A Traveler’s Guide to Jumping the Great Firewall

UPDATE: Almost as soon as this post was published, I started to have problems connecting to Google’s English-language search service, Google Reader and other products hosted at google.com. The latest from Google here.

After the spring’s Google brouhaha, anyone coming to China is probably familiar with the “Great Firewall” — the combination of software and human censors that China uses to control access to what it deems sensitive information online. I don’t want to get into how this affects Chinese Internet users here, as this blog as a general rule avoids politics, aside from a snarky comment here or there. But if you are traveling to China, it may be helpful to know how you will be affected by the Internet restrictions and what you can do to prepare.

1. Know which sites are currently restricted

This NOT a comprehensive list, and it is always subject to change. A good source for the latest information is HerdictWeb, where Internet users all over the world submit information about sites that are blocked at their locations. In addition, Google monitors the availability of its services in mainland China.

2. Find alternatives in advance

If you rely on the blocked services and plan to use them during your travels, find alternatives before you leave.

• If you normally post photos on Facebook, set up a Flickr account and link the RSS feed for your photostream to your Facebook news feed to continue to share photos with your friends.
• Set up a Flickr account to supplement your Picasa account while you are in China.
• Set up posting by e-mail for your Blogspot or WordPress accounts.
• Put any Blogspot or WordPress blogs that you read into an online RSS reader like Google Reader so that you can continue to follow them. Google Reader will let you read blocked feeds as long as you view them as part of a folder or “All posts.” You cannot look at a blocked feed directly in Reader.
• Create a back-up e-mail account on a different service in case you lose access to your main e-mail account. Add important addresses to the contact list and/or carry a hard copy of them in your luggage.

3. Use a free proxy website to view blocked sites

The Internet abounds in free proxy websites that can be used to view blocked websites. Many of these are blocked in China, but a Google search for “free proxy” should turn up at least one that will work. Generally, these do not show Javascript, and they are not very reliable if you want to post content, whether on a blog or on Twitter. But they work fine for viewing most blogs and websites.

4. Sign up for a VPN service

If you are are bringing your own computer, you may want to invest in a VPN service for the time that you’re in China. In addition to overcoming the Great Firewall, this offers an added level of security if you need to access bank accounts or other sensitive information. A VPN encrypts your web activity, so that it appears to Chinese censors that you are simply connecting to an innocent computer somewhere in the States or elsewhere. You can then use the Internet freely. (If you don’t want to pay, HotSpotShield offers a free VPN service.)

China hands, what other tips do you have for escaping the Firewall?

Related posts:

1. The Net Nanny is getting stricter
2. Slideshow: Jiayuguan Fort and the Great Wall
3. Back in China!
4. Links roundup: Urumqi edition
5. Links roundup (Norway edition)

Tagged as: China, Great Firewall, Internet