Internet.org platform and its ability to control what billions of Internet users can do online.⁸

Zuckerberg's partnership with telecom giants, Internet.org, provides access to a fake Internet where selected services are prioritized over others.⁹ This scheme threatens innovation,¹⁰ free expression,¹¹ and privacy online¹²

It blocks many of the websites, apps, and services the world loves from being made available on equal terms.¹³

The fake Internet will also restrict access to local service providers struggling to get a foothold online.¹⁴

We all deserve access to the real open Internet. Stand with people around the world demanding Zuckerberg stops restricting access to the open Internet.

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This campaign is hosted by OpenMedia. We will keep you informed about this campaign and others. Find our privacy policy here

We all now know Zuckerberg's Internet.org platform is not the real Internet. Not even close. Internet users around the world would rather he use his influence for good and promote access to the real open Internet, not just his fake imitation.

But their goal is control. They want to decide what you see, all while exposing you to massive security holes and vulnerabilities.¹⁵ Internet.org is a reckless violation of net neutrality.^16,¹⁷

What’s worse: Zuckerberg's closed Internet platform failed to consult impacted users and fundamentally undermines longstanding efforts to create affordable access to the open Internet.¹⁸

Everyday users, Internet freedom groups,^19,^20,²¹ and prominent websites²² around the world oppose these types of schemes to restrict access to independent web services.

As Matias Insaurralde from Paraguay puts it: “Giving access to just a few sites in a country that historically had bad connectivity and very high costs sounds like a bad joke.”²³

And we know Facebook is also already moving to take control of existing users’ web surfing.²⁴

Now it's up to Internet users everywhere to make sure that the net remains free and open for us and the next wave of users. Do your part by sending a clear message today.

Where are People Speaking Out:

Global: 65 groups from 31 countries speak out against Zuckerberg’s fake Internet
Paraguay: A tunnel to (Internet) freedom.
Indonesia: Indonesian telco explains why it ditched Zuckerberg’s Internet.org
India: How India's net neutrality protests forced Facebook to open up Internet.org
India: SaveTheInternet.in
Pakistan: Internet.org and Facebook's Illusion of Choice
Panama: Internet.org, the Panamanian case
Brazil: Civil rights organizations up in arms against Internet.org in Brazi.
Zimbabwe: Net Non-Neutrality on Demand!

Some Alternatives:

Brazil: Coletivo Digital will build 3,000 "digital inclusion telecenters" across the country.
Uruguay: Plan Ceibal promotes free access
A4Ai: Alliance for Affordable Internet.
Mozilla: Views on Zero-Rating
Panama: The National Internet Project was abandoned in favor of Internet.org.
Paraguay: The “Facebook tunnel”
Pakistan: Close the Digital Gap

What do Advocates and Experts Say?

"To argue that providing a non-neutral Internet to people in poverty is better because it's free is to say that such people do not require the public policy protections that are provided to others.”

–Parminder Jeet Singh, executive director of IT for Change in India. [LINK]

“There are 60 social media platforms in Africa. I ask: how do we expect them to survive when users are charged more to use their platforms than they are charged to use the global giants of cyberspace?”

–Norman Mukwakwami, writing in ICT Africa

“Giving access to just a few sites in a country that historically had bad connectivity and very high costs sounds like a bad joke.”

–Matias Insaurralde, developer of the “Facebook tunnel” in Paraguay [LINK]

“If Zuckerberg actually cares about helping the world's poorest in this way, he should use his wealth and influence to boost the initiatives that are already on the ground.”

–Tim Karr, Director of Strategy at Free Press [LINK]

“If Mark Zuckerberg actually cares about Net Neutrality, Internet.org must honor its basic principles. For instance, Facebook could leverage its significant influence by offering—or urging telecoms to offer—basic data plans, with low data caps, to vulnerable communities, enabling unfettered and non-discriminatory access to the whole internet. Such a shift would directly address the goal of connecting billions of people worldwide to the full internet.”

–Josh Levy, Advocacy Director at Access [LINK]

“Facebook already tightly controls what kind of content its users are allowed to post, share, and comment on. Internet.org will extend this control over people's entire digital lives, similar to an authoritarian government. Privacy and freedom of speech must not become privileges of the rich; they are fundamental human rights.”

–Arthur Baxter, Network Operations Analyst at ExpressVPN [LINK]

The No Fake Internet campaign is hosted by:

https://openmedia.org

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Footnotes

[1] How India's net neutrality protests forced Facebook to open up Internet.org. Source: IDNLive.

[2] SaveTheInternet.in.

[3] How Telecoms And The Indian Government Stop Net Neutrality In Its Tracks. Source: Tech Crunch.

[4] Net non-neutrality on demand! Source: ICT Africa.

[5], [11] Civil rights organizations up in arms against Internet.org in Brazil. Source: ZDnet.

[6] Internet.org and Facebook's Illusion of Choice. Source: Digital Rights Foundation.

[7] A tunnel to (internet) freedom. Source: CBC.

[8] 65 groups from 31 countries speak out against Zuckerberg’s fake Internet project. Read the full letter here.

[9] Opinion: Facebook’s Internet.org Isn’t the Internet, It’s Facebooknet. Source: Wired

[10] Mozilla View on Zero-Rating. Source: Mozilla.

[11] Civil rights organizations up in arms against Internet.org in Brazil. Source: ZDnet.

[12] Facebook’s Internet.org platform is a privacy nightmare: tracks users on partner sites, allows telcos to track. Source: Medianama.

[13], [15] Facebook’s “fix” for Internet.org still harms users’ rights. Source: Access.

[14]“There are 60 social media platforms in Africa. I ask: how do we expect them to survive when users are charged more to use their platforms than they are charged to use the global giants of cyberspace?” Source: Africa.

[16] Facebook’s Internet.org sees defections over alleged harm to net neutrality. Source: ArsTechnica

[17] The Global Coalition for Net Neutrality. Source.

[18] “We believe that key policy levers to drive down prices include allowing innovative allocation of spectrum, promoting infrastructure sharing, and increasing transparency and public participation in regulatory decisions.” Source: Alliance for Affordable Internet.

[19] Internet.org no es Internet. Source: El Espectador.

[20] Does Internet.org Leave Latin Americans Without A Real Internet? Source: EFF.

[21] How Facebook is blocking 3 billion soon-to-be Internet users from the REAL web. Source: OpenMedia.

[22] Facebook’s Internet.org sees defections over alleged harm to net neutrality. Source: ArsTechnica

[23] This App Lets You Piggyback Facebook's Free Internet to Access Any Site. Source: Vice.

[24] Facebook Offers Life Raft, but Publishers Are Wary. Source: New York Times.