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Are You Camera-Ready?

China's Social Credit System

By Juliette McCoy RiittersPublished 3 years ago 3 min read
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Imagine living in a society in which your next door neighbor, your Uber driver or random citizens reading your social media posts can affect what school you may attend, what career path you may choose or whether you can travel to visit far-off relatives and friends. In China, this is becoming the norm for the entire population.

It is called a 'Social Credit System' (SCS) and was an idea that was launched in 2007, gradually becoming a national policy that includes most Chinese citizens. Although it is not yet mandatory to take part, it is becoming more and more essential and soon participation will be required.

Data gathering began at a more local level in the infancy of the system but Chinese Communist Party has been slowly consolidating information from all parts of the country through surveillance, social media posts, reports from banks, businesses and people who cross your path in daily life. Trust is at a very low level between Chinese citizens, as any contact with others could lead to negative outcomes in nearly any area of life.

This system is point-based: everyone begins with 1000 points, and you can gain or lose points depending on your actions, words, opinions, religion or political leanings. The highest number of points a person may attain is 1300, but it would be quite difficult to come even close to this score. On the other hand, losing points can make life quite difficult for an ordinary person.

What began as a system for rating credit-worthiness now embraces nearly every facet of existence. For example: If you fail to spend time with your aging parents, get a moving violation or jaywalk, or even spend time with someone who has a low SCS, you may lose points. The lower your score, the more chance there is that you will be blacklisted. In 2019 there were a reported 23 million people who were blacklisted; the punishments include travel bans, school bans if you or your parents have a poor score, or you may not be able to enter your desired profession ~ especially government work. Public shaming is another weapon in the authority's arsenal, your identity number and picture may be exhibited publicly.

One of the things that makes this system so dangerous is that there is no judge, no jury, no opportunity to plead your case; your life is being recorded in real time and there is no way to escape the consequences. There are 200 million surveillance cameras located throughout the country, and facial identification is used by the government to track and rank its population.

If this sounds to you like a terrible invasion of your privacy, you should know that in the US, there are already many large companies that use social credit systems of their own. Insurance companies look at your social media when deciding on your premiums, you can be banned by Airbnb without ever knowing why, and Uber will ban you if you aren't getting good ratings from drivers.

So many aspects of our lives are tracked by tech companies that can decide what services and platforms we can use. You can be banned from communication apps and social media platforms with no recourse to a legal justice system. This is a real concern for American citizens, because surveillance cameras and facial recognition technology are being used in ways that can negatively affect your future without your knowledge or consent.

This is probably just a tiny glimpse of what is to evolve into a common practice in the US in the near future, so we need to become aware of these technologies that are already quite aware of us.

Humanity
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About the Creator

Juliette McCoy Riitters

I am curious. I am unfamiliar with boundaries. The combination has led to an eventful life, and I am looking forward to what lies before me.

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