Restrictions on geographic data in China

In China, the government does not allow people to see or use some of the geographic data – this is like a map that shows where places are and how far apart they are. This means that people who live in China cannot easily look up where places are located or find out how far it is from one place to another. This makes it difficult to plan trips, or know if a journey is too long or dangerous. The government has this restriction in place because they worry that people could use this data to find out sensitive information such as the location of military bases, or find out certain locations that are off limits to the public.