Yahoo Finanzas Guess the top websites, apps blocked in China
A recent Yahoo article spoke about how China controls its Internet by imposing curbs on freedom of expression online and censoring external apps.
Here’s a closer look at the top 100+ apps banned in China, which the rest of the world enjoys freely. Some of these apps have been mainly banned as they were used by Chinese citizens to revolt against the government and to use it as a platform for communication among protestors. Some others were blocked for fear of snooping by external parties on data of national interest and security.
A ban on these apps, especially as a result of riots or protests by the people of China, further cements the belief that China’s hegemonic government is in fact insecure of not being able to control the voice of its population.
While China’s ban on these apps does not directly impact India, as these are all mostly US-based, it is a matter of intrigue that China should choose to do away with any advanced and effective media that connects the countries of the world under the pretext of promoting their own technology. What is China seeking to guard against so closely? Is it just a fear of the US making inroads?
Imagine a near impossible scenario where the Indian government would decide on banning any of these apps for its general public. What would your reaction be? Think you can make do without them? Share your thoughts below.
However, do remember, above is just a hypothetical situation for your consideration. In reality, we must consider ourselves lucky that we are in a large democracy that gives us the right to a free, progressive world.
Some of the top websites blocked in China:
Social Websites and Apps
Facebook.com
Twitter.com
Instagram.com
Pinterest.com
Tumblr.com
Snapchat.com
Picasa.google.com
Flickr.com
plus.google.com
hangouts.google.com
Hootsuite.com
pscp.tv
xing.com
DeviantART.combadoo.com
plurk.com
twister.net.co
badoo.com
disqus.com
gab.ai
tinder.com
Blogging Websites and Platforms
Blogger.com
WordPress.com
fc2.com
urbansurvival.com
Emailing Services
google.com/gmail/
Search Engines
Google.com
DuckDuckGo.com
Yahoo.com
startpage.com
Messaging Apps
messenger.com
slack.com
whatsapp.com
telegram.org
line.me/en/
kakaocorp.com/service/KakaoTalk
signal.org
Streaming Apps and Websites
youtube.com
netflix.com
vimeo.com
dailymotion.com
twitch.tv
pscp.tv
vevo.com
pandora.com
spotify.com
hulu.com
SoundCloud.com
hbo.com
playstation.com
News Websites
nytimes.com
bbc.com
ft.com/
wsj.com
bloomberg.com
reuters.com
independent.co.uk
news.google.com
theguardian.com
businessinsider.com
Cloud Storage, Information, and Sharing
wikipedia.org
wikileaks.org
google.com/drive
google.com/docs/
google.com/calendar
dropbox.com
shutterstock.com
slideshare.net
slack.com
Others
linkedin.com
quora.com
amazon.co.jp
sonymusic.co.jp
amnesty.org
tibet.net
gettyimages.com
flipboard.com
monster.com
download.cnet.com
Note: User can still access blocked websites in China, using virtual private networks (VPNs). However, due to China’s recent crackdowns on VPNs, not all of them work.
Reference source: https://www.vpnmentor.com/
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