Thursday, February 24, 2011

China blocks LinkedIn amid protest calls

LinkedIn, the social networking site for professionals, has become the first major victim of increased internet censorship in China in the wake of an online campaign for pro-democracy protests.

"We can confirm that access to LinkedIn is being blocked for some in China," said Hani Durzy, LinkedIn spokesman, in an emailed statement on Friday. "This appears to be part of a broader effort in China going on right now, involving other sites as well."

Some LinkedIn users in China started reporting on Thursday that they couldn't access the site unless they used tools such as virtual private networks to circumvent the Chinese government's internet blockages.

A LinkedIn user under the name Jasmine Z set up a discussion group on the site last week on which she called herself a "dissident" and said she hoped for democracy in China.

The disruption of the service comes as Beijing is trying to crush attempts to use online appeals to spark a "Jasmine revolution" in China inspired by the wave of protests sweeping the Middle East.

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