• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
TechEngage®

TechEngage®

Technology news and opinions

  • Tech News
  • Reviews
  • How-to
  • Roundups
  • Science
    • Energy
    • Environment
    • Health
    • Space
  • Apps
  • More
    • Opinion
    • Noteworthy
    • Culture
    • Blockchain
      • Cryptocurrency
    • Events
    • Deals
    • Startups
      • Startup Submissions
  • Videos
TechEngage » News » Browsers

Google forced to kill project dragonfly

Avatar Of Fazeel Ashraf Fazeel Ashraf December 18, 2018

google proeject dragonfly
credit: Munteha Google was forced to stop its work on project Dragonfly. Project Dragonfly was the censored version of its search engine, developed for the Chinese market.

Google was forced to stop its work on project Dragonfly. Project Dragonfly was the censored version of its search engine the company was developing for China. Google had to shelve the project after members of the company’s privacy team objected to the work. This is according to The Intercept.

Project Dragonfly constantly proved a thorn in Google’s way. Many people opposed the idea of Google developing a censored search engine. Majority of individuals opposed this idea because it encouraged censorship and surveillance.

If project Dragonfly had gone through, it would just have been another addition to China’s unfair surveillance of its citizen and an addition to its already despicable human right violations.

Many NGOs and human rights workers have greeted this news with utter joy, but Amnesty International wasn’t happy with Google’s reason for dropping the project. Amnesty International’s Secretary General Kumi Naidoo was disappointed with the reason behind the move.

We're hearing Google is finally dropping Dragonfly. If true, we welcome the news, but this project should never have seen the light of day. Google should be using its considerable platform to champion freedom of expression, not help governments curtail it. https://t.co/orZbHTUmIG

— Kumi Naidoo (@kuminaidoo) December 17, 2018

Naidoo said,

“It’s worrying that these reports suggest that Project Dragonfly has been shelved due to discrepancies over internal process, rather than over human rights concerns.”

Intercepts sources suggest that Google executives faced a lot of criticism and had to discard the project at least for the time being.

200 Google employees had written an open letter to the company telling the search giant to shut down project Dragonfly.  Additionally, 1400 Google engineers requested the company to improve its practices for other controversial projects, one of which was Dragonfly.

It was this kind of backlash the company faced which forced it to kill the project. Google was put under further pressure by the privacy team, who reportedly weren’t allowed to attend meetings on Dragonfly. The issue arose when Google purchased the Chinese domain 265.com

Google used the site to spy on its Chinese rival Baidu. Google learned about China’s Internet censorship rules. The company found out which Chinese sites were blacklisted through 265.com. Google decided to work on project Dragonfly once it had enough information about the Chinese market.

Issues arose while monitoring Chinese users’ search queries. Search queries are analyzed under careful surveillance by the privacy team at Google. When top executives decided to exclude the team from having access to 265.com’s API, that’s when things started going downhill for project Dragonfly.

Google gave access to the API to just one engineer. Now no one has access to it, so the project is good as dead.

Google had acquired 265.com in 2008, so the project was undergoing for approximately the last ten years. Many top executives had given high priority to the project. Google was about to enter foreign lands with it.

It wanted to please the Chinese government and respect its censorship laws by custom tailoring a search engine that filled all their needs.

Google flew too close to the sun, and now it is paying for its consequences. Human rights activists and NGOs rightfully protested project Dragonfly, because of its political and social consequences. Employees at big corporations should be fighting for their rights more often and should always stand for the truth and right of freedom of others.

Related Tags: Google Project Dragonfly

Related Stories

  • Ghostery Released A New Version Of Its Mobile Browser

    Ghostery released a new version of its mobile browser

  • Google To Give Eu Consumers Choice Of Browser And Search Engine In Android Phones

    Google to give EU consumers choice of browser and search engine in Android phones

  • Chrome 67 Rolls Out

    Chrome 67 rolls out

Avatar Of Fazeel Ashraf

Fazeel Ashraf

Former Author @TechEngage

IT graduate from the National University of Science and Technology with a passion for writing. When not reading or writing, I can be found listening to rock and metal or playing some classic jams on my electric guitar. I’m also a big fan of horror movies.

Reader Interactions

Share Your Thoughts Cancel reply

Please read our comment policy before submitting your comment. Your email address will not be used or publish anywhere. You will only receive comment notifications if you opt to subscribe below.

Primary Sidebar

Become a contributor

We are accepting contributor applications. All applications will be decided in 3 days after applying. To learn more click here.
TechEngage-Apple-News
TechEngage-Google-News
iPhone 11 Pro

Best Smartphones of (2023)

Best TVs on Amazon

Best 4K TVs for Outdoor Use on Amazon for 2023

Recent Stories

  • Top Slack Alternatives in 2023
  • Apple strengthens account security with hardware keys support
  • 10 Best Messenger Apps in 2023
  • Essential Netflix tips and tricks 2023
  • How to lock Netflix profiles in 2023

Footer

Discover

  • About us
  • Newsroom
  • Staff
  • Advertise
  • Send us a tip
  • Startup Submission Questionnaire
  • Brand Kit
  • Contact us

Legal pages

  • Reviews Guarantee
  • Community Guidelines
  • Corrections Policy and Practice
  • Cookies Policy
  • Our Ethics
  • Disclaimer
  • GDPR Compliance
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms and Conditions

Must reads

  • Best AirPods alternatives on Amazon
  • Best PC monitors for gaming on Amazon
  • Best family board games
  • Best Graphics Cards (GPUs) for gaming
  • Best video doorbells without subscription
  • Best handheld video game consoles
  • Best all-season tires for snow
  • Best mobile Wi-Fi hotspots
  • Best treadmills on Amazon
  • Best AM radios for long-distance reception

Download our apps

TechEngage-app-google-play-store

Copyright © 2023 · All Rights Reserved · TechEngage® is a Project of TechAbout LLC.
TechEngage® is a registered trademark in United Kingdom under Trademark Number UK00003417167 and is ISSN protected under the ISSN 2690-3776 and OCLC Number 1139335774.

Go to mobile version