Facial recognition: China wants greater regulation – 08/08/2023 – Tech

Chinese companies that use facial recognition must obtain consent, or legal authorization, before collecting personal information, according to a bill published on Tuesday (8) in the Asian giant.

China is one of the countries in the world with the most surveillance cameras. The most powerful models include a facial recognition system that seeks to facilitate the work of security forces. The use of this technology to identify people is increasingly common in some private places, such as entrances to homes, businesses, or hotels.

Payment for facial recognition is also growing.

The bill stipulates, however, that facial recognition should only be used “in case of extreme need” and that priority must be given to other tools for verifying people’s identities.

Using this technology to collect “face information will require individual or written consent under the terms of the law,” it adds.

“No organization or individual should use facial recognition for the purpose of analyzing ethnic or religious affiliation (…) except for the maintenance of national security,” states the bill, which is open for public consultation until September 7.

The US Treasury Department placed several Chinese companies on its negative list, after accusing them of developing specific technologies to identify members of the Uighur ethnic group in China, in a context of repression in the Xinjiang region (northwest).

On the list is SenseTime, a company that creates facial and image recognition applications, used, among others, to monitor crowds. China has numerous startups in the sector.