China has launched a new controversial cyber security law that took effect yesterday, Thursday May 31st, 2017. This law comes in an attempt to bolster China’s internet sovereignty to protect national security as well as public interest;i.e: personal information. The law would also combat cyber-crimes, such as: fraud to safeguard the internet environment in China.
However, this law has risen a lot of concern among foreign businesses. Tech firms and companies that rely mostly on cloud services are particularly rattled by this law since the plan is to carry out severe security reviews of tech products.
According to thehindu; “an article in the cybersecurity law orders “key information-infrastructure operators” to store their data in China, a policy which is considered to have an effect on the data flow on the internet and between companies.”In light of this fact, all companies must go through a “safety assessment” procedure if they want to transfer these data out of China.
In an official statement, Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) said: “It does not restrict foreign companies or their technology and products entering the Chinese market, neither does it limit the orderly, free flow of data in accordance with the law,” the statement said. “It is within sovereignty to make laws and rules to regulate cyberspace based on the reality of the country while following international practice.”
A lot of companies have expressed major concerns that they might face losses due to such restrictions, after all China is the biggest trade arena in the world.
“It is vitally important that [these measures are] proportionate, consistent, non-discriminatory and formulated in a transparent manner. Regretfully, this is not yet the case,” said Michael Chang, vice-president of the European Chamber of Commerce in Beijing.
“The message is clear that the government will encourage more domestic development of technology, and that it now sees privacy and cyber security as vital national concerns,” said Xun Yang, a lawyer at Simmons & Simmons in Shanghai.
This law has also stirred a lot of criticism from several human rights organisations because it also obligates internet service providers in China to not only reinforce more control over information shared by their users, but also block and remove any content that is considered “illegal” by the country, such as anything that is malevolent to ‘national honour’, ‘disturbs economic or social order’ or is aimed at ‘overthrowing the socialist system’.
Companies who violate the law can have their business activities suspended and their licenses revoked. They can also be fined up to 1 million yuan ($145,000) or even detained for up to 15 days.
