To the Editor:

Re “China’s Blueprint for a Digital Totalitarian State” (front page, Dec. 18):

Your reporting on the acceleration of the Chinese surveillance model should set off alarm bells in Washington. The implications are far-reaching, not simply for the inhabitants of the most populous country in the world, but also for those who live in countries with which China trades, including the United States.

China’s surveillance model is being carried forward in the Belt and Road Initiative, which extends massive systems of data collection and biometric identification in Asia and Africa. China also dominates the standards-setting process for techniques like facial recognition. And these surveillance systems are being deployed against democratic protesters in Hong Kong.

United States intelligence agencies are rightly concerned about the security risks of 5G, but little has been said about the privacy risks to American consumers. The Defense Department suspended purchase of drones manufactured by the Chinese firm DJI, but again there was no concern in Washington about the privacy risks of aerial drones that enable foreign surveillance. (EPIC urged the Federal Aviation Administration to establish privacy rules for drones, but the agency has so far failed to do so.)

The United States needs comprehensive privacy legislation to safeguard the personal data of Americans. We must also establish an agency charged with advocating for the privacy interests of America. Surveillance technology takes hold quickly. There is not much time.