Great firewall of China being forced on PC makers
By Dave Jeyes
China has long been known to block access to any Web site deemed objectionable by officials. Now the Chinese government has decreed that all new PCs sold in the country will include a firewall to block certain sites to maintain a more harmonious Internet experience.
As of July, manufacturers that sell PCs in China will be required to include government-controlled firewall software on each computer. The software is called Green Dam and it is made by a company with ties to the Chinese military.
Manufacturers will get to choose whether to install the software on units destined for China or to include it on a compact disc. The software will receive updates as to which sites should be blocked similarly to antivirus software.
Chinese officials tout the measure as a way to protect Chinese youths from being exposed to vulgar pornography. However the extent of Chinese Web blocking has been known to stretch far beyond just porn.
Less than two weeks ago, reports surfaced that China was blocking access to Twitter, Bing and Hotmail, among other sites. These moves were intended to quell rebellion in the days leading up to the anniversary of Tiananmen Square.
Add these to the list of sites already blocked in China including YouTube and Wikipedia. These sites clearly don’t contain pornography and have been banned in China purely for political reasons.
Another possible motivation for the new software is to prevent the use of Internet proxies in China. These proxies allow people in China to circumvent the country’s firewall to surf banned sites.
While this is illegal in China, many others see it as a vital way to share ideas with Chinese nationals that are longing for political freedom. The Chinese government sees this as a way to extend the reach of its Web censors.
It’s one thing for the government to restrict the rights of its citizens, but should these PC manufacturers be complicit with censoring free speech?
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June 8th, 2009
“should these PC manufacturers be complicit with censoring free speech” ?
They will – Yahoo did it to have access to the chinese market – becase “money has no odor”.
June 8th, 2009
Absolutely excellent move. I would like to see Canada do the same. Sites like GoogleMoney, which pay people to Spam other websites should be banned. Free enterprise has proved too greedy to regulate itself, so the government is doing it in China. Way to go China.
June 9th, 2009
Bruce, Move to China and leave my internet alone jack ass!
You have no right to tell me what websites I can view on my pc. I will put up with spam to maintain free speech. If you don’t like it then move away.
June 9th, 2009
So it’s ok to block porn, but Google is free speech? Pretty inconsistent. I can go to any public library and many businesses that “censor” the websites. Does Net Nanny aid censorship?
It’s the same principle, just a larger scale. You remind me of the woman who claims virtue because she only slept with other men when her husband is out of town.
June 11th, 2009
Let me just say that it’s never ok to block porn. Not cool dude.