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Chinese Internet Users Concerned About Crack Down on VPNs

Will China’s internet be further closed off from the rest of the world?

Manya Koetse

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China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology issued a notice on Sunday that it will strictly contain the unapproved use of virtual private networks (VPNs) by Chinese firms. Many Chinese internet users are concerned about the announcement and fear that it will further close off China’s internet from the rest of the world.

In the “Notice of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology on Clearing the Internet Market of Network Access Services” (“

Manya Koetse is a sinologist, writer, and public speaker specializing in China’s social trends, digital culture, and online media ecosystems. She founded What’s on Weibo in 2013 and now runs the Eye on Digital China newsletter. Learn more at manyakoetse.com or follow her on X, Instagram, or LinkedIn.

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1 Comment

1 Comment

  1. Kate

    January 24, 2017 at 8:35 pm

    The individual users need not to worry about as this new cybersecurity law will only affect the ”Fixed Line” VPN which are rented out by the Chinese Telecom or those installed by Microsoft to connect the offices (operating in mainland China) to their regional H.Qs. The commercial VPN services mostly operate outside mainland China and won’t have any Fixed line VPN functioning, so they will remain unaffected. I know it because I just talked to my VPN service (ExpressVPN) customer representative to clear my ambiguity regarding the new cybersecurity policy of Chinese government.

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China AI

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Welcome to China Trend Watch (Week 32–33 | 2026), where I bring you the latest trends, memes, and debates driving conversation across Chinese social media. I’m Manya Koetse, a sinologist specializing in Chinese digital culture.

 


 

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How Chinese AI Videos Turned Foreigners into Villains

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Welcome to China Trend Watch (Week 30–33 | 2026), where I bring you the latest trends, memes, and debates driving conversation across Chinese social media. Subscribe here to receive future editions.

 

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