this post was submitted on 11 Oct 2023
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A programmer in northern China has been ordered to pay more than 1 million yuan to the authorities for using a virtual private network (VPN), in what is thought to be the most severe individual financial penalty ever issued for circumventing China's "great firewall." The programmer, surnamed Ma, was issued with a penalty notice by the public security bureau of Chengde, a city in Hebei province, on August 18. The notice said Ma had used "unauthorised channels" to connect to international networks to work for a Turkish company. The police confiscated the 1.058m yuan ($145,092) Ma had earned as a software developer between September 2019 and November 2022, describing it as "illegal income," as well as fining him 200 yuan ($27).

Charlie Smith (a pseudonym), the co-founder of GreatFire.org, a website that tracks internet censorship in China, said: "Even if this decision is overturned in court, a message has been sent and damage has been done. Is doing business outside of China now subject to penalties?"

Abstract credit: https://slashdot.org/story/420019

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[–] [email protected] 19 points 8 months ago (2 children)

Not spelling out the whole story to your satisfaction in the headline is no better than capricious law enforcement giving out penalties for something that shouldn't be a crime ranging from nothing, to a $27 fine, to confiscating 3 years of income, to 13 years in prison?

[–] PP_BOY_ 6 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (1 children)

The headline isn't simply just a bad summary of what happened, it's a gross, intentional misinterpretation of the facts to spread an agenda

[–] [email protected] 3 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (1 children)

Isn't it illegal because he used a VPN? Seems like semantics.

[–] shadycomposer 1 points 8 months ago (1 children)

let’s say you use weeds and weeds is legal where you are, but it’s illegal to drive after using weeds.

Now you’re arrested for DUI. Next day you make to the headline: “Man arrested for using weeds”. Is it the fact? Yes. Do you think it’s all the necessary facts?

Your opinion is based on the assumption that everyone should be allowed to use VPN to do anything. I may agree with you, but it doesn’t change how bad the article is.

[–] [email protected] 0 points 8 months ago

I do assume people have the right to believe what they want and to seek life, liberty and happiness

[–] shadycomposer -1 points 8 months ago (1 children)

Intentionally misleading by summarizing partial facts is simply evil. Not sure if anyone may be satisfied with this approach, but even if some do, I’m willing to bet they will become unsatisfied if missing part of the facts is actually what they care about.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (1 children)

How is it misleading? Based on the info we have it seems accurate.

[–] shadycomposer 2 points 8 months ago (3 children)

“Man’s income of 1m was confiscated due to using VPN for work’ would be accurate.

‘Man is fined 1m for using VPN’ is not.

There’s no evidence (yet) that someone will be fined this much by simply using vpn in China to browse otherwise banned sites.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 8 months ago

Chinas court system isn't controlled by the people. Punishments in China can be whatever the party wants then to be

[–] TrickDacy 0 points 8 months ago

You're just being pedantic... and calling this "simply evil" sounds like satire it's so extreme