SHANGHAI - Facial-recognition technology has become embedded in China, from airports to hotels, e-commerce sites and even public toilets, but a law professor had enough when asked to scan his face at a safari park.
But that's changing as the collection of biometric data such as fingerprints and facial scans mounts. DEAL WITH THE DEVIL In a recent article posted online that generated wide discussion in China, Dr Lao Dongyan, a law professor at prestigious Tsinghua University in Beijing, called abuse of facial recognition data"a deal with the devil".
China still lacks a specific set of laws governing personal data. Legislation is now being formulated, but it remains unclear when it could be introduced. Dr Lokman Tsui, a communications professor at Chinese University of Hong Kong, says the government could opt for tough laws that target the abuse of such data, rather than its collection.