DIGITAL LIFE

China's technology companies censored terms linked to coronavirus

(Reuters) - China's social media platforms began censoring coronavirus references and critical keywords about the way the government deals with the disease, the cybernetic research group Citizen Lab reported on Tuesday.
Tencent's WeChat message app and JOYY'S TOYY video streaming application blocked combinations of keywords with criticisms of President Xi Jinping, local authorities and virus-related policies, according to the report.
Citizen Lab said the findings, collected between December and February, suggest that companies "received official guidance" on how to manage the content on the virus in the early stages of the outbreak.
The blocked terms also included non-critical phrases related to public health and local rules, including "travel ban" and "transmission from person to person".
Tencent and YY did not respond immediately to the requests for comments this Tuesday.
China's censorship policies have been in focus since the outbreak of the virus, amid allegations by netizens and local media that they potentially concealed the seriousness of the outbreak in its early stages.
The report states that " YY " added 45 sentences to an internal blacklist, including "Wuhan Unknown Pneumonia" and "Wuhan Seafood Market" on December 31, a day after eight people, including Doctor Li Wenliang, warned of the virus in a WeChat group and were subsequently punished by the police for "spreading rumors".
The censorship rules are rigorously applied in China, and internet companies in the past have faced suspensions and fines for not fully complying with them.

(By Cate Cadell)