Database of a Chinese Firm Collected Personal Data of 2.4M People, Targeting at Politicians, Military Officials and Celebrities

A Shenzhen-based private company was found to collect personal data globally and sold it to state agencies. Zhenhua Data, a technology company based in Shenzhen, was allegedly to be involved and linked to the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) of China. Its database of 2.4 million people included detailed personal data of tens of thousands of well-known and influential people. The database is thought to be used by Chinese intelligence agencies and described as “Cambridge Analytica on steroids”.

Zhenhua Data was established in 2018. It was believed to be owned by China Zhenhua Electronics Group, a state-owned firm controlled by China Electronics Corporation and the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of Guizhou Province.

The main customers of Zhenhua Data include the People's Liberation Army (PLA) and the Communist Party of China (CCP). Zhenhua collected data such as date of birth, address, marital status, photos, political connections, relatives and social media accounts, and even integrated personal account of Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram and TikTok. Information contained news reports, criminal and company records.

Source: Stand News #Sep14

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