China secures control over internet and mobile phones in Tibet

China has secured control of all internet, fixed line and mobile phone connections in Tibet, enforcing a law as per which users in the troubled province had to register under their real names.
By the end of 2012, 2.76 million fixed line and mobile phone users and 1.47 million web users in Tibet had registered for services under their real identities a year after the rule brought in, according to the data from the regional communications administration.
The real-name registration is conducive to protecting citizens' personal information and curbing the spread of detrimental information, Nyima Doje, deputy director of the administration told state-run Xinhua news agency.

In November 2011, regional legislators in China passed the regulation on real-name registration, a year before the country's top legislature approved similar rules.
The growing popularity of the Internet and mobile phones has brought about social problems, including the rampant circulation of online rumours, pornography and spam messages, Dai Jianguo, a member of the commission of legal affairs under the regional people's congress said.
"The real-name registration will help resolve these problems while benefiting the long-term, sound development of the Internet," Dai said.
Nyima Doje said that since the registration rules were implemented, the number of spam messages sent via the Internet and phones in Tibet has declined by more than 40 per cent.

Chinese government also imposed similar rules across the country in general to prevent social media from becoming a rallying point against the government.