Mobile customers are already required to show a form of identification when signing up for new phone contracts, but the face scans will now be used to verify the person is a genuine match to their ID.
In September, China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology announced the change (link in Chinese) in a notice to telecom operators, saying it would "protect the legitimate rights and interest of citizens in cyberspace."Facial-recognition technology is already used for a wide array of services in China, including financial payments.
In September, China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology announced the change (link in Chinese) in a notice to telecom operators, saying it would "protect the legitimate rights and interest of citizens in cyberspace."Facial-recognition technology is already used for a wide array of services in China, including financial payments.