Big Brother gets new powers in China with digital ID system
The new system gives Beijing greater control over online activity, further raising concerns about surveillance and censorship.
People scroll through their phones in Beijing. New digital ID laws mean Chinese authorities will be able to see the real identity behind online accounts across a range of sites. AP
China has long mastered what was once considered impossible: completely controlling the internet within its borders. Last week, Beijing took another step towards centralising its power over the web, introducing a government-run digital ID system that will enable it to even more closely censor and surveil the country’s 1 billion internet users.
China has enforced a “real-name registration” system for more than a decade, meaning that Chinese internet companies almost always know the true identity of users who are, say, ordering a dress online, leaving a social media comment or playing a video game.
