China bans people with bad "social credit" from planes and trains

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By Matthew Griffin Connected Society 24th March 2018

WHY THIS MATTERS IN BRIEF

Technology is a tool, it’s down to governments and individuals how they use and deploy it, and as such it can be used to do great good, or great harm.

In another nod to Black Mirror, and to show it isn’t just a sci-fi anthology series but instead a glimpse into our actual future, China is extending its recently announced Social Credit Scoring System to block “bad citizens” from traveling on trains and planes.

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The social credit program has been around since 2014, and has been steadily expanding ever since, working its way into every corner of Chinese citizens lives, and when it was originally rolled out in 2014 the State Council, China’s governing cabinet, publicly called for the establishment of a nationwide tracking system to rate the reputations of individuals, businesses, and even government officials.

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“The aim is for every Chinese citizen to be trailed by a file compiling data from public and private sources by 2020, and for those files to be searchable by fingerprints and other biometric characteristics,” said the council, calling it “a credit system that covers the whole society.”

Doing volunteer work, donating blood, and recycling can all boost one’s social credit score, while incurring debt or criticising the government can render you blacklisted, unable to buy property, take out loans, and now, engage in some forms of mass travel.

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It’s all eerily similar to Black Mirror’s third-season episode “Nosedive,” which imagined a world controlled by such a system. It even featured a scene in which star Bryce Dallas Howard is ejected from an airport.

However, on a much more serious note, as we’re seeing all too regularly now increasingly powerful technologies can be used to do great good, such as cure cancer faster and give people with locked in syndrome voices, but, in the wrong hands, with the wrong vision or attitude technology can also be used as a weapon of mass control, and I for one much prefer the former. Similarly, if I could be so bold and provide you with one piece of advice it would be don’t take your freedom for granted, be careful who you vote to govern you and do your utmost to be heard, not silenced – even in the face of seemingly overwhelming adversity.

Matthew Griffin / About Author

Matthew Griffin, described as “The Adviser behind the Advisers” and a “Young Kurzweil,” is the founder and CEO of the World Futures Forum and the 311 Institute, a global Futures and Deep Futures consultancy working across the next 50 years, and is an award winning futurist, and author of “Codex of the Future” series.

Regularly featured in the global media, including AP, BBC, Bloomberg, CNBC, Discovery, RT, Viacom, and WIRED, Matthew’s ability to identify, track, and explain the impacts of hundreds of revolutionary emerging technologies on global culture, industry and society, is unparalleled. Recognised for the past six years as one of the world’s foremost futurists, innovation and strategy experts Matthew is an international speaker who helps governments, investors, multi-nationals and regulators around the world envision, build and lead an inclusive, sustainable future.

A rare talent Matthew’s recent work includes mentoring Lunar XPrize teams, re-envisioning global education and training with the G20, and helping the world’s largest organisations envision and ideate the future of their products and services, industries, and countries.

Matthew's clients include three Prime Ministers and several governments, including the G7, Accenture, Aon, Bain & Co, BCG, Credit Suisse, Dell EMC, Dentons, Deloitte, E&Y, GEMS, Huawei, JPMorgan Chase, KPMG, Lego, McKinsey, PWC, Qualcomm, SAP, Samsung, Sopra Steria, T-Mobile, and many more.