We are now witnessing this frightening social trend being rolled out in a big way in mainland China, which has begun to experiment with a “social credit system”, which many observers have warned could ultimately increase the collection and sharing of data about all citizens, to their detriment. The central government first announced the scheme in 2014, with a nationwide roll-out expected next year. So far, the blacklisting of citizens has been applied to limited travel for some low scorers. And a few dozen cities have already tested their local social credit scoring schemes.
The central government says it is just a way to make society more harmonious by incentivising citizens, public officials and companies to embrace good behaviour, thereby improving social and market order, and enhancing governance.
But it is trying to achieve this by blacklisting and punishing those who misbehave by their defined standards. Brave New World? A perfect digital storm threatens our autonomy
One of the biggest underlying threats is how people are judged and assessed, and by whose standards.
In all honesty, what is considered the norm by the government might not be accepted as such by citizens.
As a result, those who do not agree and accept the set standards run the risk of being penalised or marginalised for falling short of those expectations.
Restricting citizens’ daily freedoms based on their performance against a set of strict rules is not only utterly unfair, we should be wary of the way this data is collected, including by a massive surveillance scheme.
Furthermore, there is the potential for corruption, collusion, and bias being thrown into the mix to further punish the disadvantaged. If there are effective laws in place, why is there still a need to impose more rules to stifle individual freedoms in the name of social order?
I am not dismissing the well-intentioned idea behind the scheme, but at what cost? Sometimes we need to question ourselves; are we knowingly taking the wrong path just to reach the right destination? And is it worth it?
Luisa Tam is a senior editor at the Post This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: Stifling freedoms in the name of social order a risky path
www.scmp.com/topics/chinas-social-credit-system
Poster Comment:
how people are judged and assessed By the wealth benefiting others that they produce.