THE PROJECT
The IXmaps mapping platform is an interactive mapping tool that helps internet users and researchers learn about the route their internet data takes by encouraging individuals to contribute and map their own internet routes. IXmaps shows that every regular Canadian internet user will have some of their personal information pass through the U.S., potentially raising privacy and surveillance concerns. CIRA funded researchers at the University of Toronto to upgrade IXmaps components in order to make its visualization platform capabilities more available to others who may want to use it in their own web service offerings or internet analysis studies, allowing for better collaboration.
COMMUNITY IMPACT
Researchers enhanced the capabilities of the IXmaps mapping platform, making its interface more user-friendly and its backend software more robust. This enabled a significant expansion of the traceroute database, better representing the communications of Canadian internet users in terms of their geographic distribution, the range of ISPs they use to access the internet and the sites they visit. This provided a stronger empirical foundation for ongoing IXmaps research studies into Canadian internet routing patterns. IXmaps is also the origin of CIRA’s own Canadian Traceroute Database (coming soon).
RELATED LINKS
- Map your own route on the IXmaps website
- Read CIRA’s blogs:
