HTTP 451: “Unavailable For Legal Reasons” Lets You Know When A Website Has Been Censored
A new error status code of the HTTP protocol has been approved for publication by the Internet Engineering Steering Group (IESG) that lets an internet user know when a webpage has been blocked for legal reasons. The IESG is responsible for technical management of Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) activities which is a standards organisation for the internet. The HTTP error code 451 will enable website hosts and network providers to inform users if a web resource has been censored by the government. The HTTP 451 servers as an extension of the HTTP 403 error code which is a rather generic warning for forbidden resource.
Currently when a website is blocked by any government entity you get either a blank page or a small notice from your ISP or the error code 403. Noticing this ambiguity of information, Tim Bray proposed a draft of HTTP error code 451 to the HTTP Working Group back in 2012 which would let end users know when a website has been blocked exclusively for “legal reasons†which of course is government’s way of censoring information. The HTTP error code 451 references to the 1953 dystopian novel ‘Fahrenheit 451’ which depicted a future American society where books are outlawed and "firemen" burn any that are found.
Tim initially faced opposition from other members of the IESG because HTTP status codes have a constrained name space and if they decided to allocate one for every request they would soon run out. Once Tim pointed out that his claim was valid according to the IESG guidelines and cited support from the internet community who thought it was important to highlight online censorship he kept updating the draft until a few websites began to adopt it experimentally. Once this gained momentum the HTTP Working Group and the IESG passed it unanimously. The IETF Chair Jari Arkko also cited his full support for the new HTTP error code.
HTTP 451 can be used by network-based intermediaries and the origin web servers who are more likely to implement it. HTTP will help websites such as Reddit and Github to stress the fact that they are being asked to censor content against their will. Why 451? who chairs the IETF HTTP Working Group points out that HTTP 451 will enable systems to track censorship attempts across the world. He also points out a drawback with the HTTP 451 where an austere government might disallow the use of error code 451 to hide the fact that they are censoring content.
The HTTP 451 is available for use and you can read the draft #-Link-Snipped-# and if you wish to comment on it to the IETF you will have to wait for the Request for Comments (RFC) that will begin soon and we will keep you updated on this issue on CrazyEngineers.
Source: #-Link-Snipped-#
Currently when a website is blocked by any government entity you get either a blank page or a small notice from your ISP or the error code 403. Noticing this ambiguity of information, Tim Bray proposed a draft of HTTP error code 451 to the HTTP Working Group back in 2012 which would let end users know when a website has been blocked exclusively for “legal reasons†which of course is government’s way of censoring information. The HTTP error code 451 references to the 1953 dystopian novel ‘Fahrenheit 451’ which depicted a future American society where books are outlawed and "firemen" burn any that are found.
Tim initially faced opposition from other members of the IESG because HTTP status codes have a constrained name space and if they decided to allocate one for every request they would soon run out. Once Tim pointed out that his claim was valid according to the IESG guidelines and cited support from the internet community who thought it was important to highlight online censorship he kept updating the draft until a few websites began to adopt it experimentally. Once this gained momentum the HTTP Working Group and the IESG passed it unanimously. The IETF Chair Jari Arkko also cited his full support for the new HTTP error code.
HTTP 451 can be used by network-based intermediaries and the origin web servers who are more likely to implement it. HTTP will help websites such as Reddit and Github to stress the fact that they are being asked to censor content against their will. Why 451? who chairs the IETF HTTP Working Group points out that HTTP 451 will enable systems to track censorship attempts across the world. He also points out a drawback with the HTTP 451 where an austere government might disallow the use of error code 451 to hide the fact that they are censoring content.
The HTTP 451 is available for use and you can read the draft #-Link-Snipped-# and if you wish to comment on it to the IETF you will have to wait for the Request for Comments (RFC) that will begin soon and we will keep you updated on this issue on CrazyEngineers.
Source: #-Link-Snipped-#
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