Cisco is sued in US for helping Internet censorship in China

Cisco is sued for supporting the Chinese government in prosecuting the members of the Falun Group, a religious group banned in China. The lawsuit alleges that members of the Falun Group found that Cisco knew that Internet technology it supplied to China would be used to crack down on the religious movement in the country.

The filing submitted in U.S. Federal District Court for the Northern District of California in San Jose on behalf of members of the Falun Gong says that Cisco had an active partnership with Chinese authorities to help Beijing build "Golden Shield" Internet surveillance systems, with the goal of allowing authorities to intercept communications and track Falun Gong members. As a result Chinese authorities arrested the case's plaintiffs, who were beaten and tortured by Chinese authorities, according to the lawsuit.

Cisco denied the allegations and said that it will "vigorously" defend against them.

"Cisco does not operate networks in China or elsewhere, nor does Cisco customize our products in any way that would facilitate censorship or repression," the company said in a statement.

The lawsuit points to Cisco "internal files," past technology trade shows and employee training sessions in China, where the company is alleged to have said the Golden Shield project's purpose was to persecute Falun Gong members. Cisco believed it would be "lucrative" business opportunity, and as early as 1998 had begun competing aggressively to win the contracts for the project, the lawsuit alleges.

The lawsuit is suing for unspecified damages and seeks to prohibit Cisco from supporting China's Internet censorship efforts.