Shanghai Normal University Dormitory Gets Biometric Access Control

“For Shanghai Normal University’s 6th dormitory building, the biometric features are the icing on the cake of a larger renovation, which now features colorful walls, QR code-scanning laundry machines, and a touchscreen in the lobby where students can request repairs.”

A flashy new dormitory building at Shanghai Normal University features biometric access control.

As Shanghai Daily’s Shine reports, facial recognition is used to secure access to the building, with students able to get in after standing in front of a scanner for a few seconds. Dorm rooms, meanwhile, feature fingerprint-scanning locks.

It’s the latest sign of the increasing prevalence of biometric technology across Chinese society. Facial recognition in particular is popping up across a range of settings in everyday life, from hotel check-in kiosks to the Beijing subway; but these applications are eclipsed by the government’s use of facial recognition for security and surveillance, with the state facing nothing like the public backlash that has been seen in Western countries like the US and the UK.

For Shanghai Normal University’s 6th dormitory building, the biometric features are the icing on the cake of a larger renovation, which now features colorful walls, QR code-scanning laundry machines, and a touchscreen in the lobby where students can request repairs. Shine also breathlessly reports that the dormitory now has on-premise baths, drinking faucets, and new rubbish bins.

Source: Shine

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October 1, 2018 – by Alex Perala