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China introduces mandatory face scans for phone users
BEIJING, Dec 1, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – China will require telecom operators to
collect face scans when registering new phone users at offline outlets
starting Sunday, according to the country’s information technology authority,
as Beijing continues to tighten cyberspace controls.
In September, China’s industry and information technology ministry issued
a notice on “safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of citizens
online”, which laid out rules for enforcing real-name registration.
The notice said telecom operators should use “artificial intelligence and
other technical means” to verify people’s identities when they take a new
phone number.
A China Unicom customer service representative told AFP that the December
1 “portrait matching” requirement means customers registering for a new phone
number may have to record themselves turning their head and blinking.
“In next steps, our ministry will continue to…increase supervision and
inspection…and strictly promote the management of real-name registration
for phone users,” said the September notice.
Though the Chinese government has pushed for real-name registration for
phone users since at least 2013 — meaning ID cards are linked to new phone
numbers — the move to leverage AI comes as facial recognition technology
gains traction across China where the tech is used for everything from
supermarket checkouts to surveillance.
While researchers have warned of the privacy risks associated with
gathering facial recognition data, consumers have widely embraced the
technology — though China saw one of its first lawsuits on facial
recognition last month.
In early November, a Chinese professor filed a claim against a safari park
in Hangzhou, eastern Zhejiang province for requiring face scans for entry,
according to the local court.
In addition to mobile users, the Twitter-like Chinese social media site
Weibo was forced to roll out real-name registration in 2012.
Oversight of social media has ramped up in recent years as part of the
Chinese government’s push to “promote the healthy, orderly development of the
Internet, protect state security and public interest”.
BSS/AFP/ARS/1619 hrs