Activists are pushing for global social media platforms to take stronger actions in stopping Chinese officials from accessing the personal data of their users. This demand follows the claims made by two influential figures on Chinese social media, who have stated on X and YouTube that Chinese law enforcement has been looking into their followers and have even summoned some for interrogation.

Many websites, including X and YouTube, as well as popular news sources like The New York Times, BBC, and VOA, are restricted in China due to the country’s Great Firewall. However, despite increased social regulations under Xi Jinping’s leadership, a growing number of people in China are turning to virtual private networks to bypass the restrictions and access X, YouTube, and other websites for news, information, and opinions that are not readily available in the country.

Li Ying, also known as Teacher Li on the internet, was among the social media influencers who shared a warning on Sunday. Li rose to fame as a provider of news and updates after a rare instance of public opposition in China in 2022, speaking out against the government’s strict zero-COVID policy. His profile on X is now a gathering place for netizens to post news and videos that are deemed controversial and subject to online censorship by the Chinese government.

On Sunday, Teacher Li revealed that the public security bureau is thoroughly examining all 1.6 million of my followers and the individuals leaving comments.

The individual shared images of personal messages received from followers in the last few months. Some of the messages alleged that police had questioned people and even resulted in one individual losing their job.

The validity of the statements could not be confirmed by VOA, but previous court documents and reports from human rights organizations have shown that China is increasingly utilizing prohibited social media platforms to detain, try, and sentence individuals for online remarks.

The spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington, Liu Pengyu, stated that he was not familiar with the details regarding the social media influencers.

Liu stated that the Chinese government follows laws and regulations when dealing with internet-related matters as a standard practice.

Influencers warn followers

Reports have been circulating about China’s abilities for hacking, coinciding with the news of action being taken against supporters of social media influencers. In a statement last week, Christopher Wray, director of the FBI, alerted of cyber attacks on American infrastructure being of a larger magnitude than ever before.

A recent release of documents outlined the involvement of private companies in aiding China’s efforts to breach the cybersecurity of multiple Southeast Asian governments and to reveal the identities of foreign social media account holders.

According to Wang Zhi’an, a previous reporter for CCTV, who has a large following of one million on X and 1.2 million on YouTube, his followers have also experienced comparable difficulties.

Both Wang and Teacher Li have advised their followers to be cautious and consider taking measures such as unfollowing their accounts, changing their usernames, avoiding Chinese-made phones, and being prepared for questioning.

As of Tuesday afternoon, Li’s followers on X had decreased to 1.4 million. VOA attempted to contact Li for a statement, but had not received a response as of the time of publication.

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Allegedly, the authorities are monitoring individuals who are following.

Maya Wang, the China director for Human Rights Watch, noted that China is increasing its efforts to regulate platforms headquartered outside of the country due to the influx of Chinese individuals using these platforms to voice their opinions.

According to her, the recent revelations of authorities pursuing followers is only a component of China’s ongoing attempts to limit freedom of speech.

According to Wang, the Chinese government is becoming more concerned about the content being shared on foreign platforms. This is mainly due to the significant influence wielded by certain individuals through these platforms.

A recent leak of documents from I-Soon, a private contractor linked to China’s top policing agency and other parts of its government, described tools used by Chinese police to curb dissent on overseas social media, including one tool specifically created to surveil users on X.

According to leaked documents, hackers developed tools to aid police in hacking into email accounts and identifying anonymous users of X. The documents also exposed that police would occasionally send surveillance requests for specific individuals to I-Soon.

According to Wang, it is the responsibility of social media companies to ensure the safety of their users.

She expressed her desire to address these inquiries to Twitter [X] and inquire about whether they have implemented stricter measures to safeguard users from the People’s Republic of China. She also believes that Twitter [X] needs to look into the methods used to acquire this information and determine if there are any vulnerabilities that need to be addressed.

According to Yaqiu Wang, the research director for China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan at Freedom House, the companies should not only prioritize protecting their users’ privacy but also take more action to oppose the Chinese government’s censorship of free speech.

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“There should be actionable measures in place to aid activists in safeguarding their right to free speech,” she stated. “Major social media platforms ought to actively share information with their users, such as a guide or guidelines on securing their accounts.”

She suggested increasing transparency to inform users and the general public about the possibility of government-backed hacking activities.

I attempted to contact X, formerly referred to as Twitter, multiple times for a comment, but did not receive a response before this article was published.

This report was contributed to by Xiao Yu.

Source: voanews.com