July 21, 2021
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0China launches facial recognition system to track underage gamers
Unhealthy and excessive gambling is considered a significant problem by the Chinese government. Tencent is trying to beat this issue out.
A facial recognition system, called Midnight Patrol, is capable of tracking underage gamers who play at night. Tencent launched it on July 5.
Learn more about Hong Kong’s Data Protection Law to dive deeper into the topic.
The government will also be able to control the situation through integration with China’s central public security system. For example, it makes it possible to identify and monitor underage gamers who play at night. Now, people who want to play from 22:00 to 08:00 will have to scan thier faces and access the Network under their real names. Anyone who refuses to pass the check and scanning will be considered a minor – he will not be allowed to play.
There are even more restrictions for teenagers; one concerns the duration of the game session, another one – the real money investment.
Initially, the system starts working with the 60 most popular games in China – including the multiplayer MOBA strategy Honor of Kings and the “battle royale” Game for Peace, which is the analog of PUBG in China. In the future, they plan to connect it to most games.
In 2019, China passed a law aimed at preventing “unhealthy juvenile addiction to online games.” It includes a ban on minors from playing video games between 10:00 pm and 8:00 am, and a limitation of playing time to 90 minutes per day. The law also prohibits children from spending more than $ 28 a month on microtransactions. In addition, the Chinese government obliges all persons, regardless of age, to register in games under their real names. It nd also prohibits titles containing “explicit sexual scenes, cruelty, violence, and gambling.” At the same time, they announced that they are going to develop a unified system for identifying gamers.
While governmental surveillance is getting harsh not only in China but over the globe, make sure you know how to protect your online freedom. Utopia P2P is one of tried and tested solutions you can find – explore why in this link.
