11 companies including Tencent, Alibaba and ByteDance were interviewed! The state took action, targeting voice social networking and Deepfake technology
Latest update time：2021-08-31 08:51
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It's time to cool down applications related to "voice social" and Deepfake technology.
Author | Xiao Man
On March 18, 2021, 11 companies including Xiaomi, Kuaishou, ByteDance, Jingzhun Digital Service, Cloud Account, Inke, Himalaya, Alibaba, NetEase Cloud Music, Tencent, and Quyan were summoned for talks.
The reason for the talk is related to the recent work carried out by the Cyberspace Administration of China and the Ministry of Public Security to guide local cyberspace administration departments and public security organs to "strengthen security assessments of voice social software and new Internet technologies and applications involving 'deep fake' technology."
1
Aims to regulate voice social networking
The announcement from the Cyberspace Administration of China pointed out that in order to strengthen the security management of Internet information services and related new technologies and applications with public opinion attributes or social mobilization capabilities, standardize Internet information service activities, and effectively safeguard national security, social order, and public interests, various national departments will strengthen security assessments of voice social software and new Internet technologies and applications involving "deep fake" technology.
Leifeng.com Note: The picture is from China Internet Information Office
Therefore, in response to the recent failure to comply with security assessment procedures for voice social software and applications involving "deep fake" technology, the Cyberspace Administration of China and the Ministry of Public Security summoned the above-mentioned 11 companies for talks.
So, what is the basis for the interview?
The Regulations on Security Assessment of Internet Information Services with Public Opinion Attributes or Social Mobilization Capabilities state that:
Information services with public opinion attributes or social mobilization capabilities are launched online, or relevant functions are added to information services; new technologies and applications are used, which cause major changes in the functional attributes, technical implementation methods, and basic resource configuration of information services; and the user scale increases significantly.
Internet information service providers shall conduct security assessments on their own, be responsible for the assessment results, and submit reports to the Internet information department and public security organs.Based on the written review of the security assessment report, the cybersecurity and informatization departments and public security organs shall, if they deem it necessary, conduct on-site inspections of Internet information service providers in accordance with their respective responsibilities.
In other words, 11 companies including Xiaomi, Kuaishou, ByteDance, Jingzhun Digital Service, Cloud Account, Inke, Himalaya, Alibaba, NetEase Cloud Music, Tencent, and Quyan have failed to fulfill their security assessment responsibilities.
In this regard, national departments will urge them to conduct security assessments in accordance with laws, regulations and policy requirements such as the "Cybersecurity Law" and the "Regulations on Security Assessment of Internet Information Services with Public Opinion Attributes or Social Mobilization Capabilities", improve risk prevention and control mechanisms and measures, and take effective corrective measures in a timely manner for security risks discovered during security assessments, and effectively fulfill their main responsibility for corporate information content security.
2
Voice social networking becomes a new trend
In recent months, with the explosion of the foreign voice social software Clubhouse, voice social networking has become a new trend in the Internet industry and is favored by capital.
CVSource investment data shows that more than 50 VC/PEs, including Tencent Investment, Baidu Investment, Primavera Capital, 5Y Capital, Matrix Partners China, SIG, Shunwei Capital, and Genesis Partners, have entered the audio social track.
Not only that, beyond the capital level, domestic Internet companies are also working hard to catch up with this trend and have launched a number of voice social apps one after another.
It is reported that Alibaba started internal testing of Meetclub before the Spring Festival, while Inke directly launched "Talk Bar" on New Year's Eve. In addition, Xiaomi also launched the voice social app "HEYY".
It is worth mentioning that the positioning of "New MiTalk" is also related to voice social networking - a voice social app for professionals; it is not difficult to see that Xiaomi also hopes to occupy a place in the field of voice social networking.
Leifeng.com Note: The picture is taken from MiLiao official website
In fact, voice social networking is not a new thing in China. As early as 2015-2016, similar audio social networking was once popular. Among them, many voice products including Himalaya, Lizhi, and Qingting FM were products of that time.
Later, with the emergence of newer social forms such as live streaming and short videos, voice social networking gradually became less popular and increasingly marginalized.
However, at the beginning of 2021, the voice social networking whirlwind first started by Clubhouse entered China, and voice social networking became a hot spot again, attracting capital from all parties to join in.
However, the stronger the wind, the more dust it stirs up, and if you're not careful, it can easily blind your eyes.
Judging from the earliest voice social product "Dialogue Bar", its interface design, user invitation code system and product functions are all similar to Clubhouse, and was once nicknamed "China's first Clubhouse" by netizens.
Just 11 days after its launch, Inke was quietly removed from all online app stores, citing technical adjustments and optimization as the reason.
The launch of "Dialogue Bar" reveals Inke's urgent desire to develop in the field of "audio social networking", but the overly similar product features and the hasty removal from the shelves also illustrate the immaturity of the product - and this is just a microcosm of voice social software.
3
Application of “deep fake” technology
There are security risks
In addition to voice social software, the China Internet Information Office announcement also mentioned the security assessment work of new Internet technologies and applications involving "deepfake" technology.
In fact, new Internet technologies and applications involving "deep fake" technology have also been one of the hottest trends in recent years. Whether it is the AI face-changing application "ZAO" created by Momo earlier, or the funny short video "Ants Hey" that has been popular recently, they all involve "deep fake" technology.
Although these products have attracted considerable attention and quickly gained popularity, the personal privacy issues behind them cannot be ignored and they are unlikely to withstand regulatory scrutiny.
In September 2019, "ZAO" became an overnight sensation, but because its user agreement posed a risk to network data security, it was banned by WeChat and removed from multiple platforms.
Not only that, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology also questioned and interviewed relevant persons in charge of Beijing Momo Technology Co., Ltd. regarding the issue, and required the organization to conduct self-inspection and rectification - it only took ZAO 5 days from being put on the shelves to being interviewed.
Another product that also failed to stand the test was "Ant Ya Hey" - after just 7 days, Avatarify, the product behind the AI special effects of Ant Ya Hey, was quickly removed from the shelves, also due to concerns about personal privacy issues.
It is not difficult to see that privacy and security issues have always been the core topics surrounding new Internet technologies and new applications involving "deep fake" technology. Once these applications lose supervision, the consequences will be disastrous given their rapid popularity and influence.
Therefore, top-level supervision is undoubtedly necessary; and interviews are only one step in supervision.
The announcement stated:
In the next step, the Cyberspace Administration of China and the Ministry of Public Security will continue to guide local cyberspace administration departments and public security organs to increase patrol and inspection efforts, urge local Internet companies to strictly abide by relevant laws and regulations, actively and proactively fulfill their security management obligations, effectively perform their corporate responsibilities, jointly maintain network communication order, and create a good network ecology.
References:
http://www.cac.gov.cn/2021-03/18/c_1617648089558637.htm
This article is originally written by Leifeng.com, author : Xiao Man. Please reply "reprint" to apply for authorization. Reprinting without authorization is prohibited .
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