13 Mar Black Tech Makes ‘Minority Report’ and ‘Skynet’ a Reality in China
Coinciding with the annual meeting of the Chinese parliament in Beijing, local police have reportedly been equipped with smart glasses which can identify facial features and car registration plates in real-time.
According to state-run Science and Technology Daily newspaper, these futuristic ‘black tech’ gadgets are powered by a system called Skynet which keeps a database of blacklisted individuals. A number of privacy experts and activists are concerned that such a blacklist could include artists, political dissidents, charity workers, journalists and rights activists.
Observers have noted that the plot of Minority Report, a Tom Cruise movie where crimes are solved even before they happen, has become a part of everyday life in China. However, most delegates at the NPC meeting still thought that the use of such technology to improve security outweighs any privacy concerns.
Source: Reuters
