Authorities in Jilinhot, a city in northern China, have announced plans to compulsorily collect blood samples from all male residents to create a comprehensive DNA database. According to local police, the initiative aims to strengthen public security, improve citizen information, and assist in locating missing persons or verifying identities. The collected blood samples are reportedly intended to be linked with passports, national ID cards, and other official documents.

The announcement has sparked intense debate within China over privacy and legal boundaries. Under the country’s Personal Information Protection Law, collecting sensitive data like DNA requires clear guidelines and written consent. However, the Jilinhot notice did not specify how long the data would be stored or what rights residents would retain over their information. Experts have highlighted the focus on men, noting that Y-STR testing could trace paternal lineages and potentially extend surveillance to entire families and future generations. Concerns have also been raised about potential misuse of the data, including military or biological applications, as Y-chromosome sequences are static and could theoretically be used to develop targeted biological agents.

This move reflects China’s growing intersection of technology, biotechnology, and governance. With genome sequencing becoming faster and cheaper, local authorities can now build large-scale DNA databases more efficiently, benefiting the country’s forensic genetics and bioinformatics industries. Similar controversies have occurred in the past; in 2006, Foxconn faced backlash after collecting blood samples from employees. Critics say the Jilinhot plan sends a warning to multinational companies and foreign observers about China’s expanding capabilities and ambitions in genetic data collection, raising both ethical and security questions on a global scale.