China has officially introduced a controversial national cyber ID system, despite concerns from some experts and netizens over privacy and censorship.
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The system aims to “protect the security of citizens’ identity information”, according to regulations that went into effect on Tuesday, backed by the Ministry of Public Security, the Cyberspace Administration of China, and four other authorities.
The app, whose beta version was launched last year, issues an encrypted virtual ID composed of random letters and digits so the person’s real name and ID number are not given to websites when verifying accounts. So far, it is not-mandatory for internet users to apply for the cyber ID.
Starting in 2017, Beijing started ordering online platforms to adopt real-name registration for applications such as instant messaging, microblogs, online forums and other websites that ask netizens to submit their ID numbers. Separately, official ID has been required to register a mobile phone number in China since 2010.
The new virtual ID scheme has been in the beta stage since a draft regulation was launched in July last year. Dozens of widely used apps – including Tencent Holdings’ WeChat, Alibaba Group Holding’s Taobao and Tmall, and ByteDance-owned Douyin – have since allowed account authentication via virtual ID. The final version of the regulation was released in May without significant changes.
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Alibaba, Tencent and ByteDance did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday. Alibaba owns the South China Morning Post.