GPT-4.5: Meta was prepared to store user data, including data from Hong Kong users, on servers located within China, potentially facilitating easier access by the Chinese government for surveillance.

Meta censored the account of Chinese dissident Guo Wengui in response to pressure from a Chinese regulator, highlighting Meta's willingness to restrict political dissent.

"Double Standards Revealed: How Meta Secretly Embraced Censorship for China"

by ChatGPT-4.5, based on articles from The Washington Post and Gizmodo

Meta's secret censorship efforts for China: Despite CEO Mark Zuckerberg's public stance on free speech, Meta reportedly developed a censorship system in 2015 to detect and remove content automatically based on restricted terms defined by the Chinese government. Zuckerberg even agreed to appoint a "chief editor" with the power to remove content or entirely shut down Facebook during times of "social unrest" in China​.

Meta was prepared to store user data, including data from Hong Kong users, on servers located within China, potentially facilitating easier access by the Chinese government for surveillance purposes—a significant departure from its usual policies.

Meta censored the account of Chinese dissident Guo Wengui in response to pressure from a Chinese regulator, highlighting Meta's willingness to restrict political dissent as part of its broader strategy to gain entry to the Chinese market​.

Zuckerberg personally showed a high level of enthusiasm for the Chinese market, including delivering a speech in Mandarin, requesting Chinese President Xi Jinping to provide an honorary Chinese name for his daughter, and agreeing privately to host user data in China, which could have facilitated government surveillance efforts​.

Meta’s alleged willingness to compromise user privacy and freedom of speech by storing user data locally in China, including data from Hong Kong residents, is particularly controversial. This would have significantly facilitated surveillance and censorship by the Chinese government, directly contradicting Zuckerberg’s public promotion of Meta as a defender of global free expression.

The hypocrisy of Zuckerberg's recent aggressive rhetoric against Chinese censorship—especially given his earlier active engagement in censorship discussions—creates a stark contradiction between Meta’s internal policies and its public image, casting doubts on the sincerity and consistency of Zuckerberg’s stated commitment to free speech.

The internal details outlined in a whistleblower's 78-page SEC complaint, including emails and documentation, provide crucial evidence of Meta's potential double standards regarding privacy, content moderation, and data management, especially when seeking market expansion into authoritarian regimes​.

The disclosure underscores the critical importance of corporate transparency and accountability when technology companies operate in authoritarian environments, revealing significant risks to user privacy and human rights when tech giants prioritize market access over ethical considerations.

Overall, these revelations are significant because they expose the stark contradiction between Meta’s public advocacy for freedom of speech and its private willingness to compromise fundamental principles to enter lucrative markets.