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> According to the article, the actions described seem like discrete and well-defined like giving false information about terrorism, and not paying fines. That

> According to the article, the actions described seem like discrete and well-defined like giving false information about terrorism, and not paying fines. That's just the sales pitch to make it seem reasonable and positive to the average person. It's naive to think that this social credit system won't have a political component. Here are some descriptions of some current pilot programs that make that much clearer: https://www.wired.co.uk/article/chinese-government-social-credit-score-privacy-invasion https://www.wired.co.uk/article/chinese-government-social-cr...: > But the fourth category, behaviour and preference, is where it gets interesting. > Under this system, something as innocuous as a person's shopping habits become a measure of character. Alibaba admits it judges people by the types of products they buy. "Someone who plays video games for ten hours a day, for example, would be considered an idle person," says Li Yingyun, Sesame's Technology Director. "Someone who frequently buys diapers would be considered as probably a parent, who on balance is more likely to have a sense of responsibility." So the system not only investigates behaviour - it shapes it. It "nudges" citizens away from purchases and behaviours the government does not like. > Friends matter, too. The fifth category is interpersonal relationships. What does their choice of online friends and their interactions say about the person being assessed? Sharing what Sesame Credit refers to as "positive energy" online, nice messages about the government or how well the country's economy is doing, will make your score go up. If they're slurping up your purchases and social media for your credit score, it's going to be a lot more than about if you lie or fail to pay fines. Also what might "false information about terrorism" really mean in practice? Vouching for your friend when the government thinks he's a dissident?

thatcat 9y ago
>Sharing what Sesame Credit refers to as "positive energy" online, nice messages about the government or how well the country's economy is doing, will make your score go up. Sounds like a propaganda botnet that uses gamification to spread influence evenly. By incentivizing many intermittent points of influence the propaganda cannot easily be filtered from the rest of the data.
- michaelmrose 9y ago
  Sure it can just filter out anything that obviously comes from China or seems similar to content coming from that direction. Oh you meant in China? Have fun with that.
Aunche 9y ago
Sesame Credit is fairly extreme, but it's completely separate from China's social credit system (which doesn't exist yet). Sesame Credit is run by Alibaba, a private company, and there's no way China wants them to have that much power.
- Chaebixi 9y ago
  > Sesame Credit is run by Alibaba, a private company, and there's no way China wants them to have that much power. That's true, but I see no reason for the government system to take a more moderate approach. I don't really buy that Alibaba would have too much power, either. I'm pretty sure the CCP could swat it down pretty easily if it gets too uppity. > China's social credit system (which doesn't exist yet) My understanding is that things like Sesame credit are much like pilot projects -- if their ideas work to the CCP's liking, they'll make it into the government system.

thatcat 9y ago

>Sharing what Sesame Credit refers to as "positive energy" online, nice messages about the government or how well the country's economy is doing, will make your score go up. Sounds like a propaganda botnet that uses gamification to spread influence evenly. By incentivizing many intermittent points of influence the propaganda cannot easily be filtered from the rest of the data.

michaelmrose 9y ago
Sure it can just filter out anything that obviously comes from China or seems similar to content coming from that direction. Oh you meant in China? Have fun with that.

Aunche 9y ago

Sesame Credit is fairly extreme, but it's completely separate from China's social credit system (which doesn't exist yet). Sesame Credit is run by Alibaba, a private company, and there's no way China wants them to have that much power.

Chaebixi 9y ago
> Sesame Credit is run by Alibaba, a private company, and there's no way China wants them to have that much power. That's true, but I see no reason for the government system to take a more moderate approach. I don't really buy that Alibaba would have too much power, either. I'm pretty sure the CCP could swat it down pretty easily if it gets too uppity. > China's social credit system (which doesn't exist yet) My understanding is that things like Sesame credit are much like pilot projects -- if their ideas work to the CCP's liking, they'll make it into the government system.