UK Porn Filter stops League of Legends update for some

Started by Syt, January 22, 2014, 02:52:42 PM

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Syt

http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2014/jan/21/uk-porn-filter-blocks-game-update-that-contained-sex

QuoteUK porn filter blocks game update that contained 'sex'

A filter designed to catch porn and adult content inadvertently blocked a game update which contained the letters 's-e-x'

The firewall being operated by the UK's biggest internet service providers as part of David Cameron's child internet safety campaign has blocked an update of an online video game due which unintentionally included the letters "s-e-x" in its web address.

The update to online strategy game League of Legends was disrupted by the internet filter because the software attempted to access files that accidentally include the word "sex" in the middle of their file names.

The block resulted in the update failing with "file not found" errors, which are usually created by missing files or broken updates on the part of the developers.

The porn filter only takes affect on new internet connections, presented as a choice at the point of first connection, and therefore does not yet cover a majority of people.

VarusExpiration

The issue was first noted on social news site Reddit by LolBoopje showing that files named VarusExpirationTimer.luaobj and XerathMageChainsExtended.luaobj (emphasis added) were enough to trigger a block at the internet service provider level.

For users affected by the broken update, the only current recourse is to switch off the internet filtering by contacting their internet service provider, or to use the online support forms often located within the router and internet settings.

This is not the first time the adult content filter championed by the Prime Minister has caught more than was intended.

TalkTalk was forced to apologise when it incorrectly classified one of London's oldest lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender charities, London Friend, as pornographic - a mistake which meant the charity's site was blocked to some users.

"Sadly there is no silver bullet when it comes to internet safety and we have always been clear that no solution can ever be 100 per cent. It requires all of us to play our part," said TalkTalk spokesperson to PinkNews.

I am, somehow, less interested in the weight and convolutions of Einstein's brain than in the near certainty that people of equal talent have lived and died in cotton fields and sweatshops.
—Stephen Jay Gould

Proud owner of 42 Zoupa Points.

The Brain

Women want me. Men want to be with me.

Ed Anger

QuoteThe firewall being operated by the UK's biggest internet service providers as part of David Cameron's child internet safety campaign

:rolleyes:
Stay Alive...Let the Man Drive

Richard Hakluyt

Meanwhile residents of Essex and Sussex have been unable to access their County Council services  :hmm:

Syt

Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on January 23, 2014, 02:51:02 AM
Meanwhile residents of Essex and Sussex have been unable to access their County Council services  :hmm:

How about the people from Scunthorpe?
I am, somehow, less interested in the weight and convolutions of Einstein's brain than in the near certainty that people of equal talent have lived and died in cotton fields and sweatshops.
—Stephen Jay Gould

Proud owner of 42 Zoupa Points.

Richard Hakluyt

Quote from: Syt on January 23, 2014, 03:19:18 AM
Quote from: Richard Hakluyt on January 23, 2014, 02:51:02 AM
Meanwhile residents of Essex and Sussex have been unable to access their County Council services  :hmm:

How about the people from Scunthorpe?

They have all been issued with ASBOs for postal addresses "likely to cause a breach of the peace".

Syt

I am, somehow, less interested in the weight and convolutions of Einstein's brain than in the near certainty that people of equal talent have lived and died in cotton fields and sweatshops.
—Stephen Jay Gould

Proud owner of 42 Zoupa Points.

Monoriu

I distinctly remember a survey about why adults are so keen on these filters.  The biggest worry of the parents is "we don't want to answer the embarrassing questions".