VLC developer gets serious over nationwide ban
Country blocks VLC video player, developer fights back
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The developer behind open-sourcefree video editorand playerVLChas issued a legal notice to two Indian ministries after the country’s Department of Telecommunications (DoT) blocked its website.
“This was done without any prior notice, or affording VideoLAN an opportunity of hearing, which is contrary to the 2009 Blocking Rules and the law laid down by the Supreme Court in Shreya Singhal v Union of India,” VideoLAN said in apress release.
Joining forces with Indian digital liberties group the Internet Freedom Foundation, the developer aims to appeal the ban, but it also wants to find out whyVLC has been blockedin the first place.
No reason given
Since the DoT blocked thefree media playerearlier in 2022, its motivation remains a mystery, with the ministry remaining tight-lipped.
In June, the IFF sent a Right to Information application. The DoT pushed that to India’s Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY). The response? “No information is available.”
Some, however, speculate that the ban relates to aSymantec reportinto Chinese state-linked hacking group Cicada.
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The report showed evidence of an “advanced persistent threat group” targeting governmental, legal, religious, and non-governmental organizations across Europe, Asia, and North America.
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According to Symatec, “the attackers also exploit the legitimate VLC Media Player by launching a custom loader via the VLC Exports function, and use the WinVNC tool for remote control of victim machines.”
Talking to TechCrunch in August 2022, Jean-Baptiste Kempf, VideoLAN president and developer,told the sitethe block may be due to a misunderstanding of a Chinese security issue. He added that the ministry was “endangering their own citizens with this ban” as users could start using less secure websites.
VideoLAN’s legal noticedoesn’t mean legal action is a guarantee. The company is seeking a copy of the reasoned blocking order for banning of its site and the opportunity to defend its position in a virtual hearing. However, should the DoT and MeitY fail to comply, it warns “we will be entitled and compelled to initiate legal proceedings against you for failing to protect our rights.”
Steve is TechRadar Pro’s B2B Editor for Creative & Hardware. He began in tech journalism reviewing photo editors and video editing software at the magazine Web User, where he also covered technology news, features, and how-to guides. Today, he and his team of reviewers test out a range of creative software, hardware, and office furniture. Once upon a time, he wrote TV commercials and movie trailers. Relentless champion of the Oxford comma.
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