Face Recognition In China: Big Brother Is Watching Your Every Move

In Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four, every citizen is under watch by party members, whether they are at home, at work or in some other public place. The people are constantly reminded of their existence by the slogan "Big Brother is watching you", a maxim that aims to work as a deterrent against breaking the rules. In China, with the help of facial recognition, Big Brother is watching too.

“Facial-recognition technology, once a specter of dystopian science fiction, is becoming a feature of daily life in China, where authorities are using it on streets, in subway stations, at airports and at border crossings in a vast experiment in social engineering. Their goal: to influence behavior and identify lawbreakers,” writes the Wall Street Journal.

In a spine-chilling article, the Wall Street Journal describes how Chinese authorities harness video surveillance to exercise control and influence the behaviour of Chinese citizens. An increasingly prevalent facial-recognition system is used, for example, to ensure that joggers don’t take shortcuts at a running course on Chongming Island or that people don't jaywalk at red lights in Shenzhen.

Even though a national facial-recognition system is still years away, it is scary to think how surveillance tactics and technology might be used over time. In fact, the Wall Street Journal writes that the Chinese government hopes to "implement a national ‘social credit’ system that would assign every citizen a rating based on how they behave at work, in public venues and in their financial dealings”. Will thoughts be, at some point, the only thing those in power won’t have control over? Let’s hope Orwell wasn't on to something.

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