Google employees uncover ongoing work on censored China search

Google is still working on its controversial 'Project Dragonfly' to build a censored search engine for China despite claiming it had downed tools, whistle-blowers have claimed. 

The company admitted last year it had been looking at options to build a specialist search engine in China, but that it had no plans to launch it. 

The firm said it had 'effectively ended' the project, with CEO Sundar Pichai assuring US Congress in December that it had 'no plans' to release the software. 

But new allegations from insiders at Google claim they have discovered hundreds of code changes on the project in the last few months.  

They also claim the developments indicate that Google is still working on the project in secret. 

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Work on Google's controversial 'Project Dragonfly' censored search engine for China is still ongoing, whistle-blowers have claimed. The company admitted last year it had been looking at options to build a specialist search engine in China (stock image)

Work on Google's controversial 'Project Dragonfly' censored search engine for China is still ongoing, whistle-blowers have claimed. The company admitted last year it had been looking at options to build a specialist search engine in China (stock image)

Google employees who looked into the latest status of Project Dragonfly claim that budgets for the project still contained 100 personnel names, according to reports in The Intercept.

Around 500 alterations to the code used on the project were made in December, followed by 400 more at the start of this year, company insiders say.  

Google was forced to climb down from its plans for Dragonfly, after revelations about the project drew fierce criticism and pressure from its employees.   

The firm said it was abandoning an internal data analysis system that was being used to develop the search engine.

Responding to the latest allegations, a spokesman from Google said: 'This speculation is wholly inaccurate. Quite simply: there's no work happening on Dragonfly. 

'As we've said for many months, we have no plans to launch Search in China and there is no work being undertaken on such a project. Team members have moved to new projects.'

WHAT IS GOOGLE'S 'PROJECT DRAGONFLY' SEARCH ENGINE?

'Dragonfly' is a rumoured effort inside Google to develop a search engine for China that would censor certain terms and news outlets, among other things.

Reports claim the tool ties users' Google searches to their personal phone numbers to help the Chinese government monitor its citizens.

Outside of high-profile leaks, few details have emerged on what the search engine entails as Google has kept tight-lipped on the project.

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