China concerned about Internet security

BEIJING, May 19 (UPI) -- Despite its commitment to technology, China has had an uneasy relationship with the Internet, blocking hundreds of thousands of sites.

China's Vice Minister of Information Industry Xi Guohua on Wednesday told participants at a conference in the capital Beijing commemorating the 38th World Telecommunications Day that China was increasing its supervision capabilities over Internet security concerns by further developing and adapting new technology.

The official Xinhua news agency reported Wednesday that Xi told conference participants that, given China's vulnerabilities in Internet security, the Chinese government was working to improve its protection systems. China was also developing a mechanism to provide backup information copies of essential information in the event of emergency or disaster striking Chinese Internet networks, Xi said.

Xi told his audience that Chinese government concerns included computer viruses, "harmful information" and cyber crime, and that Chinese IT personnel had to cope with Internet security loopholes.

The issue is of increasing concern because of rising Internet use by the Chinese people. Chinese Ministry of Information Industry statistics put the number of citizens using the Internet at more than 110 million, second only to the United States.