Google may leave China after cyber attack

Google said last Tuesday that it may leave China. When Google started in China in 2006, it was intended to strike a balance between reaching its goal by having the world's information widely available and doing buisiness with all other internet companies in China while following regulations involving censorship. While Google has done its part, China users have not. There have been a few targeted cyber attacks on its network infrastructure. David Drummond, senior vice president of corporate development and chief legal officer, says that they are sharing this information about the attacks not just because of the security and human rights implications, but also because this issue creates a much bigger debate about freedom of speech.

In my opinion, I agree with Google's choice to leave China. It's not their final decision, but it seems that they are leaning towards it. If the attacks weren't enough, they have also discovered accounts of dozens of Gmail users who are Chinese human rights activists that have been accessed by third parties most frequently through internet scams and malware. Staying with China seems to set them up for a bad road ahead. I'm glad that they have shared this information with the public, although I'm not sure it needs to strike up a debate about freedom of speech. I hope there's no tension between Google and China if they decide to leave. There is no reason Google should stay with China; they are only hurting them. If Google leaves China it could potientionally stop other cyber attack in the future. Google needs take a stand and let the world know that cyber attacks are not acceptable.