In recent years, over tens of thousands of elderly villagers in Henan, China have had their Alipay accounts unknowingly opened for them, and these accounts have been subsequently sold to criminal groups for money laundering and other illegal activities. The news of “Tens of Thousands of Villagers’ Personal Information Stolen” has gained widespread attention.
According to recent reports from mainland Chinese state media, criminal groups are using the guise of “village promotion” to activate electronic medical insurance cards and are targeting remote villages to illegally obtain personal information of insured individuals for activities like money transfers and money laundering.
“Village promotion” refers to activities carried out by third-party platforms with authorization to access electronic medical insurance cards in rural areas to facilitate the elderly in using the cards, guiding villagers in the registration and activation of their electronic medical insurance cards.
Some criminal groups have exploited these “village promotion” activities as a means to illegally obtain personal information from the public. Since last year, tens of thousands of elderly villagers in Henan have had their Alipay accounts opened without their consent during the activation of electronic medical insurance cards. These Alipay accounts were then sold to criminal groups involved in online gambling and money laundering, turning them into tools for money transfers and laundering.
In Tangying Village, Taoying Town, Dengzhou City, Henan Province, several villagers have reported that their personal payment information was leaked. According to their recollections, in May last year, villagers received a notice from the village health center to assemble at the village committee meeting room, where staff members helped everyone activate their electronic medical insurance cards. One villager recalled that the staff simply asked for their ID card and instructed them to blink and open their mouth, without explaining what Alipay was.
The township health center, being an appointed medical insurance institution, issued the notice, causing villagers to trust it without question. But who exactly requested the township health center to do this? The staff at the health center mentioned that they organized the villagers to collectively activate their electronic medical insurance cards because someone presented a referral letter issued by the Dengzhou City Medical Insurance Bureau.
The referral letter clearly stated that the third-party Alipay personnel authorized by the Medical Insurance Bureau of Dengzhou City were to conduct activation and application work for the electronic medical insurance cards in various townships.
When police consulted Alipay for verification, they were informed that Alipay had not hired any individuals to carry out the “village promotion” work for activating electronic medical insurance cards in Henan.
How did the necessary verification and supervision process fail?
The Dengzhou City Medical Insurance Bureau and the Health Insurance Management Center exhibited inadequate supervision in their work, allowing criminals to take advantage and causing a massive leak of citizens’ information.
This issue has gained traction on social media trends. Some netizens have expressed that not only were the elderly villagers’ rights infringed upon, but it also disrupted financial order. The hard-earned retirement funds of the elderly could potentially be affected by this situation, dragging them into this turmoil, which is truly saddening.
On December 24th, the National Medical Insurance Administration of the Communist Party of China issued a statement stating that neither the National Medical Security Administration nor its subordinate departments have authorized any individuals to carry out the activation of the public’s electronic medical insurance cards (the correct term being “medical insurance code” or “medical insurance electronic certificate”).