The Chinese government’s controversial Green Dam software, used to censor content sent and received online (with the stated purpose of blocking pornography), is beginning to crumble. Chinese officials first backed down from a requirement that all computers sold in the country be preinstalled with the software.
Now, as reported by Reuters, school administrators in Beijing are quietly removing the software, claiming that it hinders the utility of the school’s computers. A message posted on the home page of Beijing No. 50 High School boldly, and against official policy, stated its reason for removing the software:
“We will remove all Green Dam software from computers in the school as it has strong conflicts with teaching software we need for normal work.”
An official at the Chongwen District Education Commission, which oversees the high school, said he received complaints from officials at schools throughout Beijing, not so much about censorship per se, but rather Green Dam’s alleged incompatibility with other software programs.
In addition to schools, Internet cafes and other public places are required to install Green Dam software. Ordinary consumers, however, are not. Looks like Three Gorges Dam might be the only impenetrable wall in China these days.
Photo courtesy of gugganij, via Wikimedia Commons.
