The Great Firewall of China has been claiming victims since the internet began, and cryptocurrency related sites are at the top of its kill list. In a brand-new addition to the firewall’s block list is the popular block scanner, Etherscan. Used by millions of people around the globe, people in mainland China now need to use a VPN in order to access the service. The local Chinese version ch.etherscan.com is still functioning for now, but this could all change in the coming days.
GreatFire Confirming Reports
GreatFire is a website that is dedicated to checking whether sites are blocked by the firewall or not. According to the service, the block came into place around October 29, coming as a shock to Chinese users of the popular app. For now, it appears as if it’s just Etherscan that has been it by the ban, with a wide range of other popular Ethereum block explorers still working inside of China.
Possible FUD from Etherscan?
Back in October, China said that it is going to start clamping down on anti-blockchain rhetoric. While it makes little sense for Etherscan to partake in anti-blockchain rhetoric, the Chinese government could have misunderstood something on the popular platform. This is highly unlikely, and the two events are most likely not connected, instead blocking the app for a different reason.
For now, we still don’t know why the firewall targeted Etherscan specifically, and we will continue to monitor the situation in a bid to bring you the latest breaking news coming out of China. For now, people hoping to use an Ethereum block explorer can either use a VPN to access the service, use the local Chinese version or simply use a different block explorer.
