The company has effectively shut down a data analysis system it was using to create a censored search engine for China known as Project Dragonfly. The closure is believed to have come in response to complaints about secrecy around the project raised by the company’s privacy team. Google said on Friday that its Chinese operations had been “temporarily suspended” after an internal investigation into allegations of censorship and abuse against employees there.
The company has effectively shut down a data analysis system it was using to create a censored search engine for China known as Project Dragonfly. The closure is believed to have come in response to complaints about secrecy around the project raised by the company’s privacy team. Over the past two years, Project Dragonfly has been a major priority for leading company executives, including CEO Sundar Pichai.