Leaked Database Reveals China’s Real-Time Surveillance Network Tracking Foreigners in Detail

Washington DC: A massive surveillance system established by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is tracking the real-time locations, interpersonal relationships, and activity histories of foreigners within China, reports said. The platform, known as the Dynamic Control Platform for Overseas Personnel, tracks the foreign personnel by integrating security cameras, facial recognition, visa records, and mobile app data, the New Tang Dynasty Television reported, citing an analysis by cybersecurity research organisation, NetAskari. 

Foreign journalists and other “sensitive individuals” are designated as primary targets for the surveillance. 

“Apart from foreign journalists, the platform focuses on specific groups, including citizens of the ‘Five Eyes’ alliance (Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States). The system monitors the exact distribution of these citizens within specific Chinese cities, down to the neighbourhood block level,” Mary Man said, writing for the NTD. 

The vigilance among foreign visitors has been significantly heightened by the CCP’s pervasive surveillance network.

According to the report, the files maintained by the database included a photo, the country of origin, employer, name in both English and Chinese, date of birth, citizenship, passport number, and Chinese mobile number. “You can see who knows each other, who are classmates, who are colleagues, if they live in the same neighbourhood, if they live in the same block, if they’ve been spotted on camera together even,” Mary Man wrote, citing Sophia Yan, a correspondent for a UK-based daily, who discovered her own personal profile within this database. (IANS)

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