Report: China wants censorship software on PCs
Published: 08 Jun 2009 09:16 BST
China's government plans to require all PCs sold in that country as of 1 July to be shipped with software that blocks certain websites, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal.
The move, which is expected to give government censors heightened control over how China's citizens use the internet, is intended to protect young people from "harmful" content such as pornography, according to the software's main developer.
The software, called Green Dam-Youth Escort, would block access to banned websites by connecting to a regularly updated database of banned sites and block access to those addresses, according to the report. The requirement is aimed at "constructing a green, healthy and harmonious internet environment, and preventing harmful information on the internet from influencing and poisoning young people", according to a 19 May Chinese government notice the newspaper cited.
The Chinese government has a reputation for restricting its citizens' access to the internet.
Earlier this month, on the 20th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre, China reportedly blocked access to websites such as Twitter, Yahoo's Flickr, YouTube, Microsoft Hotmail, Live.com, Wordpress, Blogger and many other social-networking sites.
Internet censorship in China took centre stage last year during the Beijing Olympic Games when it was revealed that the International Olympic Committee had cut a deal to let the Chinese government block international journalists' access to sensitive websites, despite promises of unrestricted access.
Credit: Report: China to require censorship software from CNET News
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