Human Flesh Search Engine

About

The “Human Flesh Search Engine” (Chinese: “人肉搜索”; Pinyin: “Rénròu sōu suŏ”) refers to the massive collaborative effort of Chinese netizens to identify and release as much information on a targeted individual or group. The practice has been utilized for a wide range of purposes and issue areas, including vigilant stalking of individuals, evasion of Internet censorship, expose of government corruption and promotion of Chinese nationalism among others. The name “Human Flesh Search Engine” describes the public use of knowledge compiled by human contributors through social networking, as well as the general practice of internet vigilantism and its participants.

History

Although the Human Flesh Search Engine is usually linked with the MOP and Tianya Club forums (both being somewhat close Chinese equivalents of the Western 4chan), it can be deployed from a variety of sites hosting Chinese netizens.

According to Wikipedia, the term was originally coined on the MOP forums in 2001 to describe “a search that was human-powered rather than computer-driven.” The original “human flesh search engine” was a subforum on Mop similar to a Q&A site, focusing on entertainment related questions. Since rising to prominence in the late 2000s, the term has evolved with a more sinister connotation wherein Chinese netizens seek out individuals (as in “human flesh”) for public humiliation or scrutiny.

2001: Chen Ziyao Incident

The earliest known example of Chinese collective research has been attributed to the Chen Ziyao incident which occurred on the Chinese social networking site MOP in 2001. According to a research paper on the topic that was published in August 2010, it began when a MOP member posted a picture of the model Chen Ziyao and claimed that he was her boyfriend. In response, MOP users tracked her identity, obtained and posted her personal information to prove that he was in fact a fraud.^[1]

2006: Government Official “Poison”

According to Wikipedia^[2], in March of 2006, netizens in Tianya Club (a.k.a “The End of the World” forums) collaborated to discover the identity of a popular Internet celebrity with the online handle “Poison” (毒药). It turned out that the popular cam star was actually a government official. In the process of the search, Chinese netizens coined the phrase, “On the internet, everyone knows you’re a dog” (a play on the phrase, “On the Internet, nobody knows you’re a dog,”^[3] referring to online anonymity).

2006: Hangzhou Kitten Killer

Also in March 2006, a nurse uploaded a graphic video of herself viciously crushing a kitten with high heeled shoes. She was named the Hangzhou Kitten Killer, and the HFSE quickly discovered her identity and posted her personal information online. On March 16th, 2006, China Daily^[4] reported that the nurse named Wang Jue came forward and apologized for making the video.

Wang said she is divorced, depressed and having trouble figuring out what to do with her life. She said her despondence led to the cruelty against the kitten. She also said that her behavior had deeply hurt her family, especially her daughter.

2008: Zhang Ya’s Earthquake Reaction Video

In May 2008, in Sichuan, China, an earthquake with a magnitude of 8.0 killed approximately 68,000 people. As the whole nation of China was rescuing and mourning, a girl posted a 4 minute long video complaining how the victims looked unattractive and how the earthquake reports got in the way of her favorite TV show.

After a few hours, the Chinese people caught sight of this video, and the whole nation raged against this girl. After a few days, the people identified her as Zhang Ya, a girl from Liaoning, and massive amounts of her personal information, including her blood type, was leaked onto internet forums. She was then taken into protection for the massive amounts of death threats she received.

2008: Very Erotic Very Violent

On December 27th, 2008, a schoolgirl appeared on a report by Xinwen Lianbo and started the catchphrase “very erotic, very violent” after describing an NSFW pop-up she had seen online. On January 1st, 2008, HSFE began looking for her a posted her address, phone number, and other contact info.

2010: My Father is Li Gang!

In October 2010, a drunk driver named Li Qiming hit 2 girls with his black Volkswagen before fleeing the scene of the crime. When he was apprehended by police, he infamously proclaimed “my father is Li Gang!” while being placed under arrest.

After the story began to spread around the Internet, an HSFE began to uncover information about Li Qiming and his father Li Gang and discovered that Gang may have be involved in some kind of corrupt finance scandals.

2010: Brother Sharp

After photos of a stylish looking homeless man went viral online, an HSFE managed to discover the man known as Brother Sharp, and he was eventually reunited with his family.

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Internet Vigilantism

Similar to Anonymous, China’s Human Flesh Search Engine is often associated with acts of Internet vigilantism. According to the New York Times, a Chinese court ruled in in December 2008 that posting an individual’s personal information online would be considered a type of “cyberviolence”.

The court ruling, which was announced Friday, specifically mentioned “cyberviolence” and the possibilities for abuse by human flesh search engines, which the three-judge court called “an alarming phenomenon.”

Search Interest

External References