Turkey’s controversial Internet filtering plan, which has drawn criticisms from nongovernmental organizations, the European Union and web users in Turkey, comes into force Monday, August 22.

Based on the “Rules and Procedures for the Safety of Internet Use” regulation approved by the Prime Ministry’s Information and Communication Technologies Authority, or BTK, in February, Internet users in Turkey will be given the option of signing up for one of two Internet packages: family or children. The list of websites filtered by each package will be decided by the BTK, but will not be made public.

According to the BTK, those who decide against using a filter will be able to continue accessing the Internet normally. However, the new plan will indirectly affect users continuing without one of the options because of new regulations against service providers.

Accessing the BTK’s banned sites, according to the plan, will be considered a criminal offense, and service providers will be responsible for reporting people who attempt to access the banned sites. Otherwise, they themselves will be charged with heavy financial penalties.

According to the explanations made by BTK Chairman Tayfun Acarer, the new plan will be launched to protect the youth and children from accessing “dangerous” and ”obscene” content on the Internet. A commission of 11 people, determined by the Family and Social Policies Ministry, will determine the black list.

However, no criteria have been defined by the BTK as to how the blacklist will be determined.

“The commission doesn’t include any legal experts or news media or communication experts. Plus we still do not know who determines how and what sites will be banned.” NTVMSNBC technology editor Noyan Ayan said, Hürriyet Daily News reported.

Experts say that Turkey’s new Internet cyber censorship system is similar to the one used in China.