Google worries about decline in Internet Freedom and rise in information censorship.

(CNN) Google had come with new tool which tell the user that which country had suppressed or requested for the censorship. The tool called Google Transparency, the online report shows that internet censorship around the world is increasing over time, and not always in the countries you'd expect, said Dorothy Chou, a Google policy analyst who worked on the project.

"The threat to internet freedom has actually been growing over the past few years," she said, noting that the United States generally bucks that trend by supporting open online communication.

Google Transparency includes an interactive map where users can see how many requests countries have made for Google to block or remove content.

This online tool also lets users explore internet up-time in specific countries for specific Google-owned websites.

Google worries about decline in Internet Freedom and rise in information censorship.

Germany says Apple must improve data transparency.

"Users of iPhones and other GPS devices must be aware of what kind of information about them is being collected," Sabine Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger told the German weekly.

According to Der Spiegel, the minister's criticism was aimed at changes Apple has made in its privacy policy whereby the company can collect data on the geographic location of the users of its products -- albeit anonymously.

Leutheusser-Schnarrenberger said she expected Apple to "open its databases to German data protection authorities" and clarify what data it was collecting and how long it was saving the data.

Germany says Apple must improve data transparency.

China bans its soldiers from blogging.

A new regulation prohibits the People's Liberation Army (PLA) from creating websites or blogs, citing confidentiality concerns, the official Xinhua news agency says.

China operates vast internet censorship, dubbed the "great firewall of China".

Websites deemed sensitive by the government are routinely blocked.

"Soldiers cannot open blogs on the internet no matter (whether) he or she does it in the capacity of a soldier or not," Xinhua quoted Wan Long, a political commissar of the PLA, as saying.

China bans its soldiers from blogging.

Now Pakistan follows the Chinese way, Censor the Internet.

Pakistan will start monitoring seven major websites, including Google and Yahoo, for content it deems offensive to Muslims.

YouTube, Amazon, MSN, Hotmail and Bing will also come under scrutiny, while 17 less well-known sites will be blocked.

Officials will monitor the sites and block links deemed inappropriate

Now Pakistan follows the Chinese way, Censor the Internet.

Pak court bans Google, Yahoo, Hotmail.

A Pakistani court has reportedly ordered a ban on nine leading websites, including Google and Hotmail, for allegedly posting blasphemous material though officials today said they had not received any instruction to block the sites.

Media reports said the Bahawalpur bench of the Lahore High Court yesterday directed the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority to immediately block nine websites, including Google, Yahoo, MSN, Hotmail, YouTube, Bing and Amazon, for publishing and promoting sacrilegious and blasphemous material.

Justice Mazher Iqbal Sidhu issued the order while hearing a petition filed by a man named Muhammad Sidiq who claimed these websites were publishing sacrilegious material.

Pak court bans Google, Yahoo, Hotmail.

Google helps build trade case over Web censorship.

Google Inc is working with U.S. and European officials to build a case that would argue Internet censorship acts as a trade barrier, a top company executive said on Friday.

Robert Boorstin, Google's director of corporate and policy communications, said the company is working with the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, the State Department, Commerce Department and European officials to build a case to take to the World Trade Organization.

Such a case could help U.S. tech companies seeking greater access to Chinese consumers while furthering the U.S. government's human rights agenda.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and her technology advisers have promoted Internet freedom as a basic human right.

Google helps build trade case over Web censorship.

Google asks US, EU to press China on censorship

Google Inc's top lawyer has said that the world's leading search engine is asking the US and European governments to press China to lift Internet censorship, describing it as an unfair barrier to free trade.

David Drummond on Wednesday told reporters that western states should defend the free trade in information with the same kind of rules that they use to complain of China's below-cost sale of products.

He said government talks are "the only way that it's going to change, that this tide of censorship or this rising censorship is going to be arrested."

The company sparred with Chinese leaders earlier this year when it stopped self-censoring its search results in line with Chinese rules after it said Chinese hackers had tried to plunder its software coding and hijack the Gmail accounts of human rights activists.

Google asks US, EU to press China on censorship

Request to the google by the Govt to censor Information

For the first time, Google has published a country-wise list of the number of requests received from governments, seeking either removal of information or more details. The list is based on requests made to Google between July 1, 2009 and December 31, 2009.

As per the list, Google received maximum removal requests from Brazil (291), followed by Germany (188) and India (142). The number of request for removal of information from India was higher than that from the US (123).

Request to the google by the Govt to censor Information