Bombay plans cyber cafe controls

According to statistics cited in this article, personal computer (PC) penetration is low in India. There are 7 million PCs in a country of 1 billion people. Experts say the spread of cyber cafes has contributed to a rise in Internet usage, which in 2004 is estimated at 4 million subscribers and 18 million users.

Some of the approximately 200,000 owners of India's cyber cafes, interviewed and quoted here, fear that this pattern of growth could change. Based on concerns about misuse of the Internet by what officials refer to as terrorists, hackers, paedophiles, and users of adult sites, the Maharashtra, India state legislature will consider a proposal in February 2004 that would require Internet cafe owners to keep records of people using their facilities. If the proposals are adopted, cafe owners will need to buy a licence to set up shop. They will be legally required to install software filters to screen out pornography and "unsuitable content". Crucially, according to this author, they will have to ask customers who wish to go online to fill out forms including details such as their addresses and telephone numbers. This information would legally have to be made available to the police in certain circumstances. Owners worry that patrons would be too concerned about privacy to hand over personal details and thus stop patronising the cafes, leading to a drop in business. In response, Bombay's cyber cafe owners have set up the Association of Public Internet Access Providers.

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