Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

China Orders Internet Comments Linked To Real Identities (engadget.com)

Posted by EditorDavid on from the no-more-secrets dept.

A (truly) anonymous Slashdot reader quotes Engadget: China isn't slowing down in its bid to silence online political opposition. As of October 1st, the country will require that tech firms hold on to records of the real identities of everyone posting comments on internet message boards. This is to discourage "false rumors, filthy language and illegal messages," according to the government. Of course, it's that last part that Chinese officials are really interested in -- they know you're less likely to challenge the political order if investigators can easily track you down.

The timing of this identity requirement, the VPN restriction and other crackdowns (such as an investigation into internet giants for allowing material that "harms the social order") isn't coincidental. China's ruling party has its next national congress later in 2017, and it has a habit of ramping up censorship around these gatherings to discourage criticism of party policies.

13 of 251 comments (clear)

  1. Fuck China. by log0n · · Score: 3, Informative

    Fuck China.

    1. Re:Fuck China. by log0n · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Or rather, fuck the Chinese government. I'm sure the people are swell.

    2. Re:Fuck China. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Oh sweet summer child, you don't think it'll be everywhere soon? The Wild West is ending, the internet is for govt and big business.

    3. Re: Fuck China. by KGIII · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Gotta be honest, Mexico is pretty handy if you don't mind paying bribes and massive violence that the Federales/policia are willing to ignore. La drugas es no mucho dinero y la pequenas es muy caliente.

      Err... I'm unable to spell in Spanish.

      --
      "So long and thanks for all the fish."
    4. Re:Fuck China. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

      You've never been to China, have you?

    5. Re:Fuck China. by DNS-and-BIND · · Score: 3, Insightful

      So, that's what you're going with? Russians did it? The Russians made Hillary lose Pennsylvania? How the hell does ANY Democrat lose Pennsylvania? Or Michigan, for fuck's sake? PA, MI, *and* Wisconsin and somehow TEH COMMIEZ did it?

      Now, I bet the discussions in the Michigan union halls and the Pennsylvania VFWs went something like this: "You know Mitch, with the economy so good and America so respected in the world, I was totally going to support Hillary continuing Obama's work, but then I found out that Donna Brazile was feeding her CNN's debate questions. Also, until Comey reminded me, I had totally forgotten Hillary was under FBI investigation for doing what would have gotten me sent to Leavenworth if I had done it when I was in the Navy. So, despite loving all the Democrat policies that have made my life a paradise, especially the idea of a law allowing grown men in dresses to loiter in my tween daughter's restroom, I'm voting for Trump. Oh, and I'm a deplorable racist and hate science. Also, sexism."

      --
      Shutting down free speech with violence isn't fighting fascism. It IS fascism!
    6. Re:Fuck China. by Opportunist · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Can't really second that. US people are generally woefully uninformed for a people with a free press and free access to information, but they're also generally nice. I only found them a bit patronizing, at least the ones that don't really know there is a world outside of their country.

      In other words, there is no tactful way to inform your host that he needn't explain how a light switch works...

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  2. Re:A government the US lefties want by renegadesx · · Score: 3, Insightful

    There are calls by bureaucrats for similar measures in the EU to do the same thing. It's not as crazy as some people think.

    --
    Make SELinux enforcing again!
  3. They'll be losing most favorite nation status by rsilvergun · · Score: 4, Insightful

    any day now. Yup. Any day now. Right after we call out Saudi Arabia for it's civil rights abuses and treatment of women. In other news, the new iPhone 8 looks pretty sweet.

    --
    Hi! I make Firefox Plug-ins. Check 'em out @ https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/youtube-mp3-podcaster/
  4. Re: A government the US lefties want by KGIII · · Score: 5, Insightful

    No, it's pretty crazy. What is crazy is not seeing the absurdity of this. It's kinda disappointing that people ignore the value of anonymous speech. When faced with retaliation, you tend to not feel comfortable freely expressing yourself.

    --
    "So long and thanks for all the fish."
  5. End of the World as We Knew It by mschwanke97402 · · Score: 3, Interesting

    You know it is a whole lot more likely that we get to where the chinese, and many other countries, are through the back door, of lawsuits, liability judgements and insurance companies. Western societies are often more constrained by such than by actual law and government regulation.

  6. Re:A government the US _righties_ want by Cyberax · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Actually, China is a right-winger dream: uber-capitalist, lax regulations, no meaningful minimum wage, no environmental protection. Add to that an authoritarian government that doesn't tolerate anything non-traditional (LGBTs, foreign religions, porn) and you get the wet dreams of right-wingers.

  7. Re:A government the US _righties_ want by Dutch+Gun · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Except most right-wingers espouse a minimalist Federal government, are pro-firearms-rights, anti-abortionists, religious, and generally favor a strict constructionist interpretation of the US Constitution, with all those pesky individual rights enumerated. Yeah, definitely a right-winger's paradise there.

    Authoritarian governments don't really favor the left OR right. They just favor themselves.

    --
    Irony: Agile development has too much intertia to be abandoned now.