US firms worried over Internet security: survey

US businesses in China are increasingly concerned about Internet censorship, data security and air pollution in the world's second-largest economy, according to a survey.
A total of 56 percent of respondents to the survey by the American Chamber of Commerce in the People's Republic of China (AmCham China) said that Internet censorship was an impediment to their business.
The results were included in the organisation's China Business Climate Survey Report, released Wednesday.
Two-thirds of respondents said that "the blocking of search engines negatively or somewhat negatively impacts their ability to conduct business".
A total of 47 percent said their greatest concern in using cloud computing in China was data security, up slightly from 46 percent the year before.
"As well as finding it difficult to access credible data, companies are also concerned about protecting their own data," the report said.
Chinese authorities maintain a huge surveillance network, including online, where the so-called Great Firewall of China blocks access to sites deemed sensitive and a vast censorship machine deletes content considered objectionable.
In a report released in February last year, security firm Mandiant said China was devoting thousands of people to a military-linked unit that has pilfered intellectual property and government secrets.