Bloomberg View: Keeping the Internet Safe From Rogue Regimes
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As documented by Bloomberg News, U.S., European, and other companies are selling technologies that enable the repressive Iranian and Syrian regimes to disrupt and monitor the Internet and track down government critics.
On April 23, President Barack Obama issued an executive order giving the U.S. Treasury Secretary the power to sanction individuals and companies that provide goods or services that can be used for such purposes. Those with assets in the U.S. risk having them blocked; individuals without such assets can be barred from entering the country. Perhaps the greatest penalty is the reputational cost of being placed on a U.S. sanctions list.