An accessible, comic book-like, illustrated introduction to how the internet works under the hood, designed to give people a basic understanding of the technical aspects of the Internet that they need in order to advocate for digital rights.

The internet has profoundly changed interpersonal communication, but most of us don't really understand how it works. What enables information to travel across the internet? Can we really be anonymous and private online? Who controls the internet, and why is that important? And... what's with all the cats?

How the Internet Really Works answers these questions and more. Using clear language and whimsical illustrations, the authors translate highly technical topics into accessible, engaging prose that demystifies the world's most intricately linked computer network. Alongside a feline guide named Catnip, you'll learn about:

• The "How-What-Why" of nodes, packets, and internet protocols
• Cryptographic techniques to ensure the secrecy and integrity of your data
• Censorship, ways to monitor it, and means for circumventing it
• Cybernetics, algorithms, and how computers make decisions
• Centralization of internet power, its impact on democracy, and how it hurts human rights
• Internet governance, and ways to get involved

This book is also a call to action, laying out a roadmap for using your newfound knowledge to influence the evolution of digitally inclusive, rights-respecting internet laws and policies.

Whether you're a citizen concerned about staying safe online, a civil servant seeking to address censorship, an advocate addressing worldwide freedom of expression issues, or simply someone with a cat-like curiosity about network infrastructure, you will be delighted -- and enlightened -- by Catnip's felicitously fun guide to understanding how the internet really works!

Review

The New York Times discussed contributors Mallory Knodel and Niels Ten Oever's work in a piece on updating computing language to be more inclusive

"Comprehensive and presents the subject well. It will be very helpful to all people doing IME, digital literacy training, and other educational activities."

—Stephane Bortzmeyer

"In How the Internet Really Works . . . the reader gets a short, interesting, and entertaining overview of the Internet . . . in a jargon-free style."

—Ben Rothke, Senior Information Security Manager, Tapad

About the Authors

Ulrike Uhlig, originally a professional front-end web developer, is a Debian Developer and works on software related to privacy and anonymity online. Ulrike works with projects of the internet freedom community and nonprofit organizations at the intersection of technology, arts, and human rights. Born in East Berlin, she spent 15 years in France, where she obtained an MA in visual and contemporary arts. In addition to coauthoring How the Internet Really Works, Ulrike created the illustrations featured in the book.

Mallory Knodel is the chief technology officer for the Center for Democracy and Technology, the co-chair of the Human Rights and Protocol Considerations research group of the Internet Research Task Force, and a chairing advisor to the Freedom Online Coalition. Originally from the United States but living in Nairobi, she has worked as a technical expert with grassroots and nonprofit organizations around the world since 2008. She holds a BS in physics and mathematics and an MA in science education.

Niels Ten Oever is a PhD candidate with the DATACTIVE Research Group at the Media Studies and Political Science Department at the University of Amsterdam, and postdoctoral scholar (abd) with the Communications Department at Texas A&M University. His research focuses on how norms - such as human rights - get inscribed, resisted, and subverted in the internet infrastructure through transnational governance. Previously, Niels worked as Head of Digital for ARTICLE19, where he designed, raised funds for, and set up the digital program. He holds a MA in philosophy from the University of Amsterdam.

Corinne Cath is a doctoral student at the Oxford Internet Institute. As a cultural anthropologist, she applies the tools of anthropology to the study of internet governance, in particular, the culture of the often opaque organizations that enable the technical functioning of the internet. Within that context, she focuses on the participation of human rights and civil liberties NGOs that are aiming to change computer code instead of legal code to effect social change. She is funded by the Ford Foundation and the Alan Turing Institute.

ARTICLE 19 is an international non-profit organization that seeks to promote, develop, and protect freedom of expression, including access to information. Headquartered in London, with offices in Bangladesh, Brazil, Kenya, Mexico, Senegal, Tunisia, Myanmar, and the USA, ARTICLE 19 works to bridge the knowledge gap about Internet infrastructure and why it matters for people.