UPDATED JULY 1
HONG KONG—China announced Tuesday an indefinite delay in enforcement of a new requirement that computer makers must pre-install controversial Internet filtering software on all new computers sold in China.
The Green Dam Youth Escort software program, which the government said aimed to shield Chinese youths from online pornography, sparked an outcry inside China and around the world, along with charges that the software’s true intent was blocking content Beijing deemed subversive.
The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology announced the delay just one day before the July 1 deadline on which Green Dam was to be required on all computers.
Through the official Chinese news agency, Xinhua, the ministry said it was delaying enforcement to allow more time for manufacturers to comply but that the program would be installed after July 1 on all school and Internet cafe computers.
The plan drew a letter in opposition from 22 international business organizations to Prime Minister Wen Jiabao, along with a protest from the European Union and a U.S. warning that the Green Dam requirement could breach China’s free-trade obligations under the World Trade Organization.
U.S. officials have cited warnings by computer experts that the software could cause security problems for users.
Beijing-based rights lawyer Li Fangping, who in June filed a legalbrief questioning the legality of requiring Green Dam and demandingthat Beijing releaserelevant documents to the public, called the delay a victory.
"This software was pushed forward too suddenly, and the authorities are ignoringcitizens' 'right to know,'" Li said.
"That is why it has triggered somuch of a backlash," he said, adding, "It would be wrong for [the government] to not delay it."
Method of monitoring
RFA’s investigation revealed that the Green Dam application saves a screenshot of a user’s browsing history every three minutes. These images reveal each page viewed by the user and are stored as files within the application which can be accessed by an outside server.
The system is only sophisticated enough to censor a small part of each page, such as an individual image. In an article about the ‘Charter 08’ movement on the RFA Web site, Green Dam removes the image of the Charter’s cover page.
But the application censors both Internet browsing and access to files a user might read or create on his or her computer. For example, if a text file containing a reference to unauthorized material is opened or typed, the Green Dam application will immediately close the file and display a warning sign informing the user that they are viewing “forbidden content.”
A list of all items viewed is also stored within the application containing the date and time of viewing, as well as a notification if the content is considered 'blacklisted.'
Piracy alleged
A Santa Barbara, California-based company, Solid Oak Software Inc., meanwhile argues that its software was illegally used in creating Green Dam and said it is pursuing legal action.
Solid Oak says it has written to Dell Inc., Hewlett-Packard Inc., and other producers calling on them not to use Green Dam on grounds that it contains illegally obtained intellectual property.
Brian Milburn, the president of Solid Oak Software, cited reports that Green Dam has already been installed on 55 million computers in China.
“We’re absolutely going to pursue our legal remedies in China, and whatever we may have in the U.S., if and when the computer manufacturers here in the U.S. start shipping products with Green Dam on them,” Milburn said in a telephone interview.
“We don’t know if it’s a 30-day delay, or a 10-day delay, or a 90-day delay or what. A lot can happen in that period of time, and they may simply back down and let it fade into the woodwork.”
“If that’s the case then there would be no reason to continue with any of the legal action with any of the manufacturers here in the U.S. unless they have, in fact, shipped computers with Green Dam installed.”
University of Michigan researchers discovered the alleged piracy, Milburn said, and Solid Oak later ascertained that Green Dam made unauthorized use of Solid Oak’s CYBERsitter software, billed as a “family-friendly parental-controls product” to protect children from harmful content.
Taiwan's Acer Inc., the world's third-largest PC maker, which contracts out much of its manufacturing to Chinese suppliers, says it will ask them to comply with the order. Leading PC-maker HP and second-ranked Dell have declined to comment.
Bloggers react
Popular Chinese blogger Bei Feng called the announcement "good news" but cautioned, "Let's pay attention to the wording of the announcement. It's being delayed—not scrapped. So I would call this victory temporary."
"The government...can still ask computer manufacturers to ‘voluntarily’ install the software later, and manufacturers are unlikely not to obey. It remains to be seen whether the government has changed its policy of imposing end-user control."
Another popular blogger, Ran Yunfei, called Chinese authorities "domineering and yet thin-skinned. The squabble between the country’s netizens and the government has only begun."
"In my view, any attempt to obstruct and block the flow of information is doomed to fail. In this day and age, unless you cut the cable on the ocean floor and cut off all communication with the outside world, you cannot block the free flow of information and end-users' freedom of speech. They're just fighting with their backs against the wall."
'Green Tsunami'
Days after the government announced the Green Dam software requirement, the anti-censorship group Global Internet Freedom announced the release of software to counter it.
"Green Tsunami," which is free to install, gives users options to detect, disable, or remove Green Dam.
China accounts for up to 80 percent of world production of PCs, and it currently claims about 300 million Internet users, half of whom are young people, according to Green Dam's software developer, Jinhui.
Original reporting by Joshua Lipes in English, Tse Lap Wai for RFA's Cantonese service, and Ding Xiao for RFA's Mandarin service. Cantonese service director: Shiny Li. Mandarin service director: Jennifer Chou. Translated by Shiny Li and Jennifer Chou. Written for the Web in English by Sarah Jackson-Han.