BEIJING - China will establish a unified criminal record system to better hold criminals' information and promote social administration, an official from the Supreme People's Court said Thursday.

The unidentified official said that the decision was made in a statement jointly made by the SPC, the Supreme People's Procuratorate, the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of State Security and the Ministry of Justice.

The information to be recorded in the system includes criminals' basic information, the names of the procuratorates and judicial organs, the number and date of verdicts, the crimes, the punishment and the enforcement of the punishment.

"The criminal record system is an important part of the modern social administration, as the United States, Germany and other developed countries have all established it," said the official.

According to the statement, information of those that commit crimes under the age of 18 and are sentenced to less than five years in prison, will be protected so not to destroy their future lives.

The official said the police departments have established a database for criminals around the country, while the procuratorates have also started the inquiry system for bribery records. The unified criminals record system will be established on the achievements of those systems, the official said.