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China Begins Monitoring Billions of Text Messages

eldavojohn writes "The Telegraph is reporting that China has begun monitoring 'billions of text messages' in order to increase censorship. However, a People's Daily article claims they only monitor users who have been reported, and only shut down their message service if the complaints are true. Anything considered pornographic will require the user to bring a letter of guarantee to the local public security bureau promising to never again send such messages before service can be reactivated."

12 of 178 comments (clear)

  1. Monitoring is universal by Kanel · · Score: 4, Informative

    private text messages are being recorded in the US as well, by the government and possibly private enterprises too. Recall the text messages sent on 9/11, which was posted anonymously on wikileaks.org. The only difference between the west and china is that they act upon the monitored data more extensively, the breach of privacy is the same.

    1. Re:Monitoring is universal by maxume · · Score: 4, Informative

      Those were pager messages, not SMS messages (the way pagers work, any dude with some equipment can listen to *everything*; the way SMS works, only the phone company can listen (well, and anyone who can order the phone company around)).

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      Nerd rage is the funniest rage.
    2. Re:Monitoring is universal by Kanel · · Score: 5, Informative
      The european SMS "culture" appears more widespread and mature than the US one. It has been a killer app since the late 90's, when prices dropped. I recall being surprised around 2002 when talking with US friends and realizing that many of them had cellphones with no SMS capability. "surely your cellphone is broken or something?" I asked.

      As for cheap, in parts of Africa there's almost a whole "language" based on the messages you can send just by calling and hanging up before it answears. the time of day or no. of missed calls forms a code that can be transmitted for free.

  2. Evil. by headkase · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Ok, exactly how Evil is the Chinese government? I'm all for trade with them because it keeps our relationship stable so we don't actually start killing each other but my opinion of their government style is that it has to go. Their government is Evil from my value system and I would love to see the Chinese people do something about that. Hell, I would even provide material support electronically but I wouldn't go there.

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    Shh.
  3. Re:Doesn't this violate the 1st Amendment? by Majik+Sheff · · Score: 4, Funny

    Score:-1, Facepalm

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    Women are like electronics: you don't know how damaged they are until you try to turn them on.
  4. Re:Doesn't this violate the 1st Amendment? by lorg · · Score: 4, Informative

    No. They live in China, they don't have your fancy 1st Amendment.

  5. Re:Government protest? by stoat · · Score: 5, Funny

    It's a similar procedure, but when you go down to the local public security bureau with your letter of guarantee they shoot you in the head and harvest your organs.

  6. Pornographics words not to use in SMS while in Chi by DeltaQH · · Score: 5, Funny

    Here are some examples:

    Down with CCP
    Free Tibet
    Free Xinjiang
    Rule of law
    Down with the Great Firewall
    Human rights
    Multiparty sytem
    Accountability
    Melanine
    Children crushed by crumbling schools
    Forced abortion
    Chapter 08
    You have nice pecks baby.

    Just think of the children!!

  7. Logistics by adbge · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Ethical concerns aside, it would be extremely interesting to see how censorship on this large of a scale is implemented.

    I wonder how effective automated modern systems will be at filtering, and how much of the censorship will have to rely on human employees. Total cost? Effectiveness? Cultural implications?

  8. I'm fascinated ... by PPH · · Score: 4, Interesting

    ... by the parallels between the Chinese and American right wingers' war on pornography. I'd think that the Chinese would be more intent on stamping out possible challenges to Communist rule (Falun Gong), independence movements (Tibet) and threats to national security. The American conservative logic is more understandable. The economic conservatives don't care about porn per se (its just another business after all), but in order to assemble a viable voting block, their 'deal with the devil' (the religious right) requires that they adopt their position that every ejaculation must have a name. The Chinese don't suffer from the same political pressures as the GOP does. There's no opposition party espousing sexual freedom that could benefit from the circulation of porn. Sitting at home wanking in front of the computer screen is not an activity around which groups tend to organize.

    Although the battle cry of our right wingers has been "Godless Commies", it seems that these two groups share quite a bit of ideology.

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    Have gnu, will travel.
  9. Self censorship and conservative thought by Colin+Smith · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Cutting naughty or unacceptable words out of daily conversation is their endgame.

    Look. What they are doing is persuading people to censor themselves, and to think conservatively. The endgame is behaviour modification.

    You don't actually have to read every message. You simply tell people that everything they write or say is monitored.

    It's literally FUD.

       

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    Deleted
  10. US 1st amendment corresponds to their Article 35 by tepples · · Score: 4, Informative

    No. They live in China, they don't have your fancy 1st Amendment.

    You're right. All citizens of China have is Article 35, translated: "Citizens of the People's Republic of China enjoy freedom of speech, of the press, of assembly, of association, of procession and of demonstration."