Cybersecurity researchers have raised concerns about growing regional internet censorship in China, particularly in Henan province.
A recent study presented at the IEEE Symposium on Security and Privacy reveals that Henan has deployed its own aggressive censorship system, separate from China’s national-level Great Firewall.
The IEEE, a US-based group for electrical and electronic engineers, shared findings by researchers including experts from Stanford University.
They discovered Henan’s firewall blocked around 4 million websites between November 2023 and March 2025, far more than the national system.
By comparison, China’s Great Firewall blocked about 741,500 sites during the same time, according to the research.
Henan’s system is less technically advanced but more aggressive, especially when targeting second-level domains such as news or business sites.
This has led to times when the province blocked ten times more websites than the Great Firewall.
Researchers tested internet traffic using servers inside Henan and found the local system blocks many sites that remain accessible elsewhere in China.
Many of the blocked websites were related to business, rather than the usual news or adult content blocked nationally.
Experts believe the crackdown could be linked to finance-related protests and scandals in Henan, especially the 2022 protests over local bank fraud.
Authorities may be trying to limit online discussions about financial issues affecting the province’s economy.
This trend could signal a new phase in China’s internet controls, where regional governments play a larger role in online censorship.
Researchers warn this decentralised approach may further tighten access to global information for Chinese internet users.
