Starting in 2017, the Guiyang public security bureau has made it their mission to set up a citywide security surveillance system using big data technology to aid in the tracking of criminal suspects and maintain social stability.

The capital city of Southwest China's Guizhou province now has the ability to surveil public places ranging from crowded blocks in the downtown area to remote locations in rural areas.

There are now a total of 80,000 surveillance circles including 20,000 for public security concerns and 60,000 for common civil affairs. Surveillance technologies such as traffic cameras, emergency quick response systems and facial recognition have been put to effective use.

"Once a suspects enters a surveillance area, their appearance will be captured and stored in the system", said Li Bin, deputy director of the information and communication office of the?bureau.

Using the citywide big-data surveillance system, the bureau has successfully identified 872 suspects, including 66 criminals at large, within the city or coming from other provinces in China.

Xi He contributed to this story.