Instgram blocked in China after protesters flooded photos the social media app.
In an email on Monday, Instagram said, "We are aware of reports that people are having difficulty accessing Instagram and looking into it."
Instagram was one of the few social media app that can be accessed from mainland China; but on Sunday it was reported that the app or its website could no longer load new photos.
Protesters in Hong Kong have uploaded more than 7,000+ #occupycentral photos. Searches for phrases like "Occupy Central" and "Hong Kong students" are blocked, says the BBC's Beijing bureau. "It's commonplace for China's internet censors to go into overdrive during politically sensitive events," said Celia Hatton, the BBC's correspondent in Beijing. "However, the decision to block Instagram, a relatively popular photo-sharing application, takes the attempt to manage communications around the Hong Kong protests one step further, revealing Beijing's fears that some in mainland China might be inspired by activists in Hong Kong." Search results for "Hong Kong Tear Gas" have been censored on China's largest search engine Baidu, the site said on Monday. On Weibo, the Chinese equivalent of Twitter, a search for "Instagram" was not permitted. "In accordance with relevant laws, regulations and policies, search results of 'Instagram' could not be displayed," the service said. On the other hand, Facebook, Twitter, Youtube; and other google services are blocked in China as part of its cyber security.Google search engine can't be accessed in China instead it redirects to a local search engine Baidu. In July, mobile messaging apps, including Line and KakaoTalk, reported disruptions to their service, at a time when pro- democracy protests in Hong Kong had brought out half a million people, reported by PCWorld. It also recently tightened security filters on WeChat, a messaging app developed in China, according o reports. Though Instagram is blocked in China it does not affect access to Instagram in other regions.
