Security News > 2023 > July > Beijing wants to make the Great Firewall of China even greater

Over the weekend Chinese president Xi Jinping gave a directive to officials to build a Beijing-supervised "Security barrier" around its internet.

According to state-sponsored media republished by the government, Xi said it was "Essential to uphold the Party's leadership over the internet sector."

"Work must be done to forge a strong cybersecurity barrier and give full play to the role of information technology as a driving force for development. It is imperative to govern cyberspace, run websites and apps, and carry out online activities according to the law," said Xi. In a speech at the event, Cai Qi, Secretariat of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, argued for the strengthening of publicity and guidance online, guarding against ideological domains, strengthening of cyberspace governance and "Leadership" over online ideology.

"Internet and information technology departments at all levels must be loyal to the Party and the people, shoulder their responsibilities, be innovative and hard-working, and dare to fight cyber terrorism and other illegal acts in cyberspace in a bid to provide strong guarantees for the high-quality development of the internet and information technology work," Xi said.

The orders indicate that China's internet could become even more isolated.

The Great Firewall ensures, among other things, censorship and limited access to any foreign media service or entity that may not be aligned with Party values.

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https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2023/07/17/great_firewall_even_greater/