Starbucks in 2019 will block customers from watching porn on its Wi-Fi

Shawn Knight

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Recap: Starbucks is finally set to make good on a promise it made years ago regarding the viewing of explicit material over its Wi-Fi network. That's probably not an issue that most people have ever even considered but it does happen.

Starbucks in 2019 will implement a new tool designed to prevent people from watching pornography in its stores.

The popular coffee shop chain originally committed to blocking access to explicit material over its public Wi-Fi network in 2016 but has lagged behind others like Chick-fil-A, Subway and McDonald’s in actually implementing it.

Renewed pressure from non-profit Enough is Enough was apparently enough (no pun intended) to get Starbucks to move the initiative up its list of priorities. A petition on the matter as of Thursday had amassed more than 26,000 signatures.

Earlier this week, EIE President and CEO Donna Rice Hughes said, “By breaking its commitment, Starbucks is keeping the doors wide open for convicted sex offenders and others to fly under the radar from law enforcement and use free, public Wi-Fi services to access illegal child porn and hard-core pornography.” Hughes also added that unfiltered hotspots allow children and teens to bypass parental control tools set up by their parents on their mobile devices.

A Starbucks representative told The Verge that its solution will begin rolling out to US locations next year. Details on the tool weren’t provided although the company said it tested multiple solutions in hopes of avoiding accidentally blocking non-offensive material.

The company also noted that viewing illegal or egregious content is not, nor has it ever been permitted over its Wi-Fi network.

Lead image courtesy Atstock Productions, Shutterstock

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Originally I thought this was dumb but I can see this passively making sex offenders go somewhere else.
 
Did they have a problem with people spanking it at the stores?
Yeah, seriously. Was this actually a thing that happened? Why would anyone want to watch porn in public, much less at a Starbucks?

I've read of public libraries (maybe in New York?) having to install privacy shields around their free internet terminals because people were jerking off in public. I agree you'd have to be desperate but homeless people perhaps?

As for everybody else, Starbucks' censorship should not matter because anyone with brains should use a VPN with public Wi-Fi connections to reduce the risk of MITM attacks. I wonder if the motive is legal protection in case someone is downloading kiddie porn and Starbucks don't want to risk being blamed.
 
Sigh they are likely people with no internet downloading porn. I would think stopping porn would be impossible.
 
Did they have a problem with people spanking it at the stores?
Yeah, seriously. Was this actually a thing that happened? Why would anyone want to watch porn in public, much less at a Starbucks?

Yup, it's actually a thing. My girlfriend works at a public library and they run into this problem all the time on their "free to the public" internet PC's. They finally had to put up privacy screens as someone mentioned below.

Starbucks is a private company and can prohibit this. But a public library is just that - public. Under the Freedom of Speech act, they have no choice but to allow viewers to look at anything they want on the internet, much to the chagrin of the employees.

As far as "spanking it," in public, library patrons can be thrown out on that behavior. So apparently what they do, is go watch some porn, get all worked up, and then head to the nearest restroom stall. Pretty disgusting any way you look at it.
 
Idk why they're waiting until 2019. it takes less than a minute for them to change their dns on their wifi to one that blocks porn. you can't block anyone from doing anything if they're on a vpn anyways so your efforts are kind of pointless. pretty sure I can change my dns on android as well so idk how you're going to stop anyone lul. a hardware firewall that blocks porn sites?

even if they get it to work do they realize the customer can switch off wifi and watch porn on their providers network? lol
 
You know what is funny? I bet that after they implement this new de-facto, they lose half the current foot traffic. lol.
 
If they really wanted safe internet then they would ask the us government to seize these sites. If it ends in .com, .net and .org domain name the us is allowed to seize it no matter where it is.
I'd go along with that. Then make all the NSFW topics choose a domain extension appropriate to it's content. Then the whole domain extension can be blocked where ever it is not wanted.
 
It is their prerogative to offer WiFi. If they want to control the type of traffic, that is also their prerogative.
 
Guess ill have to download porn from home and then come to Starbucks to jerk off.
But I doubt Starbuck's terminals will be able to display the newest 4K stuff. You'll likely have to settle for 1080p, or possibly as low as 720p.....:(

To the upside, @ 720p, the girls won't be displaying "six o'clock shadow, south of the border", so flagrantly. The slightly softer focus will perhaps, add to the romance.
 
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Sigh they are likely people with no internet downloading porn. I would think stopping porn would be impossible.

Giving them a 56k dial up Modem should reduce fapping in public. By the time 1/4 of the pic is loaded they will already be unloaded. :p
 
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