China Takes Cyber Security Seriously

A big majority of the world’s population use some sort of technology or another in their daily life, whether for personal or office use. The Internet is now the favorite playground of many with the advent of smartphones because there are endless things you can do and explore. There is no more reason to get bored anymore. However, there are many dangers lurking on the web, and not just in the dark web, says Bill Werther of Loudouni.com. Moreover, people often abuse the perks of the web, making cyberbullying and online scams common complaints from online users these days.

It’s a different thing in China, though. While the Chinese have access to the web, the Chinese government enforce stringent cyber security laws that must be observed by virtually everyone on land. China takes all these new cyber threats seriously with the likes of cyber terrorism and cyber hacking that may not only endanger the lives of the Chinese people but even the security of the entire nation too. That’s why they have these cyber security laws that address these issues early on, so they don’t face a big cyber issue like the ones happening all over the globe nowadays.

China consistently ranks as the world’s worst abuser of internet freedom. A law on cyber security, which took effect on Thursday, is no doubt intended to tighten Beijing’s grip on the speech and thought of its citizens. As if this were not bad enough, the law will also serve as a barrier to global companies operating in China and impede Chinese companies’ ability to compete on the global stage.

The law explicitly criminalises any online information that the ruling Communist party regards as damaging “national honour”, “disturbing economic or social order” or contributing to the “overthrow of the socialist system”. It is ostensibly aimed at protecting the privacy of China’s 730m internet users. In reality it will enshrine the state’s right to snoop on anyone who logs on to the internet and will force all companies operating in the country to be complicit in this.

(Via: https://www.ft.com/content/60913b9e-46b9-11e7-8519-9f94ee97d996)

It no longer comes as a surprise how much cyber freedom China violates because this totalitarian country has been accused of many other human rights violations in the past and up until the present. Who says antivirus software and firewalls can only be installed on computers? China has their existing “Great Firewall of China” as well because that’s how much they censor online content. And you should not just shrug off these laws if you are a Chinese citizen because you risk being persecuted if you are found to have violated any of these law’s vague provisions.

And while Chinese officials say the new rules will help guard against cyberattacks and prevent terrorism, critics, many of them from businesses, have their concerns. Companies worry that parts of the new law, which takes effect on Thursday, will make their operations in China less secure or more expensive. In some cases, they argue, it could keep them out entirely.

The law will have a big impact on how business is done in China, said Michael Chang, an executive with the Finnish technology company Nokia and the vice president of the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China. But, he said, “There’s unfortunately a lot of confusion.”

“Industry is not ready because the implementation rules are not clear,” Mr. Chang said, speaking at an event organized by the lobbying group to announce the results of its annual business confidence survey.

(Via: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/31/business/china-cybersecurity-law.html?_r=0)

While the country and its leaders often get away with many human rights violations and infringement, it’s a different thing when it comes to dealing with businesses and business owners especially those owned by foreign investors and have offices in other parts of the world. Technology is very much a crucial part of our daily life right now.

We not only use it for our personal life but for work and studies too. It’s the reason why these vague clauses in the Chinese cybersecurity law got business investors worried and wondering what these changes means to their businesses especially when it comes to data storage and transfers. And we are not just talking about computer use but even that of smartphones as well. Fines will be imposed on violators and there’s also the risk of turning off overseas businesses because of outrageous laws that aren’t exactly easy to follow that only a superpower like China has the audacity to implement.

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