[FC-discuss] Fwd: Google to stop censoring in China

[Oliver Day]

Ironically at the bottom in Chinese is this phrase:
"据当地法律法规和政策，部分搜索结果未予显示。"
that translates to:
"According to local laws, regulations and policies, some search results
are not shown."

O

Rich Jones wrote:
> http://images.google.cn/images?q=tiananmen+massacre
> 
> This is an incredible sight.
> 
> R
> 
> On Wed, Jan 13, 2010 at 12:50 PM, Alex Kozak <akozak at creativecommons.org> wrote:
>> 'm very happy about this. http://i.imgur.com/5xJmy.jpg
>> - Alex
>>
>> On Tue, Jan 12, 2010 at 4:36 PM, Elizabeth Stark <emstark at gmail.com> wrote:
>>> http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2010/01/new-approach-to-china.html
>>>
>>> A new approach to China
>>>
>>> 1/12/2010 03:00:00 PM
>>> Like many other well-known organizations, we face cyber attacks of varying
>>> degrees on a regular basis. In mid-December, we detected a highly
>>> sophisticated and targeted attack on our corporate infrastructure
>>> originating from China that resulted in the theft of intellectual property
>>> from Google. However, it soon became clear that what at first appeared to be
>>> solely a security incident--albeit a significant one--was something quite
>>> different.
>>>
>>> First, this attack was not just on Google. As part of our investigation we
>>> have discovered that at least twenty other large companies from a wide range
>>> of businesses--including the Internet, finance, technology, media and
>>> chemical sectors--have been similarly targeted. We are currently in the
>>> process of notifying those companies, and we are also working with the
>>> relevant U.S. authorities.
>>>
>>> Second, we have evidence to suggest that a primary goal of the attackers
>>> was accessing the Gmail accounts of Chinese human rights activists. Based on
>>> our investigation to date we believe their attack did not achieve that
>>> objective. Only two Gmail accounts appear to have been accessed, and that
>>> activity was limited to account information (such as the date the account
>>> was created) and subject line, rather than the content of emails themselves.
>>>
>>> Third, as part of this investigation but independent of the attack on
>>> Google, we have discovered that the accounts of dozens of U.S.-, China- and
>>> Europe-based Gmail users who are advocates of human rights in China appear
>>> to have been routinely accessed by third parties. These accounts have not
>>> been accessed through any security breach at Google, but most likely via
>>> phishing scams or malware placed on the users' computers.
>>>
>>> We have already used information gained from this attack to make
>>> infrastructure and architectural improvements that enhance security for
>>> Google and for our users. In terms of individual users, we would advise
>>> people to deploy reputable anti-virus and anti-spyware programs on their
>>> computers, to install patches for their operating systems and to update
>>> their web browsers. Always be cautious when clicking on links appearing in
>>> instant messages and emails, or when asked to share personal information
>>> like passwords online. You can read more here about our cyber-security
>>> recommendations. People wanting to learn more about these kinds of attacks
>>> can read this U.S. government report (PDF), Nart Villeneuve's
>>> blog andthis presentation on the GhostNet spying incident.
>>>
>>> We have taken the unusual step of sharing information about these attacks
>>> with a broad audience not just because of the security and human rights
>>> implications of what we have unearthed, but also because this information
>>> goes to the heart of a much bigger global debate about freedom of speech. In
>>> the last two decades, China's economic reform programs and its citizens'
>>> entrepreneurial flair have lifted hundreds of millions of Chinese people out
>>> of poverty. Indeed, this great nation is at the heart of much economic
>>> progress and development in the world today.
>>>
>>> We launched Google.cn in January 2006 in the belief that the benefits of
>>> increased access to information for people in China and a more open Internet
>>> outweighed our discomfort in agreeing to censor some results. At the time we
>>> made clear that "we will carefully monitor conditions in China, including
>>> new laws and other restrictions on our services. If we determine that we are
>>> unable to achieve the objectives outlined we will not hesitate to reconsider
>>> our approach to China."
>>>
>>> These attacks and the surveillance they have uncovered--combined with the
>>> attempts over the past year to further limit free speech on the web--have
>>> led us to conclude that we should review the feasibility of our business
>>> operations in China. We have decided we are no longer willing to continue
>>> censoring our results on Google.cn, and so over the next few weeks we will
>>> be discussing with the Chinese government the basis on which we could
>>> operate an unfiltered search engine within the law, if at all. We recognize
>>> that this may well mean having to shut down Google.cn, and potentially our
>>> offices in China.
>>>
>>> The decision to review our business operations in China has been
>>> incredibly hard, and we know that it will have potentially far-reaching
>>> consequences. We want to make clear that this move was driven by our
>>> executives in the United States, without the knowledge or involvement of our
>>> employees in China who have worked incredibly hard to make Google.cn the
>>> success it is today. We are committed to working responsibly to resolve the
>>> very difficult issues raised.
>>>
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Discuss mailing list
>>> Discuss at freeculture.org
>>> http://freeculture.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/discuss
>>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> Alex Kozak
>> Education Program Assistant
>> Creative Commons
>> 415.369.8492
>>
>>
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>>
>>
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