China

Huawei hits back at the United States after it's PR charm offensive including opening up it's source code went nowhere. It reminded the world of the biggest scandal of the century – the PRISM program and Five Eyes surveillance.

By now, the Social Credit System that the Republic of China has been planning to implement since 2014 is known about across the globe. If you think the Western world is miles apart from taking measures even remotely similar to the SCC in China, then you’re dead wrong.

Increasing Internet surveillance with new set of rules saw Internet authorities in China clenching an iron fist requiring tech companies to identify the real registered names of users and to record user activities.

Selling customer data such as banking records, vehicle registration and mobile phone usage is big business in China. Recent data theft of 130 million clients of Huazhu Hotels Group saw the stolen payment and contact information going for about US$56,000.

Chinese Internet users have become much more vocal about what they perceive to be potential breach of privacy by China Internet Giants - Alibaba, Baidu and Tencent.

For years, China has used the World Internet Conference to advance its vision for cyber sovereignty. Now it looks like the various ideas and concepts, including the new Cybersecurity Law, undergirding this vision are starting to be put into effect for China’s Internet, with unknown implications.

China's Social Credit System is scores the reputation of citizens and businesses operating within its sovereign border, using data collected from social media, financial institutions and government records. The purpose is to increase trust, transparency and confidence in the domestic marketplace but at what cost?