The People’s Republic of China has apparently barred its citizens from visiting a host of Google properties, including the main search engine, Google Apps, Google Reader and Gmail. A search on Twitter (preferred hashtag seems to have become #fuckgfw) reveals that many Chinese are complaining, particularly about not being able to use the search engine, although it appears Google.cn can still be reached at this point.
Can anyone actually in China confirm this in comments? As far as we can tell from using tools such as WebsitePulse, a lot of Google services are effectively blocked at this point. We’ve also cross-tested other popular US services like Yahoo, Twitter, Facebook and Bing, which appear to remain accessible for the moment.
The block of the services appears to have become apparent to users around 10 AM Eastern Time. We’ve contacted Google for comment.
Update: A person seemingly located in Xiamen, China, says Google Books, Google Talk and Image Search have also been blocked in the comment section of this post. Other services like Blog Search, Translate, Maps and Analytics are reportedly borked as well. YouTube has been blocked in the country for quite some time already.
We should note this is reminiscent of the recent blocking of Twitter and Bing in the lead-up to the anniversary of Tienanmen. CrunchGear has noted in the past that China’s censorship practices are gradually becoming more sophisticated in general.
Earlier this week, FastCompany reported that Google clashed with China over pornographic material that could possibly turn up in search results on Google’s Chinese language site. The search giant then agreed to “take all necessary steps” to ensure that this issue was resolved in due time. Perhaps they did not move quickly enough for country officials and they got shut down over this dispute?
Either way, this is a draconian measure any way you look at it.
Update 2: 11:05 AM Eastern time – reports are coming in saying that access to some Google services have been restored
Hi Robin,
I wonder how long will they be able to control the media. I hope things change soon for the Chinese people.
Thanks for the great post.
Mani Raj
Havoc Marketing
Oh That’s really a sad thing for Chinese Users. But why they are doing like this?
For Chinese users my tip would be using proxies and socks to visit these sites until this ban is lifted.
http://www.smartbloggerz.com
Use tor (http://tor.eff.org) instead. It’s like a proxy on steroids.
Just make sure that regardless of proxy technology, you use SSL for all your outgoing connections!
Thanks Typhoon & Matt. I hope that people in China could read your comments and try it out to see if it works.
Mani Raj
Havoc Marketing
(P.S. Let us know if it does)
They can access Google search, ironically, through another search engine Yauba (a privacy search engine with a built in anonymous proxy)
Yes. http://www.yauba.com IS working and I CAN access Google through it. Thank God.
It’s kind of trouble in China to use proxies, and their sensors are pretty up to date.
Also, as of ~10pm est, Changchun does not have access to any google features. I NEED MAH SCHOLAR AND GMAIL.
Anyways, I hope they work out an agreement soon, not that I’m dependent on google, but many other search engines do not work here.
Well, this site was blocked for years in China. Those who can read English will find them from download websites in English. Those who cannot speak English will be unlucky of that.
The site you suggestedu can not open too.
Changchun, Google Blocked. Unable to access mail, news, or scholar (Doing research here). Very Annoying.
On the subject of censorship, though, it’s not horrible here, but I am addicted to google and I do not speak Chinese for google.cn.
To be honest, Chinese people deserve this. There are exceptions to the rule, but I have been in China for 5 years and I can tell you that the majority of Chinese LOVE the government, and if you criticize the government in any way the first people to attack you will be NORMAL AVERAGE CHINESE CITIZENS not the government. You reap what you sow.
Its unfair for the more intelligent people who actually see the government for what it is and do not agree with their policies, but that is a VERY small percentage (Out of the 1000’s of Mainland Chinese people I have met since I have been living there, about 3 of them firmly do not like the government)
Why would they dislike a government that has steadily improved things in China? While not perfect in anyway they have been improving most peoples’ lives.
Also most people in China have more important things to worry about instead of freedom of speech. Like you know food, housing, work and life in general.
I have spoken to some of my peeps in China and they are real annoyed already about filtering. They cannot use Google and YouTube. We have tried everything. Also I heard they want computer manufacturers to make sure these filters are installed in all new computers. I believe the problem is they want Google out. With Google coming out against Baidu in song downloads etc, they do not want Baidu to have any competitors. I believe China will have trouble soon when the people of China revolts and uses Satellite signals which cannot be blocked.
Never say can’t.
Satellite signals can be jammed, so they’ll be forced through the wired, filtered access to the internet
You CAN access google in China by searching for google on http://www.yauba.com and then choosing the “visit anonymously” link
+ 1
Confirmed.
Deconfirmed. Yauba cannot access https sites anonymously (like gmail), and I still cannot check my email. Seriously, China. This is lame.
You can do the same visiting any anonymous proxy site.
http://aafter.com also have access to an anonymous proxy.
It may not be only about Baidu, though it can be a factor in kidnapping Google. It may be more about politics.
Google is offering many services using https connection which also provide a safe umbrella to the Chinese people to connect and share safely, like using Google docs to aggregate information about riots.
Is this related to North Korean missiles?
Subjugation of democratic protest when North Korea is preparing for war?
Does this mean China also is, and wants minimum fuss?
Is this too much speculation or does this seem plausible, given how they did these things before Tiananmen anniversary and how they detained people before the Olympics?
So in general, does any attempt at silencing voices through the internet / mobile media indicate a coming conflict?
Extremely doubtful. In fact, I’d argue that that kind of unsupported speculation does more harm than good.
If you stayed updated on foreign policy and spent some time here, you’d be far more acquainted with how things run. While the government is indeed reactionary and heavy-handed (and many other things), it is also pragmatic. There will be no large-scale conflicts.
told you guys,
buy baidu !
short google !
I’m in Shanghai, China and can confirm all are down.
From Shenzhen, google https not working either. All google service down around 10pm GMT+8.
And yet I can read comments here..
I am in Shanghai and I can confirm that http://www.yauba.com IS working and I CAN access Google search though it.
Unfortunately http://www.yauba.com does not allow access to password protected areas I so still can’t access gmail.
I’m in Shanghai, China and I can confirm that Google dot com and all of the subdomains are down. No word on why / until when yet…
At work in China with access to North American proxies, Google.com works fine on US and Canadian proxies but gives me a “Network Error (tcp_error)” when trying from a Chinese IP.
Confirmed, google and all related services are blocked. Going to sign up for freedur.com right now!
CONFIRMED! Google-everything is down. I can understand if the search engine is blocked, but Gmail downage is really unacceptable. Though I’ve been using http://www.freedur.com = lifesaver!
How can you understand if the Google search engine is blocked?
How is that ok?
The reason they blocked it is because of search suggests and porn results.
I’m living in China and Google.com, Gmail (even in https), Google Reader, Gtalk, Google Books, Google image search …. all international Google service are blocked.
Gmail and Gtalk connections returns and dropps.
Location: Xiamen, China
The https is working here (he says… fate has been tempted), but Google Reader doesn’t have https access.
still borked, proxy works …
That’s true! all service with google.com are blocked(google.com gmail greader gcalendar gdocuments). Also the new google wave…
I’m an Israeli tourist currently staying in Guangzhou, China, and i can confirm that all services related to Google are currently down. the block started half an hour ago and includes Google apps, all search services, analytics, maps, gTalk and practically Everything.
Although I’m in the US, I’ve confirmed with many of my friends in China that the censorship for Google.com, Apps, Gmail, Picasa etc. is real. Many fresh graduates are complaining this as they get in big trouble for not getting email from recruiters. But some sources say, Google China PR indicated that this is only a service update to fix the porn link problems in China and the service will resume in a couple of hours.
The news about Google China is updating service is false, confirmed by Sina with Google.
My friends in China cannot visit Gmail now. what the fuck.
Yes, Google Reader, Gmail, Google Analytics, Google Translate, Google Blog Search, Google News… all of it, and more, is down. My Google Sidebar is dead (”Not Connected” and “Loading…”), too, which is sad, as I was getting to quite like it being there.
There is an easy workaround for Gmail and Analytics (think about it…), but not one I can think of for Reader…
The ultimate workaround is a proxy, of course, but having to use one for everything from Gmail on down makes me shiver, slightly – life is short, and proxies can be so, so slow.
I’m in Beijing and just saw the black out happen. From one minute to the next google was totally blocked.
For a while twitter was the only place I could find where ppl were reporting this block. I notified TechCrunch via Twitter at 22:10PM (Beijing Time).
I just opened a VPN tunnel to Tokyo and Singapore via my corporate network and I am able use all google services, indicating this is not a technical glitch in the region.
Maybe Techcrunch should invest in a paid VPN connection to China.
Many small companies and individuals will give you VPN access to China telecom that you can set up with XP or Vista the same way you would access the VPN at your company.
It will probably only cost you a few dollars a month.
You should do this instead of taking people’s word for it.
Yeah, I am currently in Shanghai, and yes, it is blocked. Everything of Google (except Google.cn) is not accessible no more….
Confirmed here in Chengdu China. Proxy works fine.
I’am in ShangHai, yes, google was GFWed, See here: http://search.t...ch?q=%23Fuckgfw
sing it w/ me…
“its the end of the world as we know it”
“i feel fine (albeit a little annoyed)”
Thank you so much for this. Great job.
all you have to do is look up the search results for #gfw, #fuckgfw and #caogfw and you’ll see a lot of angry folks in China who can’t access Google services right now.
google.com gmail , and other service blocked . google.cn can only return result inside China .
Fuck GFW .
FAO China:
Ur doin it wrong.
I’m in Shanghai, can’t access Google,Gmail,Reader,Adsense,Docs,Earth,Talk,Sites,Appspot,Feedburner,Youtube,Blogger…. any more
Google analytics and AdWords are also down. *&^%$#@!
In Taishan, Jiangmen, Guanzhou. Youtube, Blogger has been blocked for a while, but a few days after the Tianmen Square anniversary I was able to access my self-hosted public facing Blogger blog, but not the admin side of Blogger.
Anyway, everything is blocked now. I think this happened sporadically recently too. But this is the longest Google’s services like Search and Email have been down.
I’m screwed now since I have all my various domain emails hosted on Google Apps.
It’s unblocked now, said by some of my friends in China
Gmail is only survivor now.
22:50 Beijing.
All the google services get blocked here in China except for the castrated one google.cn.
I’m in Beijing and just saw the black out happen. From one minute to the next google was totally blocked.
For a while twitter was the only place I could find where ppl were reporting this block. I notified TechCrunch via Twitter at 22:10PM (Beijing Time).
I just opened a VPN tunnel to Tokyo and Singapore via my corporate network and I am able use all google services, indicating this is not a technical glitch in the region.
also i am working at a PC manufacturing company and can confirm that government wants all product to be sold in china to have strong filtering software installed starting July 1, 2009.
another cool thing, you cannot follow people in china on twitter … because to do so goes through google analytics … so they have found a way to limit the twitter network in china … i can follow anybody outside though .. smart
well, this really is annoying… all my mails go to GMAIL…
yup in guangzhou it is down, only googe.cn works. just great.
Hunan Province, China. Cannot acccess google search, gmail, picasa, google reader …
gmail.com and all subdomains/services blocked except .cn.
-from Guangzhou
I can’t access Gmail,Google Reader and English version of Google.I’m a user of China Unicom in Jinan,Shandong Province.Multiple sources within the mainland has confirmed the news.
all services of google.com are blocked at china. google.cn is still alive.
In microblogs at china, such as fanfou, digu, jiwai, many people are complaining these. looks like almost all ISP of chinese major cities block google.com.
In Wuxi now — Google English Search is blocked.
yes I can confirm this. I’m from China.
Censorship 2.0…interesting term.
For what it is worth, it is good to know that these things are not blocked when one accesses from within corporate firewalls of multinationals in China (multinationals that have their own dedicated bandwidth that is).
Why is that ‘good to know’?! It’s ok to censor home users but people who pay the government to do business there don’t have the same measures?
Duh, it’s good to know for those who don’t know, that their are other ways to reach the outside world if/when one desperately needs to (i.e., talk to a friend who works for a multinational).
I didn’t say anything about anything being “ok”.
Yes, I’m skyping with a friend, who is in China, and they are not able to get there. Here are his comments:
[9:50:31 AM] ME http://www.techcrunch.com/
[9:50:43 AM] HIM: hmmm is there anything funny in the news today? my internet is weird and apparently i’m not the only one. google is block [that's a BIG surprise- never happened before]
[9:51:36 AM] HIM: go confirm it for me
[9:51:40 AM] HIM: it’s true
[9:52:42 AM] HIM: like i said go confirm it for me: 2nd paragprah “Can anyone actually in China confirm this in comments?”
[9:52:50 AM] ME: We are totally thinking in unity!
[9:52:53 AM] ME: Ok, I will
I’m in Chengdu China, and almost all of Google and Google applications are inaccessible. Google.cn still loads, but there isn’t a Gmail.cn. Whenever I change my google.cn page to “display results in English” , I get the same blocked message.
It started at about 22h10pm, on the 24th (I was actually busy sending some emails when it started bombing out).
Time to fire up the proxies I say. Censoring something big like google and gmail will mean more people will explore avenues like proxies, virtual private networks and dedicated private servers over here, which will only lead to more information accessible, rather than censored, in my opinion…
hi, Chengdu Guy, export GReader subscriptions, enable Gmail POP~
Dont know what is the problem with CHINA? Stupid Nuts!
fear
Users in China always have service alternatives. People uses ku6.com (video site), even Youtube is not blocked, it’s still loading much faster than Youtube. Actually, more people uses baidu.com than Google as it sometime does better search in chinese.
“Blocking” is the primary strategy! If ku6.com hosts foreign copyright content, they block visitors from other country viewing the pirate video content.
I’m in china. Seems everything is back in order again. China time 2009 June 24 11:01PM
Google.com is back.
Read this article in Google Reader.
i can’t access google.com/gmail.com except google.cn , now worried about the gmail and other google service applications such as googlemap..
from 9:20PM (Bj time) , GuangZhou
I’m based in Jiangsu China now. I can confirm this.
google.com, gmail, google doc and so on…
Google had become part of my life, but now gov and GFW(Great Fire Wall) blocked google from us..damn
I just asked my friend, people can access both .com and .cn in Shanghai. It seems to be a regional block.
r u sure?i just can’t not access any of them now!!
yes, i am pretty sure since i am using both gmail and google search now in shanghai
这位兄台，你发个截图来瞧瞧？
is it cause you are using google.cn? i think all english apps are not working
I’m not so sure now coz I’m not in Shanghai at the moment. Friend had gone to bed – it’s nearly midnight. Last time I went back, the network was still shitty as hell! Network only behaves well when it was Olympic period.
All my clients’ hosts were blocked, I wasn’t able to do any work which cost a lot of contract fees at the end!! Of course! damn government is not going to pay me ah!
no