On August 31, 2022, one day before the Measures for Security Assessment of Cross-border Data Transfer (“Measures”) were scheduled to take effect, the Cyberspace Administration of China (“CAC”) released a first edition of its guidance on how organizations should complete the security assessment application (“CAC Guidance”). Covington’s previous posts on the Measures can be found here.
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Inside Privacy Audiocast: Episode 19 – New China Draft SCCs: How to Manage Your Cross-Border Data Transfers
By Dan Cooper & Yan Luo on
On Episode 19 of Covington’s Inside Privacy Audiocast, Dan Cooper and and Yan Luo discuss the key provisions of China’s draft SCCs, compare the draft legislation with the GDPR, and talk through actions that companies should be considering in order to comply with the new cross-border data requirements.
This audiocast episode is repurposed from a…
China Imposes $1.2 Billion Fine for Data Violations
By Yan Luo, Xuezi Dan & Nicholas Shepherd on
Posted in China, Data Privacy
On July 21, 2022, the Cyberspace Administration of China (“CAC”) – the country’s primary regulator for cybersecurity and privacy – imposed a fine of RMB 8.026 billion (around $1.2 billion USD) on China’s largest ride-hailing company for violating data protection laws, including the Cybersecurity Law, Data Security Law and Personal Information Protection Law. …
China Releases Measures for a Security Assessment of Cross-Border Data Transfers To Take Effect in September 2022
In addition to the two developments we reported on in our last blog post, on July 7, 2022, the long-waited, final version of the Measures for Security Assessment of Cross-border Data Transfer (《数据出境安全评估办法》, “Measures”) were released by the Cyberspace Administration of China (“CAC”). With a very tight implementation schedule, the Measures will take effect on September 1, 2022. The full text of the Measures can be found here (currently available only in Mandarin Chinese).
In this blog, we highlight a few key takeaways from the final Measures.…
Cross-Border Data Transfer Developments in China
After more than seven months since China’s Personal Information Protection Law (《个人信息保护法》, “PIPL”) went into effect, Chinese regulators have issued several new (draft) rules over the past few days to implement the cross-border data transfer requirements of the PIPL. In particular, Article 38 of the PIPL sets out three legal mechanisms for lawful transfers of personal information outside of China, namely: (i) successful completion of a government-led security assessment, (ii) obtaining certification under a government-authorized certification scheme, or (iii) implementing a standard contract with the party(-ies) outside of China receiving the data. The most recent developments in relation to these mechanisms concern the standard contract and certification.…
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China Takes the Lead on Regulating Novel Technologies: New Regulations on Algorithmic Recommendations and Deep Synthesis Technologies
By Yan Luo, Vicky Liu & Irina Danescu on
In January 2022, China released two regulations (one in draft form) that touch on hot topics in technological development – algorithmic recommendations and deep synthesis – making it one of the first countries in the world to directly tackle these cutting edge areas. In this post, we provide an overview of the draft Provisions on…
Inside Privacy Audiocast: Episode 16 – China’s PIPL: What Companies Need to Know
By Dan Cooper & Yan Luo on
On Episode 16 of Covington’s Inside Privacy Audiocast, Dan Cooper, Yan Luo and Zhijing Yu discuss the implications of China’s Personal Information Protection Law (PIPL) for companies with data or doing business in China. The law, which entered into force on November 1, is the first comprehensive personal information protection law in China and…
Analyzing China’s PIPL and How It Compares to the EU’s GDPR
By Yan Luo on
On Aug. 20, 2021, the Standing Committee of China’s National People’s Congress promulgated China’s Personal Information Protection Law, which will take effect Nov. 1, 2021. Serving as China’s first comprehensive law in the personal information protection area and based on China’s Constitution, the PIPL aims to “protect the rights and interests of individuals,” “regulate personal information processing activities,” and “facilitate reasonable use of personal information” (Article 1).
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China Initiates Cybersecurity Review of Didi ChuXing and Three Other Chinese Mobile Applications
On July 2 and July 5, 2021, China’s Cybersecurity Review Office (“CRO”), an office established under the Cyberspace Administration of China (“CAC”) responsible for coordinating the implementation of China’s Cybersecurity Review framework (more details about this framework can be found in our previous blogpost, available here), announced that it had initiated cybersecurity reviews against four mobile applications operated by three Chinese companies: Didi Chuxing (“Didi”), Yunmanman, Huochebang and BOSS Zhipin (announcements are available here and here).
According to CRO’s announcements, these cybersecurity reviews were initiated based on requirements under the National Security Law (“NSL”), the Cybersecurity Law (“CSL”) and the Measures on Cybersecurity Review (“Measures”) and are aimed at “preventing national data security risks, maintaining national security and safeguarding public interests.” This is the first time that CRO publically announced the initiation of cybersecurity reviews against companies after the Measures took effect on June 1, 2020. Per the announcements, these apps are prohibited from registering new user accounts during the review period.
Separately, on July 4, CAC ordered the Didi app to be removed from Chinese app stores on the ground that the app seriously violated Chinese laws and regulations by “illegally collecting and using personal information” (the announcement is available here). It is unclear whether this “take down” order is related to CRO’s ongoing cybersecurity review of Didi.
This post explains the requirements and procedures of cybersecurity review under the Measures, analyzes the focus of the current review against these three companies, and provides more background on recent enforcement actions against apps illegally collecting and processing personal information. …
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China Enacts Data Security Law
On June 10, 2021, the Standing Committee of China’s National People’s Congress (“NPC”) enacted the Data Security Law (“DSL”), which will take effect on September 1, 2021 (the official Chinese version is available here and Covington’s unofficial English translation is available here). This law creates a framework for the protection of broadly defined “data security” from a national security perspective.
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