Days after the U.S. government called for talks with the eastern giant regarding a law that would put a porn filter on all computers in the realm, Google has buckled to an earlier and separate order from the government to filter porn out of its own search results.
China made the order last week, specifically asking the Internet giant to put a stop to "pornographic and vulgar" content — whatever that means — from appearing on the Chinese branch of its search engine, Google.cn.
The order came down from the China Internet Illegal Information Reporting Center. In response, Google has taken several steps, including:
- Implementing an automated script that weeds out pornographic links.
- Removing buttons from the Google.cn homepage that let users control their language and location.
Chinese citizens can still easily circumvent the ban by simply learning a few useful English search phrases. Google's main portal, Google.com, remains operational within the nation's borders.
China's order to Google has come as a part of a larger crackdown on adult content that also includes the May 19 edict to put the porn-filtering software Green Dam Youth Escort on all Chinese computers by July 1.