china

Microsoft has apologized after a contractor appeared to copy code from a rival company to use in a microblogging service. But Plurk, the company claiming its material was stolen, says it is considering taking the matter to court. Juku, a ... Twitter-style blogging feature on Microsoft's MSN site in China, was taken down this week after the complaints. Plurk's staff had written that Juku's design had involved "blatant theft of code, design, and user interface elements." As Much as 80% of Code Stolen Not only did Plurk staff believe Juku's look and feel was remarkably similar to its own site, but ... (view more)

U.S. President Barack Obama has told Chinese Internet users that online freedom is a "source of strength". But the comments themselves appear to have become the victim of censorship. The president spoke at a "town hall" event attended by students in ... Shanghai. Questioned about online communication he said "I've always been a strong supporter of open Internet use. I'm a big supporter of non-censorship...unrestricted Internet access is a source of strength and I think it should be encouraged." He also argued that the criticism which came with online freedom of speech made him a better president ... (view more)

Four parties responsible for the widespread bootleg version of Microsoft's Windows XP in China have been found guilty and sentenced to spend as much as three and a half years in a Chinese prison. China has long been linked with international cyber ... crime and foreign malware. However, according to Xinhua -- the official news agency of the People's Republic of China -- the hundreds of thousands of other cases of online deviance pales in comparison to the bootlegged "Tomato Garden" version of Windows XP. Biggest Piracy Case in Chinese History Created in 2004, the Tomato Garden has had a ... (view more)

It's only been a few days since the Microsoft-Yahoo search agreement was finalized and already the new tandem is being criticized. Concerns were raised over the fact that the companies billed their union as a "global" partnership. The fact is that ... both companies were founded (and are currently headquartered) in the United States. According to some experts, this is a minor snafu -- but the technicality does raise a valid concern. What happens to the international Yahoo search affiliates? Yahoo China not Included in Deal It has now been made clear that the Microsoft-Yahoo search ... (view more)

It's only been a few days since the Microsoft-Yahoo search agreement was finalized and already the new tandem is being criticized. Concerns were raised over the fact that the companies billed their union as a "global" partnership. The fact is that ... both companies were founded (and are currently headquartered) in the United States. According to some experts, this is a minor snafu -- but the technicality does raise a valid concern. What happens to the international Yahoo search affiliates? Yahoo China not Included in Deal It has now been made clear that the Microsoft-Yahoo search ... (view more)

Apple has formally applied to launch the iPhone in China. The move, earlier than expected, appears to have been made possible once the firm agreed to drop WiFi capability. There are both political and technical reasons for WiFi issues in China. ... Until April this year, the government refused to allow any WiFi handsets. Officially that was because of fears users would add Internet phone services such as Skype and use those to make calls, to the detriment of China's phone companies. Unofficially it was thought the government believed WiFi would make it harder to monitor communications. Censorship ... (view more)

In a move designed to give the government unprecedented control over what users will and will not be able to see on the Internet, the Chinese government reportedly wants all computers sold in China after July 2009 to come pre-installed software that ... automatically censors the Internet. That's not surprising when you consider the fact that China recently ranked number one as the most complete Electronic Police State in the world. (Source (PDF): cryptohippie.com ) During the twentieth anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre this past week, China reportedly blocked access to websites like ... (view more)

China is receiving a double dose of blame for the Conficker virus, as reports suggest that the country may either be the source of the virus, the reason why it spread so quickly, or both. The Conficker virus is due to update itself on Wednesday . ... China has already been in the news recently for security issues. It's been blamed for a widespread network of spy computers which have allegedly infected computers including those of the Dalai Lama. Origins may reach as far back as 2001 Vietnamese security firm BKIS says it has analyzed Conficker's coding and believes there are some unmistakable ... (view more)

I'd hate to be a web writer, editor, or site owner while living in China. The country recently shut down over a thousand web sites it claimed were illicit and inappropriate, and critics are already speculating that those pages targeted might have ... displayed more than just nudies. At first, the site closures seem to be limited to those violating China's laws of "social morality," laws meant to protect the delicate "physical and mental health of youths." Images on sites like tiexue.com and vodone.com included a number of under-dressed women. However, at the same time official outlet People's ... (view more)

China is reportedly using an increasing number of paid "Internet commentators" to scour the Internet for bad news so they can try to negate it in an attempt to control public opinion. Chinese leaders are aware that the Internet is a place where ... views can be freely expressed so they pay close attention. They use these "Internet commentators" to spread their propaganda by posting comments on websites and forums, trying to spin bad news into good news in attempts to shape public opinion. China's Communist Party leaders have tried to control this for years via the media. Since extending ... (view more)