Is Microsoft censoring Tibet email addresses?

August 17, 2008 by Mark O'Neill |

By Mark O’Neill
Contributing Writer, [GAS]

If you would like the country of “Tibet” to be part of your new Hotmail email account name, then you are out of luck.  The New York Times is reporting that anyone who tries to enter “Tibet” into a new email account application is told that they have entered a “word that is not allowed”.

Is Microsoft nervous about upsetting China with “IloveTibet@hotmail.com”?   Microsoft gave the New York Times a rather strange alternative and frankly unbelievable explanation about banning email addresses that could include partial names of financial institutions.    Got to stop those nasty phishers you know!    After all, allowing Tibet email addresses could lead to someone pretending to be from the TIB Bank!

As one commenter on the NY Times page said, “Good thing ‘Tiberius’ isn’t a popular name these days”

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5 Comments »

Comment by 禾草唐楷
2008-08-17 18:44:22

Why should we be afraid of these?
Even if they use such “Tibet” EMAIL,
the world will not change, life will not change, Tibet will not change

 
Comment by Joao Trindade
2008-08-18 00:32:40

I’ve just created tibet@live.com with no problem. It seems they’ve changed their policy.

Comment by Mark O'Neill
2008-08-18 01:31:11

Really? You should email the New York Times journalist and tell him. It looks like Microsoft has indeed changed their policy after the NYT story.

 
 
Comment by Nik
2008-08-18 01:16:55

Plus why is their explanation unbelievable? Theres no need to create conspirices that probably don’t exist.

 
Comment by Jason
2008-10-15 16:12:19

I tried Mailman02.
didnt work:(

 
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