All major companies and individuals operating through the Internet proudly call it “free space”. This is true to a certain extent: the exchange of information on the World Wide Web occurs in volumes beyond any control. Such a system supports "freedom of speech and democracy" - but these values are not held in high esteem in all states.
The Chinese government has never concealed that it is loyal to socialist rather than capitalist ideals. Therefore, the leading officials allow themselves open attempts to control the worldwide network in the country. Actually, the main means of censorship is called the "Golden Shield" or "The Great Chinese Firewall" (a pun on the theme of the "Great Wall of China").
Information from any site comes to the user along a known route: site server -> Internet service provider -> computer. The Beijing government has introduced a fourth component between the provider and the user: the security server. He automatically controls the information that goes to the user.
It is worth noting that the firewall does not have integrity: in different parts of the country, sites are blocked independently of each other, and this does not happen at the same time. Moreover, only a part of users receive a “friendly” message that information on the page has been blocked. Sometimes, access is denied, creating the appearance of a broken site.
The list of forbidden topics is huge: in particular, on the Chinese Internet it is forbidden to use the words "communism", "Tibet", "Taiwan" and "independence" in one text. In addition, “incorrect” descriptions of historical events are prohibited. In contrast, active users have formed a whole slang that allows them to mask objectionable discussions: for example, the word "censorship" is replaced by "river crab".
Obviously, the internet giants don't like this. In China, sites such as Google, Wikipedia and Youtube are regularly “closed” (under the pretext of pornographic or political content), and local counterparts are imposed instead. In response, Google openly informs users of the "keywords" that are intercepted by the firewall and recommends avoiding them. But the search engine Yahoo surrendered without a fight: it accepted the conditions of the authorities and put filters directly about itself on the servers.
However, the defense is not so impenetrable. The Chinese Internet is filled with articles "Opening Youtube in 10 Steps" or "How to Search in Wikipedia", and if you really want to, you can buy inexpensive equipment that allows you to bypass the "Golden Shield". The only problem is that it is punishable - and punishable in public, for the edification of others.
