A US-based publication has published a sensational report alleging that China has placed more than 1.4 billion people worldwide under surveillance. The report states that those under this surveillance include not only China’s own citizens but also foreign visitors to the country. According to international media reports, cybersecurity researcher Mark Hoefer was searching the internet in January to understand how China surveils its own population when he was shocked to find his own name, photograph, passport number, and even the mobile number he had used during a previous visit to China, all listed on a website called the “Dynamic Control Platform for Overseas Personnel.”
It has been identified that this website particularly contains extensive details of foreigners who traveled to the city of Zhangjiakou in China. Those listed reportedly include citizens of India, Taiwan, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Britain, the United States, Egypt, Iran, Israel, Morocco, Pakistan, and Sudan. The database also contains information on foreign students enrolled at Hebei North University in Zhangjiakou, with those from India and Pakistan notably making up the largest share. The website recorded personal details of these individuals along with information on their movements and activities. Chinese authorities are reported to be tracking all of them through cameras and phone signals, with this surveillance notably continuing even after they return to their home countries.
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The website is also reported to have links to a company called “Origin Dynamics,” which sells robotics and surveillance equipment to police departments across China, with the data on the platform said to be accessible to local police. The database reportedly includes details of destinations people prefer to travel to, along with the flights and trains they boarded, including seat numbers. Since large-scale anti-government protests erupted in Hong Kong in 2019, the Chinese government has further intensified its surveillance apparatus, extending special monitoring even to the foreign partners of its citizens.
Notably, all the information on this website disappeared in May. These details came to light only because cybersecurity researcher Mark Hoefer had already downloaded the data from the website before it vanished. There has been no official response from China regarding these reports.