Google Accuses Chinese Government of Blocking Their Services

The Chinese government has been accused by Google of blocking its Gmail service, making it difficult for local users to access the site. Google has claimed that there is not any issues with their main page or Gmail service in China, which leads them to believe that it is definitely a government blockage. It has been designed to make it seem like there is an issue with Gmail, but Google has done extensive checks to be sure that this is not the case. Analysts who track track Web developments say that the Chinese government is intentionally disrupting and blocking access to Google as a part of a campaign to tighten Internet controls and censor material.

Beijing has had some of the world's strictest Internet controls, but after pro-democracy demonstrations broke out in the Middle East in the beginning of this year, the Chinese government have become more strict in the effort to censor Web content and to disrupt Web searches related to calls for similar protests in China. After numerous attacks on its Web site by Chinese hackers, Google removed its Chinese language Internet search engine from China and relocated it to Hong Kong, where Beijing has fewer controls. After these attacks, the hackers had access to the private Gmail accounts of Chinese human rights advocates because the hackers had stolen some of the Google source code.

Although Google is trying to protect its services, it is being said that Google has violated its written promise that was made when entering the Chinese market by stopping filtering its searching service and blaming in insinuation for alleged hacker attacks. Currently, Google's search engines are still accessible in China, but the government has the ability to block them whenever they feel like it.

Although Google made promises with China, it is obvious that it is causing issues having pacts with them. The service was already hacked and source code was stolen, which causes many more problems along the way. It is almost impossible to completely cut China off, but it seems to be necessary to take some sort of more direct action in protecting Google's services from being attacked once again.

Article Name: Google Accuses Chinese of Blocking Gmail Service
by: David Barboza and Claire Cain Miller
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/21/technology/21google.html?ref=technology