The Chinese authorities use digital technologies to control the country’s citizens. The Communist Party of China led by General Secretary Xi Jinping intends to supervise every single resident. In fact, it seems that they have almost succeeded. Information the local population receives from the outside world is very limited. At the same time, the government has full access to the personal details of each and every Chinese citizen. The Golden Shield or the Great Firewall of China, an Internet censorship system, protects Chinese users from the negative impact of the western ideology. Interestingly, the Golden Shield has three international gateways - Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou - used by China’s intelligence services, the government, the leading party and the state media, as well as state-owned companies. Meanwhile, ordinary citizens are obliged to use only the Chinese Internet, as well as social media, search engines, services, and instant messengers. They have no idea that Twitter, Wikipedia, YouTube, or Facebook even exist. In order to maintain and retain the state monopoly, the Chinese authorities identify violators who connect to the World Wide Web. Every year, courts impose sentences from heavy fines to jail terms to trespassers, both individuals and companies.
