Overview

• This week, Beijing deployed a unified online ID system that replaces separate real-name checks with a government-run authentication app.
• After a year-long beta and final regulations issued in May, apps including WeChat, Taobao and Douyin now support the digital IDs for user verification.
• Users must submit national ID numbers and facial scans to receive a unique code, consolidating sensitive personal data in a single state-controlled database.
• Observers say incentives and platform mandates will render the “voluntary” program effectively compulsory, paving the way for tailored content restrictions and digital exile.
• Centralizing identity records raises cybersecurity concerns, recalling the 2022 hack of a Shanghai police database that exposed over a billion personal files.