A WeChat program shows when people on a credit blacklist are near you

Wondering if anyone bad with money is around you right now? China has a WeChat mini program just for that.

Deadbeat Map pretty much does what it says: reveal the location of laolai – a word used by authorities to refer to people who fail to repay their debts and are put on a social credit blacklist. Open the mini program and you’ll see where these people are if they’re within 500 meters from your location – though for now it only works in Shijiazhuang, the capital of Hebei province.

It might seem like a violation of privacy, but in China it’s pretty normal. The country began publicly naming and shaming deadbeats last year under its social credit system.

Millions of people have been banned from taking flights and train trips. And they’re not just average people: famous tech leaders like Ofo founder Dai Wei and LeEco founder Jia Yueting have also been affected. Those who are blacklisted will have their information listed on national and local government websites and are available for anyone in the country to look up and see.

This information is also in the mini program – their names, national ID numbers, and why they’re on the blacklist is visible with a tap. Authorities say that the shaming is intentional, calling it a “creative use of the internet to precisely expose deadbeats.”

The map shows blue, yellow, orange, and red alarms depending on the number of deadbeats around you. / Photo credit: China Daily

Other places in China have different approaches to warning people about deadbeats. A county in Guizhou added ringback tones to the discredited people’s mobile phones, so anyone who calls will know they’re about to speak to someone who’s bad with money.

But the social credit system – aimed at “boosting trustworthiness” in Chinese society – is beginning to expand beyond just financial issues. A single mom in Chengdu found herself banned from making some purchases because of a divorce lawsuit. And a university decided not to accept a student because his father was on the social credit blacklist.

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