'Alarming' rise in regional internet censorship in China, study finds
a year ago
- #Digital Surveillance
- #China
- #Internet Censorship
- China has implemented stricter internet censorship in Henan province, blocking five times more websites than the national average.
- Researchers found that Henan's firewall blocked 4.2 million domains during the study period, mainly targeting business-related sites.
- The enhanced censorship may be linked to past financial protests in Henan, where demonstrators faced restrictions on bank withdrawals and health code abuses.
- Other regions like Xinjiang and Tibet also experience heightened internet controls, but Henan's case is unusual as it is not typically considered restive.
- China's AI advancements aid both censorship enforcement and evasion, with new surveillance tools monitoring VPN users and messaging apps like Telegram.
- The study's lead author notes AI's dual role in enhancing censorship and enabling new methods to circumvent it.