Russia and Iran Plan to Fundamentally Isolate the Internet | Wired

Internet different

"Governments looking to exert even greater control over their citizens online—for instance, by limiting the effectiveness of censorship bypass tools—may want to pursue this deeper form of internet fragmentation. Altering the architecture of the internet itself (while a heavier lift) could provide much deeper internet control than just leveraging content filtering tools. Governments looking to better protect their countries from cybersecurity threats, meanwhile, may also find reason to pursue the kind of deep internet fragmentation that Russia and Iran are spearheading; limiting the connection of your country to the globe, under the guise of stopping foreign cyberattacks, is arguably an attractive option for many policymakers around the world.
[...]
If Russia and Iran are any indication, the internet fragmen­tation we see today is nothing compared to what’s coming. There are great technical challenges ahead that may hamper such efforts, yes, but these pursuits will still have wide ramifications. For nations seeking to balance the economic benefits of the internet with regulation of online information flows, the Chinese model of filtering on top of the net is still perhaps a better approach. But for those looking to really suppress information or protect themselves from foreign cyber threats, these deeper, less reversible forms of internet fragmentation are a more powerful solution."

Russia and Iran Plan to Fundamentally Isolate the Internet | Wired