The state-owned telecom operator China Mobile has reportedly proposed the creation of a “Digital Identity System” to keep track of all local metaverse users.
The idea has been discussed between tech experts and Chinese officials and could set global rules focused on that technology.
A Safety Measure or Additional Government Control?
According to a recent Politico coverage, the proposed “Digital Identity System” will require metaverse participants to share personal data points such as occupation and “identifiable signs.” The information could be stored permanently and shared with law enforcement agents “to keep the order and safety of the virtual world.”
While seen as a protection measure by the Chinese telecom operator, this idea could violate principles of freedom and privacy. One person who supports that thesis is Chris Kemidas-Courtney – an executive at Brussels-based think tank Friends of Europe:
“To build a unified digital identity system, to give each human a unique digital ID that includes social characteristics from social media and occupation— that sounds a lot like China’s social credit system.”
An expert working at the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) also disagreed with China’s plans to monitor such identities in the metaverse space:
“Imagine a metaverse where your identity protocols are set and monitored by Chinese authorities. Every government must ask themselves – Is that the kind of immersive world we want to live in?”
China Insists on Centralization
The government of China (ruled by the Communist party) has made several attempts to eliminate decentralization inside its borders and closely monitors people’s activities and financial transactions.
As such, it banned all operations involving cryptocurrencies in 2021. The authorities doubled down on their crackdown several months later, warning that taking part in crypto fundraising could lead to hefty penalties and even jail time.
On the other hand, the Chinese government is in favor of a central bank digital currency (CBDC): a monetary product issued by the People’s Bank of China whose supply could be adjusted by the financial institution.
The world’s most populous country is among the most advanced in terms of a CBDC launch and has introduced multiple initiatives to popularize it among the population in the past few years.
Numerous experts, such as Florida’s Governor Ron DeSantis and US presidential candidate Robert Kennedy, have labeled that financial product as a tool of surveillance, insisting that it has nothing in common with bitcoin’s decentralized nature.
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