Most of the readers of this blog are, I assume, at least somewhat familiar with the Great Firewall of China -- the Chinese government's attempts to suppress the dissemination of information over the internet without its censorship and supervision. Sites like Facebook, Google (and with it, Gmail), the New York Times, and Twitter all run very slowly at best in China, and often don't work at all. This blog too is blocked by the Firewall, and wouldn't be able to exist were it not for the amazing powers of virtual private network technology. Through a VPN, which can be easily downloaded for a relatively small price, one can route the internet through foreign servers, thereby disguising its IP address and evading the Chinese Firewall. The Firewall can only detect Chinese IP addresses -- if my computer is surfing the internet using an American one (as it often does through my trusty VPN), the Firewall is powerless.
That is, apparently, until now. A few days ago, my particular VPN stopped working. It's not a perfect program, and I've encountered small glitches before, so I just assumed this was one of those instances. The tricky thing was, without a VPN, the Firewall blocked my access (naturally) to my VPN's website, so I couldn't access their troubleshooting page from home. Fine, I thought. I'll wait until I get to work, and use the very reliable foreign-routed internet there. Of course, my company blocks my VPN's website too, not because of the Firewall, but out of corporate security policies. Finally, I got my hands on the VPN's support email address through the gracious help of a friend, and gChat (thanks, Pete).
As it turns out, my VPN trouble was not an isolated issue. As I found out from the support staff (which is actually very reliable, something other service providing companies could learn from), China has apparently updated the Great Firewall. Since it was powerless to stop disguised IP addresses, it has managed to block the disguising process, making it impossible for VPN users, at least the ones that use my VPN, to access the VPN servers in the first place.
My friendly VPN people tell me they're developing a workaround strategy, that might be able to circumvent the Firewall's bolstered defenses. What's interesting to me is the consistency and adaptability the Chinese have demonstrated in their efforts to quash the spread of free ideas throughout the country. VPNs are essential to business here -- my company, for example, wouldn't be able to function in Shanghai or Beijing if it didn't employ some sort of VPN technology. And while I assume that my company's VPN is far more sophisticated and secure than the one I use at home, who's to say the Chinese won't figure out a way to update the Firewall even further, to block even the best VPNs? There's a quiet war going on here, between the censors and those who seek to ignore them. I have always assumed the good guys would win -- the internet is far too powerful, ubiquitous, and adaptable to smother. But China scored a few points for its cause this week, a dubious portent, perhaps, for things to come. For those who live here who are used to the privilege of free information, the Firewall and its apparently increasing reach provides stark perspective that information, ideas, opinions, and speech are not everywhere and always such simple and assumed aspects of life.
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On tap for tonight: KTV (karaoke) with the Chinese colleagues. Always reliable for some good and (mostly) clean fun.
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