Selling celebrities' travel info violates right to privacy

RECENT MEDIA SURVEYS have found that one can easily buy the flight information of many entertainment stars online, a tailored service for the stars' fans to get a glimpse of them at a short distance. Gmw.cn comments:

How obsessed can fans be? There are frequent reports of fans not only waiting at airports to welcome their idols, but also boarding the same flight as the stars to follow them along the whole route.

It is this that prompted the celebrity following services to emerge. According to reports, the online businesses not only provide the flight number of stars to their customers, but also inform them of when the stars will arrive, even their hotel information. In some cases, they will buy air tickets for the "fans" so that the latter could board the same flight as their stars.\

In 2017 alone, at Terminal 3 of the Beijing International Airport, the police received as many as 20 calls for assistance because of fans surrounding celebrities, each time the fans numbered more than 50. Earlier this year, the fans even caused a flight delay of two hours in Shanghai Hongqiao Airport.

This trend should arouse our attention because not only does it disrupt public order but it also infringes on the right of celebrities to enjoy their privacy. When the flight number, hotel information, even schedule of stars can be purchased, it represents a violation of personal information protection.

It is not difficult to find which companies are responsible. The flight information is available at the airlines, the airport, and the booking websites. The hotel information is available at the hotel and the booking websites. Only very few agencies can obtain all these information and sell it online.

The Civil Aviation Administration of China recently issued a notice on strengthening the control on personal information to strike at the illegal business. We look forward to using this as a starting point to establish a comprehensive information protection mechanism and punishment mechanism for the whole chain of star chasing, so that the chaos at airports will be reduced, and personal information will be more effectively protected.