Google won’t recognize Chinese-issued Web security certificates

Google products will no longer recognize digital security certificates issued by the Chinese government in a move that will discourage Chrome browser users from visiting Chinese websites.

When navigating to a website with a “.cn” country code or a Chinese-language domain name, Chrome users will likely receive a pop-up warning them that continuing could expose their computer to hackers.

{mosads}Google made the decision after discovering that the China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC), which registers China’s domain names, had let a third-party company issue unauthorized security certificates for Google domains.

A certificate is essentially a marker of digital trust, which signals to incoming traffic that a site is secure and safe from hackers.

In a blog post, Google dinged the CNNIC for delegating “their substantial authority to an organization that was not fit to hold it.”

The CNNIC on Thursday slammed Google for the decision, calling it “unacceptable and unintelligible to CNNIC.”

Google should consider its “users’ rights and interests,” it said.

The conflict is indicative of the broader tensions between Chinese authorities and major tech firms.

Google pulled its search engine out of China in 2010, refusing to censor its results. Since then, China has repeatedly blocked Google’s foreign search engine pages.

Other tech firms like Apple and Microsoft have faced repeated hackings within the country, which many blame on Beijing officials.

The U.S. government is also sparring with China over the country’s attempts to implement cybersecurity rules requiring all companies to install Beijing-approved encryption.

Google said CNNIC would be working implement transparency about how its digital certificates are issued in the future.

“We applaud CNNIC on their proactive steps, and welcome them to reapply once suitable technical and procedural controls are in place,” Google said in a Wednesday blog post.