{"id":4412,"date":"2017-01-26T05:03:02","date_gmt":"2017-01-25T21:03:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.darknet.org.uk\/?p=4412"},"modified":"2017-09-22T14:53:29","modified_gmt":"2017-09-22T06:53:29","slug":"china-outlaw-unapproved-vpn-services","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.darknet.org.uk\/2017\/01\/china-outlaw-unapproved-vpn-services\/","title":{"rendered":"China To Outlaw All Unapproved Darknet VPN Services"},"content":{"rendered":"

So the latest news from behind the Great Firewall of China is that they plan to crack down on all unapproved Darknet VPN services. This means all VPN providers, cloud service providers and ISPs will have to seek an annually renewed licence to operate a VPN Service.<\/p>\n

\"China<\/p>\n

\"PureVPN<\/a><\/p>\n

Really, not very surprising coming out of China and I’m honestly shocked it took them this long. I’m curious as to how this will work though, for providers based outside of China – how will they get licenced? Or will they even care?<\/p>\n

The Chinese government has started an 18-month crackdown that will require all Darknet VPN providers to seek government approval for their activities if they want to stay in business.<\/p>\n

The news, announced by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology on Sunday, says that the market for services that bypass the content filters installed by the government needs more regulation.<\/p>\n

In a statement, the agency claimed that the VPN and cloud computing market was undergoing “disorderly development” and that there was an “urgent need for regulation norms.” As such, the agency has decided that, in order to “promote the healthy and orderly development,” the government will have to approve any services that bypass the Great Firewall.<\/p>\n

As a result, every ISP, cloud services provider, and VPN reseller will need to apply to their regional government office for a license to operate. They will also have to demonstrate to the Institute of Computing Technology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences that they have hardened up the security of their services to deal with current internet threats.<\/p>\n

These licenses to operate will have to be renewed on an annual basis and failure to get one will lead to company bosses being “severely punished according to law.” The Ministry also reserves the right to conduct spot checks at any time to enforce compliance.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n