James Delahunty
2 Aug 2018 7:33
According to a report by The Intercept, Google has been working on a version of its search engine that would comply with Chinese censorship laws.
It cited internal Google documents and inside sources in reporting on Dragonfly, a project that would omit results from websites including terms like "human rights" and "religion." The Reuters News Agency and Agence France-Presse both confirmed the initial report from their own separate sources.
A Google spokesperson provided a brief statement on the report without confirmation of denial.
"We provide a number of mobile apps in China, such as Google Translate and Files Go, help Chinese developers, and have made significant investments in Chinese companies like JD.com," the statement said. "But we don't comment on speculation about future plans."
The report cites Android apps called Maotai and Longfei that have been developed and could be launched within months if approved by the Chinese government.
Securities Daily, with is a state-owned outlet, dismissed the report citing "relevant departments" in reporting that Google is not preparing a return to the Chinese market.
Google shut its Search operations in China in 2010 due to conflicts with the communist government over state censorship.