China has around two million people policing public opinion online , according to a state media report that sheds light on the country 's secretive internet surveillance operations . Dubbed `` public opinion analysts , '' they work for the Chinese Communist Party 's propaganda department , major Chinese news websites and commercial corporations , according to The Beijing News . Using keyword searches , their job is to sift the millions of messages being posted on popular social media and microblogging sites such as Sina Weibo , regarded as China 's equivalent to Twitter . They then compile reports for decision makers , the report said . The number of people monitoring internet activity to prevent criticism of the government and social unrest has been a subject of discussion for years , said David Bandurski , editor of the University of Hong Kong 's China Media Project . `` Two million sounds like a big number , '' he said . `` But I think it 's clear that the government will do what it takes to monitor any potential collective action on social media . '' The ranks of online censors outnumber China 's active armed forces , which total 1.5 million , according to the Ministry of National Defense . Bandurski said that the resources China has invested in internet surveillance have increased rapidly since Sina Weibo 's emergence in 2010 . It now has 500 million account holders although a recent crackdown on internet rumors has deterred some users . Posts run a range of topics from celebrity gossip to politically sensitive issues like official corruption . `` China 's biggest engineering project is not the Three Gorges dam but public opinion and Weibo has completely changed the game , '' Bandurski said . The Beijing News described the work of Tang Xiaotao , who has been employed as a monitor for less than six months by a company that works on government projects . Using a software application that cost $ 3 million yuan ( $ 490,000 ) , Tang searches for key words specified by his company 's clients , monitors negative opinions and then compiles a report . The software also tracks how widely a topic is being discussed by counting the number of comments and shares . When the score reaches 40 out of 100 , the system will send an alert . A final decision on what action to take is decided by the clients , which include government officials , Tang told the newspaper . Online analysts like Tang will be offered specialist training later this month , the newspaper said . The course , run by the People 's Daily online operations , covers judging and analyzing online posts and dealing with crisis situations . Those who pass will get a certificate , formally recognizing them as `` public opinion analysts . ''
China has around two million people policing public opinion online . They monitor the number of comments being posted on popular social media . China works to prevent social media . China has more internet users than active military personnel .