The Chinese government uses approximately 500 million surveillance cameras to collect data on its citizens at a more elaborate scale than previously known to maintain control over its population, according to a video report based on 100,000 documents provided by China Files.
The U.S. Treasury Department in December restricted interactions with eight Chinese companies engaged in surveillance, particularly of Muslim Uyghur people in Xinjiang as detailed in the New York Times' Visual Investigations team video report.
“Today’s action highlights how private firms in China’s defense and surveillance technology sectors are actively cooperating with the government’s efforts to repress members of ethnic and religious minority groups,” Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian E. Nelson said, according to a December 2021 Treasury Department news release. “Treasury remains committed to ensuring that the U.S. financial system and American investors are not supporting these activities.”
The Chinese government is collecting data on its citizens' appearances, voices and technological devices on the local and national levels, according to the video report. Cameras capture facial recognition data where people shop, live, study and travel. The software can search the person's image in existing databases to see if there's a match, and a match can then reveal that person's name, sex, national ID number, permanent address and other information.
The NYT Visual Investigations team’s video reported government officials want an even wider use of surveillance. China's Ministry of Public Security called for the analytical capabilities of surveillance cameras to be enhanced. The documents revealed the Chinese government's intention to expand surveillance through more invasive means by monitoring information on individuals’ phones.
Police connect a person’s digital life to a physical location using phone trackers. Authorities can intercept outbound communications, track a phone's movements and screen the apps installed on a phone. By checking which phones have downloaded a Uyghur to Chinese translation app they can identify a likely member of the Uyghur ethnic minority group, which is “heavily surveilled and oppressed by the government,” according to the report.
Authorities claim the use of biometric data such as voice prints, iris scans and DNA samples from citizens is primarily used to track criminals, according to the report. Police installed devices that can record audio from a distance of 300 feet away, and audio from those recordings will be added as “voice prints” to databases. Authorities emphasize the collection of data that does not change, including DNA samples and iris scans, since voices and appearances can change.
The eight Chinese firms identified as supporting the surveillance of minorities in China, particularly the Muslim Uyghur minority in Xinjiang, were Cloudwalk Technology Co. Ltd.; Dawning Information Industry Co. Ltd.; Leon Technology Company Limited; Megvii Technology Limited; Netposa Technologies Limited; SZ DJI Technology Co. Ltd.; Xiamen Meiya Pico Information Co. Ltd.; and Yitu Limited. The U.S. Department of the Treasury banned Americans from purchasing or selling some publicly traded securities connected to those firms, according to the Treasury Department release.
