China proposes new Web rules that could enhance censorship
China proposes new Web rules that could enhance
censorship
By GERRY SHIH Mar.
30, 2016 8:19 AM EDT
BEIJING (AP) — China is consolidating its ability to
censor the Internet by drafting rules requiring businesses that serve domestic
Internet users to register their Web addresses inside the country, a move seen
as targeting Chinese companies but that has raised concerns among foreign
businesses.
In its most draconian interpretation, the proposed
requirements could also further limit access within the Chinese network,
analysts said. That appears to be the latest step by the ruling Communist Party
to erect cyber barriers in the name of what some officials call "Internet
sovereignty."
"This expands control over domestic Internet
operators and contributes to the gradual buildup of the capability underpinning
Internet sovereignty," said Rogier Creemers, an expert on Chinese media
policy at the University of Oxford.
Under the draft regulations released this week by the
Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, any firm that provides
services to Chinese users must register its domain, or Web address, with a
Chinese provider. The rules are found in Article 37 of the ministry's proposed
update to a set of decade-old Internet laws.
Analysts said the main targets appear to be Chinese
Internet companies that store their content domestically but keep their Web
address registered overseas with reputable, international firms for security
purposes.
Requiring them to shift their registration to a domestic
provider under Chinese government control would allow censors to react more
quickly in blocking access to certain sites, said Long Weilian, an IT
consultant based in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen who has blogged
extensively on the issue.
"Before, they had to contact the server, get the
address, talk to the manager and then ask them to censor something," Long
said. "If the domains are all domestic, they can directly stop traffic
going to your domain with a command."
Jacob Parker, vice president for China operations with
the U.S.-China Business Council, which lobbies the Chinese government on trade
policy, said his group was concerned that the rules would block the free flow
of information.
"Any kind of restrictions would undermine China's
broader economic development goals," Parker said.
Concerned that a borderless, U.S.-led global Internet
could weaken its political control, China's government has repeatedly issued
cyber regulations that have drawn criticism from Western trade groups.
Following pushback from the White House last year, China dropped a provision in
a cybersecurity law that would require companies to keep Chinese user data at
facilities in China, allowing the government access to personal information.
Questions remain about the new rules' true purpose and
how strictly they would be enforced. The ministry is currently soliciting
feedback on the proposed registration regulations, and Chinese laws are often
softened during the revision process.
Fang Xingdong, the director of a top Chinese technology
think tank, said he believes Chinese leaders are seeking to enhance their
control, but not to wall China off from the rest of the world.
"Under the current wording, all this is doing is
integrating large Chinese Web service providers under a more rigorous
supervision framework, while most small businesses won't be affected,"
said Fang, whose organization regularly submits opinions to the government on
Internet issues.
Any attempt to seal off the Chinese Internet "would
hurt China as much as America," he said.
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