The comparison between WeChat Mini-Programs and the Deep Web is revealing as to how the internet operates in China. While Mini-Programs are not necessarily secret or inaccessible by nature, like Deep Web sites, they do share the characteristic of not being available through traditional search engines or standard browsers. They can only be accessed by users who are already within the WeChat ecosystem, making them virtually private sites, but hugely popular within its network. This model has created what some analysts call a national “intranet,” a closed space where access is strictly controlled.
Implications for privacy and digital freedom
One of the most critical aspects of this “intranet” is canada telegram data control. Apps and platforms like WeChat allow for monitoring of content and interactions within the platform. And especially the ability to track users’ online and offline activity, significantly limiting privacy.
A very classic example is going to eat at any restaurant in China. The first thing you will see when you sit down at the table is a QR code. If you try to enter using any web browser, the message that will appear is that it is not compatible, so you will have to capture the QR code with WeChat or Alipay. Once you have captured the QR code, you will have the menu from which you can manage your order, the payment of the total bill, ratings and everything that encompasses the relationship with the restaurant in this case. This example makes me imagine that from WeChat they not only have the information about where I am, but also about how I eat and the financial transactions I make.
Mini-programs, such as the restaurant example, being within WeChat, are subject to these rules, meaning that any interaction or transaction begins and ends in WeChat, so it can be monitored and controlled.
While for many users, the WeChat ecosystem and its Mini-programs offer unprecedented convenience and accessibility, this convenience comes with a monopoly on access to information and the ability to interact without being monitored. Foreign apps are blocked or heavily regulated, preventing access to alternative systems.
Innovation and future
Despite privacy limitations, the Chinese digital ecosystem has fostered innovations that have certainly outperformed its Western counterparts. The development of Mini-programs has allowed local companies to create agile and flexible services that can be seamlessly integrated into users’ daily lives. In addition, these Mini-programs have reduced the need to download and manage multiple applications, something that is beginning to be replicated by platforms in other countries, one example being Facebook, which has been trying for years to integrate mini-applications within the same environment, but has not had much success.
The future of the Internet in China seems to be heading towards greater international visibility, since the country already has a local tool that solves the digital life of users. With the growing dependence on platforms such as WeChat, it is likely that the strategy of ignoring or closing access to international services will continue, promoting a parallel Internet that exclusively serves the needs of the Chinese market.
Conclusion
The Internet in China has become more than just a tool for accessing global information. Under the influence of the Great Firewall and government control policies, the country has developed its own closed digital ecosystem, where apps like WeChat and its Mini-programs dominate citizens’ daily lives. While this model offers enormous convenience, it also raises serious concerns about privacy, control, and digital freedom. The Internet in China is, in effect, a national intranet, a carefully controlled digital space that reflects both innovation and restrictions. My personal view of this approach is that it is not far removed from Western proposals, from companies like Google or Facebook, which also aim to bring together users’ digital lives with in-app solutions or large integrations of companies with mutual interests.