Over 500GB of Sensitive Great Firewall of China Data Leaked Online

A massive data breach has exposed the inner workings of China’s internet censorship system, with over 500GB of sensitive documents from the Great Firewall of China (GFW) leaked online. The breach, which occurred on 11 September 2025, represents the largest leak of internal GFW documents to date and provides unprecedented insight into China’s digital surveillance apparatus.

The leaked data originated from two organisations behind China’s censorship infrastructure: Geedge Networks and the MESA Lab at the Institute of Information Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, with Geedge Networks led by chief scientist Fang Binxing. The breach encompasses approximately 600GB of data, including source code, work logs, internal communications, and development records, of which a 500GB mirror/repo[.]tar file accounts for the largest portion.

The materials reveal that Geedge Networks provides surveillance and censorship services beyond Chinese provinces to international clients, exporting capabilities to countries such as Myanmar, Pakistan, Ethiopia, and Kazakhstan under China’s Belt and Road Initiative. Security researchers are analysing the leaked materials using platforms like GFW Report and Net4People, emphasising the need for extreme caution when accessing the data.