The Chinese authorities took a decision that might change the browsing experience of the local users because they will be continuously monitored by two virtual cops included in 13 major portals. The two police officers, a man and a woman, will appear every 30 minutes when the users visit the portal, informing them that they are monitored so they should try staying on the legal side. According to The Sydney Morning Herald, the virtual cops will look for illegal Internet activities such as gambling, fraud, pornography or superstition.

"It is our duty to wipe out information that does public harm and disrupts social order," Zhao Hongzhi, the Beijing's public security bureau official said for The Sydney Morning Herald. "The virtual police officers will faithfully fulfill their duties, listen to the suggestions of netizens and protect them from harm."

It's a well-known fact that the Chinese authorities are very strict when it comes to the Internet activities but this time, the entire monitoring system is somehow turning into a virtual Big Brother. Yesterday, it was reported that some journalists filed a lawsuit against the Sunnyvale company Yahoo, accusing it of infringing the human rights because it provided private information about the Chinese users. These details were then used by the authorities to prosecute and arrest the Internet users.

However, the virtual police wants to be the friend of the Internet users, allowing them to report an illegal activity as soon as they discover it. For example, when the police appears, the user is able to click on one of the officers in order to report an illegal matter that he recently found. What's most interesting is that the entire Internet community might start a new criticism campaign over the Chinese authorities because they were often attacked for trying to censor the web.