China Mobile subscriber tracking 'stirs a storm'

Thailand’s The Nation newspaper is carrying a story this morning about China Mobile and their privacy policies. The top man at China Mobile, Wang Jianzhou, was giving a speech to delegates at the World Economic Forum…

The head of China’s biggest mobile phone company, which has more than 300 million subscribers, stunned delegates by revealing that the company had unlimited access to the personal data of its customers and handed it over to Chinese security officials when demanded.

The admission, described as ‘ bone- chilling” by United States Congressman Ed Markey, sent shivers through an audience of telecom experts at the World Economic Forum who immediately saw the potential for misuse and surveillance.

Obviously in the US and the United Kingdom, along with many other countries, authorities need some sort of court order to obtain your telecom records from operators. It’s apparently the same in China as Wang explained:

He explained how the company could use the personal data of its customers to sell advertising and services to them based on knowledge of where they were and what they were doing. When pressed about the privacy and security implications of this, he said, ‘ We can access the information and see where someone is, but we never give this information away … only if the security authorities ask for it.”

The critical issue is whether there is any independent oversight of the Chinese authorities making disclosure demands.
One fascinating figure to comprehend though:

Wang’s company adds six million new customers to its network each month and is already the biggest mobile group in the world by users.

Not a lot for a company that’s already got a whopping 300 million customers. But, SIX million new customers, a month? Logistical nightmare…!