Working remotely in China - is it problematic?

Well, firstly you need to understand that china does not want the American government to have the personal information of any Chinese citizen. everyone knows, or should know, that the Utah data collection center used by the NSA has a direct hard pipeline from both Google and Facebook to it.

Secondly, Google owns many other companies, and APPs. Such as Instagram. Same with Facebook. So, you need to be careful with your online presence.

Yes, you can tunnel out using a VPN.

I used to use one to access Tumblr and Pinterest. But, you know what? The Chinese applications are both better, and bigger and offer more than what the American apps do.


But none of that really matters, if you are directly tied to American companies. So, the short answer is yes, you can tunnel through using a VPN. Sometimes it works great, and sometimes not at all. For this reason, I have moved away from gmail and now use encrypted  mail like protonmail etc for emails.



I think that it is good idea to come to china, learn the language and get a taste of the culture. I would suggest that you avoid the Western cities. Go to Shenzhen, chengdu, or Kunming. You will really benefit.

You said...

"I'm working remotely & part of my job is advertising on social media (Facebook, Instagram, etc) + using Skype, X-Lite (for international phone calls), gmail & google drive on a daily basis."

You WILL have problems if you used American-based social networking. This includes everything associated with Google. check, because Google own many, many software companies that many people are unaware of.

You WILL need a VPN. Which is the best to use will depend on where you live.

The VPN will work periodically. I would suggest that you switch to other services that will not get blocked. Skype is ok, and usually works, but I often just switch to Wechat as the sound and video quality is light years better.

best wishes and best of luck.

VANNROX wrote:

Well, firstly you need to understand that china does not want the American government to have the personal information of any Chinese citizen. everyone knows, or should know, that the Utah data collection center used by the NSA has a direct hard pipeline from both Google and Facebook to it.

Secondly, Google owns many other companies, and APPs. Such as Instagram. Same with Facebook. So, you need to be careful with your online presence.

Yes, you can tunnel out using a VPN.

I used to use one to access Tumblr and Pinterest. But, you know what? The Chinese applications are both better, and bigger and offer more than what the American apps do.
[img align=c]http://cdn.arstechnica.net/2010/07/28/top_10_ISPs.002.png[/url]

But none of that really matters, if you are directly tied to American companies. So, the short answer is yes, you can tunnel through using a VPN. Sometimes it works great, and sometimes not at all. For this reason, I have moved away from gmail and now use encrypted  mail like protonmail etc for emails.

[img align=c]https://www.nexmo.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Top-8-Countries-in-Asia-Social.jpg.png[/url]

I think that it is good idea to come to china, learn the language and get a taste of the culture. I would suggest that you avoid the Western cities. Go to Shenzhen, chengdu, or Kunming. You will really benefit.

You said...

"I'm working remotely & part of my job is advertising on social media (Facebook, Instagram, etc) + using Skype, X-Lite (for international phone calls), gmail & google drive on a daily basis."

You WILL have problems if you used American-based social networking. This includes everything associated with Google. check, because Google own many, many software companies that many people are unaware of.

You WILL need a VPN. Which is the best to use will depend on where you live.

The VPN will work periodically. I would suggest that you switch to other services that will not get blocked. Skype is ok, and usually works, but I often just switch to Wechat as the sound and video quality is light years better.

best wishes and best of luck.

Unfortunately I can't give up using social networks.. it's my source of income, so I will consider Taiwan.. I'd consider HK too but I imagine it's too dirty & pricey (I might be wrong tho, never been there).

Thanks anyway, appreciate your answer!