China’s Internet Regulation to Ensure Security (Photo : Getty Images)
Firms that export data would undergo an annual security assessment as mandated by China's draft cyber law, Reuters reported.
On Tuesday, China's top cyber authority, Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC), released the draft regulation as part of its efforts to introduce safeguards against terrorism and hacking.
According to the proposed law, "any business transferring data of over 1,000 gigabytes or affecting over 500,000 users will be assessed on its security measures and on the potential of the data to harm national interests."
The said law also bans outbound data--may it be scientific, economic or technological--that could potentially pose a threat to security or any other public interests.
It will also mandate companies to get users' consent whenever data is transmitted abroad.
Furthermore, the rules require sensitive geographic data, including information concerned with marine environments, to undergo scrutiny from the country's cyber watchdog.
Assessments that will be made will also consider the destination countries and the probability of tampering.
China's draft cyber law comes a day after news about a citizen getting a reward of $1,500 to $73,000 from the government for reporting suspected spies surfaced.
The draft will be open for public comment until May 11.
The recently released proposal can actually be regarded as an extension of a law passed in November last year. The legislation gave the Chinese government the authority over organizations whose data-exporting operations are deemed crucial to national interests.
The said law, which will be effective starting June, has earned the ire of different business groups for its vagueness. They also claim that it unjustly goes after foreign firms that have tight requirements.
Nonetheless, this matter has been denied by Chinese cyber officials.
In November last year, several officials and authorities have advocated for more rigid cyber regulations in order to curb terrorism as well as the rampant spread of fake news.
