China's Green Dam Close to Tumbling Down

One development arm behind the Green Dam software has closed its doors, and the other is facing the same fate.

Last year we covered news surrounding China and its mandatory pre-installation of the Green Dam Youth Escort security software on all new PCs. Manufacturers from outside and within China retaliated against the government's forced Internet censoring--local and international consumers also followed suit with their complaints. Eventually the Chinese government backed down. Green Dam disappeared back into obscurity just as quickly as it initially set fire to news channels.

One major problem the Green Dam software faced during its lifespan was accusations by an American firm claiming that the Beijing developer stole lines of code from its Internet filtering software. The US-based company is currently suing the Chinese government, seven PC manufacturers, and two Chinese firms. There were also reports that vulnerabilities within the software--and a weakness in its URL, text and image filtering system--left PC open for attack.

Now reports from China indicate that the project team from developer Beijing Dazheng Human Language Technology Academy has shut down thanks to a lack of government funding. The installation and "aftercare" team from Zhengzhou Jinhui Computer System Engineering, in Henan province, will also head to the chopping block if the government doesn't reestablish cash flow soon.

Originally the Chinese government funding only backed the Green Dam project for only one whole year--2008 to 2009. Since then, there has been no subsequent funding, and requests for more support have gone unheeded. Chinese authorities haven't even made any official comments regarding present and future support for the software. Has the Green Dam finally collapsed? If it hasn't already, it may fall soon.