Green Dam Software Now Voluntary

The Chinese Government has canceled its plans of forcing computer manufacturers to install internet filtering technology into computers sold in China.

The Chinese Government paid 5.85 Million dollars for a vendor to develop software that will monitor computer activities. The Chinese Government claimed that the software was solely to be used to filter out internet pornography and not for spying on citizens.

Li Yizhong, China’s industry and information technology minister, said that it was a miscommunication that installation of the Green Dam software was intended to be mandatory.

There had been a fury of criticism and outrage directed at the Green Dam software. From privacy and spying concerns to a legal issue of copyright infringement against an American company, the Green Dam software suffered a problematic beginning which delayed its launch.