privacy

Citing Privacy, Wuxi Deletes 1 Billion Pieces of COVID-19 Data

Timely reports on issues and events from across China. Drawing on a vast range of sources, these succinct articles provide insights into the significance of each issue in a wider context.

NEWS

The city also shut 40 apps, including a health code used to monitor travel history across public venues.

Ye Zhanhang

Shopping App Accused of Accessing Phone Data, Trying to Delete Video

A Dewu shopper claims the situation unfolded after sharing a video complaining about a product on the company’s app.

Yang Caini

Zhihu Accused of Using Watermarks in Screenshots to Locate Users 

Claims that the site was using numbers and timestamps to identify those sharing screenshots have raised privacy concerns.

Luo Meihan

When the Internet Knows Where You Live

Contributions from individuals with unique perspectives to share. Hear from everyone, from experts and commentators to those whose voices are often marginalized.

VOICES & OPINION

China’s major social media platforms are starting to include users’ geographic locations in their posts. They claim the feature is meant to deter imposters, but will it work?

Cai Yineng

Chinese School Faces Backlash Over Use of Facial Recognition Scanners

A parent has accused the middle school of endangering students’ privacy by forcing them to make purchases using a facial recognition scanner, sparking renewed debate about China’s growing use of the technology.

Zhang Wanqing

China Cracks Down on Hidden Cameras and Clandestine Filming 

Police seized over 25,000 illegal webcams and arrested 59 people involved in clandestine filming activities.

Watching the Watchers

Visual stories that get up close and personal with contemporary China. A mix of short videos, documentaries, photography, and data visualization.

MULTIMEDIA

Chinese artist Ge Yulu has found a devious way to defy the country’s growing network of surveillance cameras: Staring back.

Ding Yining

Shi Yangkun

A Professor, a Zoo, and the Future of Facial Recognition in China

Articles that cut to the core of contemporary China. In-depth, informed, and carefully crafted, every piece is carried by the voices of the story’s participants.

FEATURES

In China, businesses are forcing customers to use facial recognition scanners. But Guo Bing is fighting to outlaw the practice — by taking his local safari park to court.

Yuan Ye

China Stipulates Which Permissions Data-Hungry Apps Can Demand

For the first time, the country’s top internet authority has set rules for the personal information different types of apps can require from users in exchange for access to basic services.

Zhang Chaoyan

Data Security Takes Center Stage at Consumer Rights Gala

American home manufacturing company Kohler stood out among the mostly domestic brands called out during CCTV’s annual “315 Evening Gala” event.

With China’s Stores Going Digital, Some Call for Keeping It Personal

The country’s commerce ministry says mobile payment technology alienates seniors. Consumers say it’s also a privacy risk.

Du Xinyu

Chinese Cities Vow to Better Protect COVID-19 Patients’ Privacy

Beijing and Shanghai have said they will not release detailed personal information for contact-tracing purposes under a new “only mention locations, not people” rule.

Chinese City Trains Surveillance Cameras on Maskless Drivers

Tianjin, located near current COVID-19 hot spots, had traced an earlier outbreak to an unmasked man sneezing and coughing in an elevator.

Libel, Caution: Smeared Online, a Woman Fights Back

How a young woman, the unwitting protagonist of a made-up love affair, became an example for China’s victims of online bullying.

Wang Hang

Ren Wu

A Star Streamer, an Unhappy Customer, and an Onslaught of Trolls

A woman questioned a product she bought from a popular livestreamer, so the celebrity seller shared her phone number with his 70 million fans.

Rellie Liu

Chinese Birth Certificates to Include Parents’ Facial Data

Authorities say the new e-documents will help combat child trafficking.

Policy Against Sharing Students’ Grades on WeChat Sparks Debate

Would withholding students’ grades and class rankings from parents relieve pressure or demotivate? That’s the question at the center of discussion over a largely misinterpreted local rule.

Real Estate Firms Secretly Collecting Client Data Via Facial Recognition

Experts say it’s illegal for China’s housing agencies to gather biometric information without consent, and that doing so constitutes a violation of privacy.

Cai Xuejiao

Chen Qi’an

Hangzhou Court Rules in Landmark Facial Recognition Case

Though a safari park’s compulsory collection of its patrons’ facial data was ruled to be illegal, the plaintiff will appeal based on other parts of the decision.

Courier Company Catches Employees Selling Customer Data

China has been trying to clamp down on its lively black market for scammers seeking private information.