Recently, the case of Gong, a resident in Ningde, Fujian Province, who was fined by the public security bureau in July 2024 for using a VPN to access overseas websites in 2020 has attracted attention. This case highlights the Chinese Communist Party’s investigation into internet access methods, which has extended from immediate interception to historical record checks years later.
A WeChat public account in mainland China, “Enjoying Life,” published an article on June 2 titled “Are You Really Caught Breaching the Wall! Understanding the Legal Red Line of ‘Scientific Internet Access’ from Multiple Real Punishment Cases,” which was subsequently archived by the news website “China Digital Era.”
The article listed several recent public punishment cases in mainland China, including individuals being fined for using VPN to browse overseas websites, arrests for selling VPN nodes, employees of state-owned enterprises being arrested for downloading and disseminating overseas political content after breaching the wall, and personnel from sensitive units inadvertently causing data leaks by installing VPN software.
Many people believe that “browsing for information through the wall and using AI tools, without spreading rumors or causing trouble, who would care about me.” However, based on public cases, breaching the wall itself has been included in the Chinese Communist Party’s surveillance scope.
One of the cases cited in the article is the Gong case in Ningde, Fujian, which is considered unique because the investigation was based on internet browsing records from four years ago. In early July 2024, the Internet Security Brigade of the Shouning County Public Security Bureau in Ningde City, Fujian Province, discovered that Gong had engaged in browsing overseas websites in 2020. Subsequently, the police summoned Gong to the Shouning County Public Security Bureau for investigation. Authorities imposed administrative penalties on Gong for illegally browsing overseas websites and information through VPN software.
During an interview with Epoch Times, lawyer Mr. Lin from Fuzhou pointed out the uniqueness of the Gong case where the behavior being investigated occurred in 2020, but was discovered and processed by the police in July 2024, a gap of about four years. He said, “Gong was not caught in the process of using a VPN but was investigated years later due to past internet browsing records. The general time limit for pursuing administrative penalties is two years, and the police did not provide evidence that his actions had a continuous or ongoing status, yet they pursued an internet browsing behavior from four years ago. I feel that this is legally unsustainable.”
According to Article 36 of the Chinese Communist Party’s “Administrative Penalties Law,” if unlawful behavior is not discovered within two years, no administrative penalties are imposed, with the exception of cases involving risks to citizens’ life and health, financial security, and resulting in harm, where the period is extended to five years. The article also states that in cases of continuous or ongoing unlawful behavior, the counting begins from the end of the behavior.
A legal expert in mainland China, Mr. Song, expressed shock at the investigation in this case. He said, “This case clearly does not hold water. Embezzlement and bribery are criminal offenses, with a statute of limitations of up to 20 years, and the Chinese Communist Party can pursue them for life. For internet users climbing a wall, if you investigate four years back, it is obvious that the Chinese Communist Party is obstructing ordinary people from understanding China’s systemic corruption from overseas sources by climbing over the wall. The police are now not just looking at whether you posted something at the time, but they can also check how you accessed the internet, this practice is simply too evil.”
In another case, Li from Zhongshan, Guangdong, sold VPN tools software to multiple people through WeChat and Taobao from March to June 2024, making a profit of 3000 RMB. After review, the Zhongshan District Attorney’s Office in the First City Area stated that Li constituted the offense of providing tools for illegal control of computer information systems, but considering the relatively light circumstances of the crime without causing serious consequences, having a confession, and voluntarily acknowledging guilt, a decision was made not to prosecute Li. Subsequently, the police administered a 15-day administrative detention on Li, confiscated 3000 RMB of illegal proceeds, and seized one mobile phone.
Dong, from Nanchang, Jiangxi, was ordered by the Nanchang Public Security Bureau to stop networking, given an administrative warning, and fined 15,000 RMB for unauthorized use of a VPN for breaching the wall to access the internet. This case did not involve selling tools nor did it show dissemination of overseas information; the basis for punishment was still the illegal use of channels for international networking.
Since March of this year, the Chinese Communist Party has completely cracked down on people breaching the wall. After mid-April, the related actions have been led by the Central Cyberspace Administration and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, in collaboration with the three major telecommunications operators, to monitor and penalize end-users. Meanwhile, for enterprises to engage in compliant cross-border networking, they must pass through qualified basic telecommunication operators or be approved for international communication channels; using unauthorized VPNs, proxy software, and other wall-breaching tools may still be considered violations.