All of the government-led domestic surveillance programs that we’ve been exposed to over the past few years pales in comparison to what China is able to accomplish. The Chinese government has developed the most-extensive surveillance network in the world as a way to monitor citizens, and they’ve just taken things to an eerily new level. It’s safe to say that any one of China’s 1.3 billion citizens can be watched, followed and intercepted at a moment’s notice, and it’s only a matter of time before free countries adopt similar technologies as well.
Unprecedented Camera Network
Hundreds of thousands of public and private security cameras are all linked together and fed into mammoth data and command centers. With the assistance of image-scanning and facial recognition technology, officials can instantaneously identify people, track vehicles and call up all kinds of data associated with them that has been collected previously. The system has been in full-scale trials in a couple of major Chinese cities over the past couple of years, and officials hope to roll out the program nationwide by 2020.
The government boasts that they now have the capability of finding someone within 10 minutes once a nationwide search is underway. In fact, they have reportedly been able to locate hundreds of fugitives in public places simply by letting the automated software scan crowds and flag potential suspects. Once they’ve been identified, local police are notified, and the individuals are apprehended. Rumors are that pictures on social media and the use of location tracking when people use their phones are also incorporated into the camera system.
Obviously, there are a number of ways that people can minimize the chances of being detected. However, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to fly under the radar, and it would require falling completely off-the-grid, which requires a lot of financial and emotional sacrifices that a lot of people are not willing to make.
Social Ranking
The other, and more-frightening aspect of their monitoring program is the creation of the Social Credit System. This involves tracking everything from their political views to their shopping habits or how they spend their free time. All of these factors are fed through complex computer programs that produce rankings. The higher someone scores means they’re a better citizen, and this will impact everything from their employment and housing prospects to their creditworthiness.
So, not only are citizens watched, but their behavior is recorded and ranked, and this will undoubtedly have an impact on how people live their lives. While this is something that seems straight out of an Orwell novel, it’s happening as we speak, and the popularity of this idea is spreading like wildfire around the world. While a lot of countries wouldn’t tolerate a social ranking system quite yet, they are definitely attracted to the security aspects, and this represents the gateway to what will become a very slippery slope.
Every now and then we need to be reminded of how difficult it is to truly be invisible in our modern world. As tracking technology improves, and governments are more-willing to chip away at our ability to be anonymous, we need to continually-adapt and remain creative in order to stay one step ahead in this perpetual game of cat and mouse.
It’s only a matter of time before most citizens here will also be under the ever-present and watchful eye of the government. What are you doing to make sure that you’re not one of them?
