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Surveillance
ChinaPolitics

AI-enabled ‘covert’ detention monitoring cameras, drone disrupters headline China police gear fair

  • New surveillance system can monitor detainee’s vital signs, facial expressions and suicide risk
  • Annual Beijing exhibition showcases cutting-edge tech in rapidly expanding security equipment market

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The International Exhibition on Police Equipment and Anti-Terrorism Technology and Equipment in Beijing. Photo: Handout
Yuanyue Dangin Beijing
From surveilling corrupt officials with artificial intelligence to grounding civilian drones in restricted areas, a police equipment fair has revealed how China’s law enforcement agencies are harnessing cutting-edge technology to carry out their mission priorities.
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The International Exhibition on Police Equipment and Anti-Terrorism Technology and Equipment – held in Beijing from last Thursday to Saturday – attracted mostly manufacturers of police and military equipment.

One of the highlights was surveillance cameras designed for anti-graft agencies – devices that appear to use artificial intelligence to monitor people under disciplinary detention, particularly officials suspected of corruption.

In China, a detainee can be held in disciplinary detention without access to a lawyer for up to six months. Under the country’s supervision law, such detentions could apply to anyone employed in the state sector or on a public payroll, including officials, scholars, teachers, and the parties suspected of offering bribes.

A company at the police equipment exhibition said its clients included prisons, procuratorates, forensic institutions, the military and “secret government departments”. Photo: Handout
A company at the police equipment exhibition said its clients included prisons, procuratorates, forensic institutions, the military and “secret government departments”. Photo: Handout

Suppliers said their cameras can also be used for “residential surveillance at a designated location” – a type of detention often used in national security-related cases, in which suspects can be held in custody in places other than a prison.

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