People with ‘low social credit’ could soon be barred from travel in China

In the first episode of the third season of Black Mirror, we see the protagonist fight to maintain a high ‘social score’ – where citizens rate each other which can impact their socioeconomic status.

Now it seems like China are taking a cue from Charlie Brooker and are barring people with low scores on their ‘social credit system’ from plane and train travel for up to a year.

China’s social credit system monitors and ranks the behaviours of Chinese citizens will be barred from travel depending on what ‘offence’ they commit.

These offences can range from people who have caused trouble on flights, spread false rumours about terrorism, smoked on trains and used expired tickets.

People found guilty of any of these offences are liable to be restricted, statements from China’s National Development and Reform Commission said.

Those who haven’t paid fines or social insurances are also likely to be barred.

This isn’t the first time Chinese people have been barred from travel as last year China’s Supreme People’s Court revealed in a press conference that 6.15 million Chinese citizens had been blocked from air travel over social misdeeds.

The new rules will roll out come May 1 and are part of the Chinese government’s plans to measure each person’s ‘social credit score’. Yikes.