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China’s social credit system shows first signs of abuse, report says

China’s social credit system shows first signs of abuse, report says
A traffic police officer prepares to talk to a man on a bicycle near a facial recognition screen at an intersection in Shanghai. (Picture: AFP)

As the list of behaviors covered by China’s social credit systems continues to expand, more voices are sounding the alarm about the lack of laws governing these systems.

State-run Legal Daily published a report saying some places are starting to show signs that punishments for “uncreditworthy” behavior are being abused or applied too broadly. According to the report, titled “What kind of social credit law do we need,” a law professor at Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou said the social credit system has to be connected with China’s current legal framework or it could damage the legal environment.

China has official guidelines for building its social credit system. The country aims to have a social credit system covering the whole country by 2020, but right now it mostly consists of several local systems with their own punishments and rewards. But there’s currently no legal framework for these systems. Some local systems have added blood donation, jaywalking and eating on the subway to lists of behaviors that could affect people's scores, but some of the initiatives face pushback online.

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China wants Twitter to shut down accounts that smear China
China wants Twitter to shut down accounts that smear China
Aside from Chinese-backed accounts, Twitter also removed Russian and Turkish state-backed accounts. (Picture: Monika Skolimowska/ZB/dpa)

After Twitter shut down what it calls a Beijing-backed disinformation operation by banning more than 170,000 accounts, China has responded with a piece of curious advice. 

Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying told reporters during a briefing on Friday that Twitter should shut down accounts that smear China if it wants to fight disinformation, Reuters reported. Hua said that many platforms had falsehoods about China and that there was a need for Chinese voices with objective views. But China itself is blocking Chinese voices from reaching Twitter: The platform is blocked inside the country.

On Thursday, Twitter removed state-linked accounts from China, Russia and Turkey for violating their platform manipulation policies. The company said the accounts spread “narratives favorable to the Communist Party of China” and pushed “deceptive narratives about the political dynamics in Hong Kong” where tensions have once again flared up over the new National Security Law.

This is not the first time Twitter has moved against Chinese state-backed operations on its platform. Last year in August, the platform removed over 900 accounts, which were part of a larger 200,000-strong army involved in a “coordinated state-backed operation” to allegedly sow political discord in Hong Kong.

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This dock promises to turn your Switch into an arcade cabinet
This dock promises to turn your Switch into an arcade cabinet
The Switch Fighter is scheduled to ship in November. (Picture: Switch Fighter via Indiegogo)

The arcades aren't as big of a draw as they used to be. But if you miss the retro feel of joysticks and big round buttons, the Switch Fighter might help. 

The accessory, which transforms a regular Nintendo Switch into a mini arcade cabinet, is seeking funding on Indiegogo. For US$99, the Hong Kong-based campaign promises to ship backers the Bluetooth-connected gadget, allowing them to “properly play classics like Street Fighter or King of Fighters.” It also serves as a dock for charging and TV output, according to the project page

There’s a lot of caveats here: The project has a flexible goal, which means it’ll collect all contributions regardless of whether their funding target is reached. Also, Nintendo has previously warned users not to buy a third-party dock for their Switch.