This article originally appeared on ABACUS He thought he was just another face in the crowd. That was what a Chinese man told police when he was arrested at a music concert in China thanks to facial recognition technology. The suspect -- who has only been identified by his surname, Ao -- was attending a concert by Hong Kong singer Jacky Cheung when police swooped after he was spotted by the venue’s security cameras. He had been on a police watchlist for “economic crimes” -- a broad term that can include anything from tax evasion to the theft of public property. Organizers say there were more than 50,000 people there -- a fact the suspect said he had hoped would help him hide. “He didn’t anticipate being caught by the police in such a massive crowd,” one of the arresting officers told local media . Authorities in China are increasingly turning towards technology, raising concerns around privacy in a country that has plenty of surveillance cameras and wants to build a national database of faces. At a railway station in the central Chinese city of Zhengzhou, police have been equipped with “smart glasses” to locate faces matching their criminal database -- with officials claiming the technology has helped catch human trafficking suspects . And in Shenzhen, the city has started publicly shaming jaywalkers using facial recognition technology and giant digital screens. For more insights into China tech, sign up for our tech newsletters , subscribe to our Inside China Tech podcast , and download the comprehensive 2019 China Internet Report . Also roam China Tech City , an award-winning interactive digital map at our sister site Abacus .
