Google s'explique sur son blog :
http://googleblog.blogspot.com/C'est plus qu'une simple question de cyber-attaque :
Like many other well-known organizations, we face cyber attacks of varying degrees on a regular basis
...
In mid-December, we detected
a highly sophisticated and targeted attack on our corporate infrastructure originating from China...
First, this attack was not just on Google. As part of our investigation we have discovered that
at least twenty other large companies from a wide range of businesses--including the Internet, finance, technology, media and chemical sectors--have been similarly targeted. We are currently in the process of notifying those companies, and we are also
working with the relevant U.S. authorities.Second, we have evidence to suggest that a primary goal of the attackers was accessing the Gmail accounts of Chinese human rights activists.
Third ... we have discovered that the accounts of dozens of U.S.-, China- and Europe-based Gmail users who are advocates of human rights in China appear to have been routinely accessed by third parties.
These attacks ... have led us to conclude that we should review the feasibility of our business operations in China. We have decided
we are no longer willing to continue censoring our results on Google.cnwe will be discussing with the Chinese government the basis on which we could operate an unfiltered search engine within the law, if at all. We recognize that this may well mean having to shut down Google.cn, and potentially our offices in China.
The decision to review our business operations in China has been incredibly hard, and we know that it will have potentially far-reaching consequences.