China drafts rules for using facial recognition data

Among other things, processing facial data would require an individual's consent or written legal permission. - Reuters

BEIJING (AFP): Firms using facial recognition in China will be required to obtain consent or legal permission before collecting personal information, draft regulations released Tuesday Aug 8) said, while stipulating the rules would not apply to some bodies.

China is one of the most surveilled societies on Earth, with thousands of CCTV cameras scattered across cities and facial recognition technology widely used in everything from day-to-day law enforcement to political repression.