China Reform Monitor No. 1388

A FACIAL RECOGNITION COMES TO CHINESE SCHOOLS
In response to the proliferation of facial recognition technology and other surveillance tech in schools, China's Ministry of Education has issued a new guidance requiring all schools to register their technology to enhance government oversight and create a national database. China Pharmaceutical University in Nanjing, Jiangsu is using facial recognition technology at school gates and dormitories to monitor the attendance and behavior of students. Last year, a similar network of devices was also installed at a high school in Hangzhou, Zhejiang to give teachers real-time feedback on student concentration levels. Other schools are piloting "intelligent uniforms" that monitor student locations. "We need to be very careful when it comes to students' personal information. Don't collect it if it's not necessary," said Lei Chaozi, director of science and technology at China's Ministry of Education. (BBC, September 6, 2019)

CHINA HACKED ASIAN TELECOMS TO SPY ON UIGHURS AND OTHER TARGETS
China's government hackers have infiltrated telecommunications networks in Malaysia and several other Southeast Asian and Central Asian countries to track "high-value individuals" such as diplomats, foreign military personnel, and ethnic Uighurs. Uighurs in particular have become a primary target for China's data collection, with extensive efforts underway to hack and install malware on their phones and email accounts to monitor their communications and physical location. Google, for one, discovered a campaign targeting the Uighur community and designed to infect thousands of Apple iPhones. (Malay Mail, September 6, 2019)

CHINA EXPOSES VIOLATIONS OF PARTY FRUGALITY
The CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) has detailed six cases of violations of the party's eight-point frugality code on improving official conduct. Infractions include accepting bribes and using public funds for banquets and travel. Punishments ranged from "a serious intra-Party warning to dismissal." In one case, Huang Jun, deputy head of Pingtang County, Guizhou was given an intra-Party warning and an administrative demerit for receiving 30 bottles of expensive liquor, 17 cartons of premium cigarettes and money between 2014 and 2018. Wang Ling, general manager at the Shanghai branch of China Unicom, was given the same penalty for expensing 3280 yuan ($460) for dinners and other offenses. The CCDI said the cases should serve as a warning to cadres at all levels and "urged perseverance in addressing the practice of formalities for formalities' sake, bureaucratism, hedonism and extravagance." (Xinhua, September 9, 2019)

MANILA TO ALLOW CHINA TELECOM INTO MILITARY BASES
The Philippine military has agreed to allow China Telecom to install communications equipment and a new cellphone network on its army bases, camps and installations. The military signed the agreement with Mislatel, a consortium controlled by Philippine tycoon Dennis Uy, a close associate of President Rodrigo Duterte, who was helped by the last-minute disqualification of other bidders. In a statement, the Armed Forces of the Philippines said Mislatel "guarantees that the devices, equipment, and/or structures installed at the site provided by the armed forces shall not be used to obtain classified information." The agreement comes despite Philippine lawmakers' concerns that China Telecom could install a "Trojan horse with the capability to access state secrets." (Reuters, September 11, 2019)

NATION'S FIRST POLAR OBSERVATION SATELLITE LAUNCHED
China has put its first polar observation satellite in space in order to monitor the environment in the Antarctic and Arctic. The BNU-1, also known as the Ice Pathfinder, was launched atop a Long March 4B carrier rocket at the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in Shanxi. Developed and constructed by Aerospace Dongfanghong Development in Shenzhen, the BNU-1 weighs 16 kg and carries 3 payloads – a multispectral camera, a high-resolution visible-light camera, and a ship ID system receiver. The satellite will track the ice movement along shipping routes and combine that data with passing ships' information to prepare navigation routes that avoid collisions. The goal is to enable China to end its reliance on Western country's satellites for polar images and data. (China Daily, September 13, 2019)