At first glance, the bright blue data dashboard looks like any other – a series of graphs, charts, numbers and menus belying its darker purpose.

But The Telegraph can reveal that this platform is how China’s security apparatus can track foreigners and anyone deemed “of interest” to the state within the country.

Foreign students, foreign spouses of Chinese citizens and even foreign journalists, including The Telegraph’s, were included in the sensitive data points as part of the “Dynamic Control Platform for Foreigners” programme.

The data allow the state to instantly track where American, British and other foreign citizens are located within China, who they come into contact with, their past movements and who they regularly associate with.

The revelation confirms the nature of China’s intrusive physical and digital surveillance, and raises serious questions about civilian privacy and threats to press freedom.

China is ranked third-worst on the World Press Freedom Index, just above North Korea and Eritrea, and is the biggest jailer of journalists with 121 media professionals behind bars.

The platform was first discovered by NetAskari, an independent cybersecurity researcher focused on China, and has been shared with and analysed by The Telegraph.

“In the Chinese context, it makes sense that they’re tracking journalists who they consider an ‘enemy of the state’, or at least worth keeping an eye on, and that’s been around since the inception of the People’s Republic of China under communist rule,” said Marc Hofer of NetAskari.

“They’ve never liked journalists from the get-go,” he said. “Journalists are seen as just another actor in this big game of controlling the narrative, controlling the minds of the people, controlling the reality of history – because that’s how the party operates; that’s how they think.”

A deep dive into the platform, branded with the government’s security insignia, offers a rare look at how Chinese authorities are integrating millions of data points pulled from surveillance cameras, visa details and travel booking apps – amongst other information – to holistically track people.

China is quickly transforming into a dystopian authoritarian state after investing over the past two decades in physical and digital surveillance capabilities, creating the world’s largest and most comprehensive security infrastructure.

Dissidents and foreign journalists are routinely harassed in China and abroad.

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