Students walk out from a venue hosting the college entrance examination in Shenzhen of South China's Guangdong Province on June 7, 2019. Photo: IC

South China's Guangdong Province will adopt facial recognition to authenticate students' identification during the 2020 college entrance examination as a measure to prevent testing fraud, Chinese news website thepaper.cn reported on Thursday.

According to a notice released by Guangdong's education authority, 13 new measures will be adopted for the college entrance examination in 2020 including allowing students from Hong Kong and Macao to register for the examination. The notice also states that foul behavior such as intentional immigration and fabrication of documents will be strictly screened and punished.

Students from Hong Kong and Macao who hold a Mainland Travel Permit, or Residence Permit, and have completed their high school education in Guangdong will be eligible for the examination just as students from the Chinese mainland.

In 2020, digital monitor systems at all venues for college entrance examination in the province will be updated to high-definition. Newly added venues and those in need of new equipment will use facial recognition technology to authenticate students' identification. 

The system is connected to Guangdong's examination command center and ensures accurate information submission within one hour after an exam, reported local media.

The new measures also include raising major universities' acceptance rate of students from rural areas of the province and other underprivileged areas.