Facebook’s WhatsApp disrupted in China
• The last of Facebook Inc.’ s major products that still worked in China was disrupted by the government Tuesday, as Beijing broadly tightens its controls over the internet.
WhatsApp, a messaging app used across the globe, was partly disrupted by Chinese filters, leaving many unable to send videos and photos and some also unable to send text-based messages.
The WhatsApp disruption was the latest in a long line of big digital services running up against China’s “Great Firewall,” the country’s system of internet filters and controls. In recent weeks, the government has appeared to increase its grip, an online crackdown fed by a perfect storm of politically sensitive news, important upcoming events, and a new cybersecurity law that went into effect last month.
Sites hosting popular foreign TV shows have had videos taken down, and tools used to skirt censors have faced more frequent disruptions. In an article, the mouthpiece of the country’s Communist Party scolded the Chinese internet company Tencent over a popular video game, calling it too addictive.
The news environment has heightened the sensitivity. In recent weeks, the Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo passed away in detention. A Chinese billionaire in the United States accused senior leaders of graft, from his platform on Twitter. And Hong Kong commemorated the 20th anniversary of its handover to China.
To make matters more fraught, the 19th Party Congress — where top leadership positions are determined — is just months away. In the runup to the event, which happens every five years, the government puts an increased emphasis on stability, often leading to a tightening of internet controls.
WhatsApp, which had generally avoided major disruptions in China despite the full block of Facebook and Instagram, appears to have become a victim of those circumstances.
The WhatsApp blocks originated with the government, according to a person familiar with the situation who declined to be named due to not being authorized to speak on the record about the disruption. Security experts also verified that the partial disruption started with China’s internet filters.
“According to the analysis that we ran today on WhatsApp’s infrastructure, it seems that the Great Firewall is imposing censorship that selectively targets WhatsApp functionalities,” said Nadim Kobeissi, an applied cryptographer.
THE 19TH PARTY CONGRESS IS JUST MONTHS AWAY.