In China, a “social rating” system is being tested, which will further tighten control over the population.
Work on the “social rating” system began back in 2014. Initially, it was voluntary – citizens were invited to register to receive points for actions in public places and on the Internet. However, in the near future, registration in the system will become mandatory for everyone.
According to the materials of The Sun, with the help of a facial recognition system, the actions of citizens will be monitored. For each offense, they will be awarded points, and the more of them a person has, the lower his “social rating”. The rating will determine the level of a citizen’s access to jobs, services, travel and other benefits.
Even now, the expanded system affects almost all aspects of the social life of citizens, and in particular such an intimate sphere as dating. Thus, citizens with a high rating are given greater “visibility” in dating apps. The rating also affects the ability to send children to private schools and universities, fly planes, ride trains and book rooms in high-class hotels.
The Beijing Municipal Development and Reform Commission announced that by 2020 it will begin registering all residents of the capital and companies registered in Beijing. At the same time, the government of China intends to introduce mandatory registration in the system throughout the country.
According to some reports, users with a low rating are deliberately slowing down the speed of the Internet. In addition, their applications for senior positions are not accepted for consideration.
The technical side of the system is not disclosed. Nevertheless, it is known that a number of public and private organizations monitor whether citizens pay bills in a timely manner, what they publish on social networks, what they do on the Internet, whether they violate the law and even avoid serving in the army.
