Stored-value cards widely used by Hong Kong residents to pay for everything from subway rides to fast food may soon reach mainland China, Reuters reports. The Hong Kong-based company Octopus is reportedly hoping Chinese citizens will use its cards for other services as well, as many Chinese municipalities want them to include medical records and benefits status that can be recalled upon swiping the cards. There are privacy concerns around the plan as well, the report states, as the cards would also store social security and birth registration data that could help officials enforce China's one-child policy and control citizens' movements.
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