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UDN: Shanghai’s “City Code” to replace “Covid Health Code”

According to a recent report by United Daily News (UDN), one of Taiwan’s primary news groups, local governments across China adopted “Health Codes” to control travel during the three-year period of China’s Zero-Covid control. Although that the Chinese government’s Zero-Covid controls have now been largely lifted, the Health Code platform remains in place. Shanghai now intends to transform its city Health Code to a “City Code,” which will be integrated with public life in all aspects and become one of the region’s “social governance” tools. This move has been widely viewed by the public as strengthening the means of monitoring and controlling the flow of people.

The new City Code is critical in creating a comprehensive urban service and governance system that envisions “One person, one code,” “One company, one code,” and “One object, one code.” In Shanghai’s plan for individuals, the tracking includes monitoring of offline government services like medical treatments, rides on public transportation, visits to public tourist spots, public library visits, etc. For companies, the City Code serves will factor into scenarios such as company information disclosure, production safety, government service recommendations, government policy delivery and comprehensive supervision, etc. The City Code will combined geographic information as well as block-chain technology.

Social affairs analysts expressed the view that Shanghai’s City Code is a major expansion of the Health Code for Covid prevention, and that it is undoubtedly the authorities’ intention to strengthen the control over all aspects of people’s life. Some netizens worry that the City Code could be abused by criminals. In addition to the infringement of citizens’ privacy, people may also suffer economic losses.

Source: UDN, July 11, 2023
https://udn.com/news/story/7332/7292645

Briefings | | |   Government/Politics Information/Technology

Two Chinese Tech Giants Hit with Heavy Fines

Radio France Internationale (RFI) recently reported that Chinese regulators on Friday slapped hefty fines on Alipay and Tenpay, owned by digital giants Ant Financial Services Group and Tencent. The China Securities Regulatory Commission announced that it would fine Ant Group and its subsidiaries RMB 7.123 billion yuan (around US$986.4 million), and fine its competitor Tenpay nearly RMB 3 billion yuan (around US$415 million). The two private groups dominate China’s payment system and have significant weight in the Chinese financial system. They are not subject to banking supervision and have thus long been thorns in the eyes of the authorities. China’s central bank, the People’s Bank of China, declaring in a statement following the action that the financial business rectification of large platform companies has now been completed.

The government’s crackdown on tech has cost the dynamic industry billions of dollars in market value over more than two years. Alibaba, the e-commerce giant that owns Ant Financial, became the first company targeted by authorities in late 2020 following public comments by Alibaba co-founder Jack Ma that angered the Chinese leadership. Ant Financial Services’ IPO, which was originally regarded as the largest fundraising in history (US$34 billion), was called off at the last minute. Later, the Chinese government started a tough crackdown on digital platforms across the industry including Tencent, Didi (aka Chinese Uber) and all private online education companies, particularly on issues such as personal data collection and protection, anti-competitive behavior, and raising funds abroad.

Source: RFI, July 8, 2023
https://rfi.my/9iAQ

Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources Information/Technology

Chinese Researcher Proposed New Study on Modifying Human Genes

Chinese scientist He Jiankui (贺建奎) might rile the ethics of medical practitioners for the second time.

He shocked the world when he created the first gene-edited babies in 2017 and the Chinese government boasted that he was the “new giant in the world of genetics.” However, the international community heavily criticized him for violating medical ethics. The Chinese government turned around and put him in prison for three years.

On June 29 this year, He tweeted about a new proposal for gene editing in human embryos and claimed that this research was to prevent the Alzheimer’s disease. The document he attached to the tweet said the study would first genetically edit mouse embryos and later human fertilized egg cells or fertilized eggs.

His new proposal has once again raised concerns among scientists and medical ethicists worldwide.

Source: Epoch Times, July 3, 2023
https://www.epochtimes.com/gb/23/7/3/n14027624.htm

Briefings | | |   @CS Information/Technology

China’s Universities Conduct Investigations on Multiple Journal Retractions

Chinese universities have launched an initiative to investigate academically unethical papers published in the past five years. They aim to address the country’s high rate of retractions in international journals. Over 30 universities, including Ningbo University, Hangzhou Normal University, and Chengdu University of Information Technology, have announced their intention to participate in the three-month campaign, following a notice by the Ministry of Science and Technology. The focus will be on local research institutes and universities, particularly papers included in personnel assessments or which were awarded performance incentives.

The investigation will target various forms of misconduct, such as plagiarism, duplication, content fabrication, manipulation of peer reviews, ghostwriting for hire, and inappropriate honorary authorship. China ranked second globally in terms of the the number of papers published in top international journals in 2022, but it also had a significant number of retractions. Out of 5,488 retractions indexed in the Science Citation Index (SCI), 2,879 retractions (52 percent of the total) came from China.

This nationwide self-examination and rectification of academic papers is unprecedented in scale, as previous investigations were conducted by individual universities following international retractions. However, there are concerns that relying solely on self-examination may not effectively address the issue, as there is a problem of institutional protection of academic misconduct in China. This protection is attributed to the allocation of research funding, and it suggests that a more comprehensive solution is needed.

Jia Hepeng, a professor at Soochow University, expressed doubts about the long-term impact of this campaign and the centralized research system that heavily relies on quantitative assessment. Despite these concerns, the initiative is seen as a positive step towards addressing academic misconduct and serves as a wake-up call for the academic community in China. While the effectiveness of the campaign-style investigation is expected to be limited, taking action is viewed as preferable to no action at all.

Source: Central News Agency (Taiwan), June 19, 2023
https://www.cna.com.tw/news/acn/202306190066.aspx

Briefings | | |   Information/Technology

Lianhe Zaobao: UK Government Plans to Remove Surveillance Cameras Made in China

Singapore’s primary Chinese language newspaper Lianhe Zaobao recently reported that the British Cabinet Office will ask all government departments to remove surveillance cameras produced by Chinese companies to stop potential intelligence gathering by the Chinese government. When announcing this decision, the Cabinet Office also mentioned that a timetable will be announced for various departments to follow in order to remove surveillance cameras installed in sensitive places. The British government did not name specific Chinese companies, only saying that surveillance cameras produced by companies subject to China’s National Intelligence Law must be removed. Two people familiar with the matter said that the order is aimed at Hikvision and Dahua, two of China’s largest surveillance camera makers. Cabinet Office Minister Jeremy Quin said the new measures would protect sensitive sectors of the UK from companies that could threaten UK national security and would act as a firm deterrent against hostile acts wishing to harm the UK. He announced the measures as he proposed a series of new amendments to the government’s procurement act, including the creation of a new unit to investigate suppliers who may pose a risk to UK national security and assess whether to ban these companies from public procurement. At least a third of the police forces in England and Wales use surveillance cameras made by Hikvision. Hikvision responded by saying its products have no security issues.

Source: Lianhe Zaobao, June 7, 2023
https://www.kzaobao.com/shiju/20230607/140427.html

Briefings | | |   Geo-Strategic Trend Information/Technology

Global Times: Japan Officially Introduced Export Control Measures for Semiconductor Equipment

Global Times recently reported that the Japanese government officially introduced export control measures for semiconductor manufacturing equipment, which will be implemented on July 23. China’s Ministry of Commerce responded on the same day that this is an abuse of export control measures and a serious departure from free trade and international economic and trade rules. China firmly opposes this. Japan announced in late March this year that it would amend the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Law to strengthen export controls on 23 items of chip manufacturing equipment in an effort to “cooperate with the United States to prevent technology from flowing to China and being transferred to military use.” According to the Japanese Ministry of the Economy, Trade and Industry, the restricted scope includes semiconductor cleaning, thin film deposition, heat treatment, etching, product inspection and more.The Japanese Minister of the Economy, Trade and Industry Yasutoshi Nishimura previously stated that “this is not aimed at any specific country.” However, considering the latest export management trends of countries related to semiconductor manufacturing equipment, public opinion believes that this is a measure against China. While Japan’s restrictions on semiconductors are less extensive than in the United States, about ten Japanese manufacturers will be affected to some extent by the new rules. The spokesperson for the Ministry of Commerce of China stated that the measures announced will seriously damage the interests of Chinese and Japanese companies, seriously damage the Sino-Japanese economic and trade cooperation, disrupt the global semiconductor industry structure, and impact the stability of the global industrial supply chain.

Sources:
(1) Global Times, May 24, 2023
https://3w.huanqiu.com/a/de583b/4D17o6aPvPe?agt=11
(2) Xinhua, May 23, 2023
http://www.news.cn/fortune/2023-05/23/c_1129640086.htm

Briefings | | |   Geo-Strategic Trend Information/Technology

Chinese Police Demand to Inspect Students’ Phones to Remove Chat Apps like Telegram

Chinese authorities have issued notifications in several regions, urging parents, under the pretext of “preventing online crimes,” to check their children’s mobile phones in order to remove “secret chat apps.”

According to reports from state media outlets like Guangming Daily Online, the official WeChat public account of the Nanjing Public Security Bureau stated on the 16th that secret chat apps, known for their strong encryption and features like “disappearing messages,” provide criminals with a convenient means to destroy evidence, making these apps a “gray area.”

Law enforcement agencies have expressed concern that criminals exploit secret chat apps to manipulate minors through deception, coaxing them into providing personal information and engaging in illegal activities. In some cases, individuals who assist in such online crimes can be charged with “assisting information network criminal activities,” which carries a penalty of up to three years’ imprisonment, detention, or a fine for serious offenses.

Apart from the Nanjing police, similar warnings have been issued by authorities in various locations, including Fuzhou City in Fujian Province, Dazhou City in Sichuan Province, Hainanzhou in Qinghai Province, Hezhou City in Guangxi Province, Tongliao City in Inner Mongolia, and Lanzhou City in Gansu Province.

Some notifications also urge teachers and parents to check if their children have installed such apps on their phones, warning that their children may be assisting overseas fraudsters in illegal activities. If any installed apps are discovered, it is advised to take the matter seriously, inform the child about the potential harm, and accompany them to the nearest public security agency to investigate whether they are involved in any illegal activities.

The mentioned problematic apps include WhatsApp, Telegram, and Twitter, which are commonly used overseas.

Source: Central News Agency (Taiwan), May 22, 2023
https://www.cna.com.tw/news/acn/202305220035.aspx

Briefings | | |   Information/Technology

CBN: LinkedIn to Shut Down Chinese Jobs App

China Business Network (CBN) recently reported that Microsoft’s workplace social media network, LinkedIn, just announced layoffs and that it will shut down its job-seeking application service in China. The company further said it plans to cut 716 jobs as demand fluctuates. It is worth noting that LinkedIn continues to downsize its business in China. The company decided to withdraw most of its Chinese business in 2021, and it shifted its business focus in China to meet the needs of job hunting and recruitment, and no longer produce content. After the latest business adjustment, LinkedIn said that, due to fierce competition and a challenging macroeconomic environment, it will take its only remaining application InCareers offline on August 9. However, a company spokesperson said LinkedIn would maintain a presence in China to help companies with operations in China recruit and train workers abroad. LinkedIn CEO Ryan Roslansky said in a letter to employees, that the company will be offloading more work to external partners in the future, who will then take on some of LinkedIn’s current work. The company also said the move to cut positions in sales, operations and support teams is aimed at simplifying the company’s operations and will move towards a more flattened management structure for faster decision-making. Microsoft acquired LinkedIn in 2016 for an estimated US$26 billion. According to Microsoft CEO Nadella previously revealed that, in 2021, LinkedIn’s global annual revenue was about US$10 billion.

Source: CBN, May 9, 2023
https://www.yicai.com/news/101751217.html

Briefings | | |   Information/Technology US-China Relations