Following the hubbub around Google’s (News - Alert) threats that it may pull the plug on its Chinese search engine in the wake a cyber attack, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton today emphasized the importance of an uncensored Internet for all, around the globe.

 

Clinton was quoted in reports as saying: 'A new information curtain is descending across much of the world. We stand for a single Internet where all of humanity has equal access to knowledge and ideas.'

 

She added that those individuals and countries involved in cyber attacks should be punished and condemned by the international community. 'In an interconnected world, an attack on one nation's networks can be an attack on all,' Clinton reportedly said.

 

Clinton also called on the carpet such countries as China, Egypt, Iran and Saudi Arabia, each of which has a history of censoring the Internet and/or harassing bloggers.

 

'We look to Chinese authorities to conduct a thorough investigation of the cyber intrusions that led Google to make this announcement,' she added.

 

As mentioned, Google is considering shutting down its Google.cn site and offices in China following a breach on the site that originated from China itself. The search giant said it had reconsidered its current policy of censoring the site and was now interested in trying to negotiate a deal with Chinese officials about offering an unfiltered site in the country.

 

However, some questioned whether Google’s change of heart about this had less to do with its interest in human rights, and more to do with its lagging market share to Chinese search engine Baidu.