China: New PCs must have Web site-blocking program

By Owen Fletcher, IDG News Service (Beijing Bureau) with notes from John Ribeiro IDG News Service (Bangalore Bureau) | Jun 9, 2009

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In line with its efforts to control pornography and other content in the Internet, China will require that Web filtering software be included with all computers sold in the country.  The move, which is meant to protect the youth from "unhealthy" information online follows a government crackdown on online smut that led to the closure of thousands of Web sites this year.
 
PC makers will be required to pre-install the Web site-blocking program or offer it on a CD-ROM included with all PCs sold in China after July 1, according to a copy of a Ministry of Industry and Information Technology notification seen by IDG News Service.  The program, called Green Dam Youth Escort in Chinese, blocks only sites with pornographic content, and parents can turn it off, said Bryan Zhang, general manager of Jinhui Computer System Engineering designers of the software.

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