back to article Law prof: New Chinese data regulations make it 'very hard for foreign firms to comply'

China's Standing Committee of the National People's Congress has passed a new data security law requiring companies to seek approval before transferring what it refers to as "core" data overseas. Rule-breakers can end up paying up to ¥10m ($1.56m, £1.1m) in fines or possibly face closure. Data under a lesser qualification of …

  1. Eclectic Man Silver badge

    'Core and important data'

    I guess that non-Chinese owned companies operating in the PRC will be concerned that their internal operational data, needed for international operations could be considered core or important data. The definition seems to include some economic data, so will Western banks and other financial institutions find their normal trading practices be covered by this?

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      @Eclectic Man - Re: 'Core and important data'

      Internal operational data needed for international operations like for instance to pay taxes ?

    2. W.S.Gosset

      Re: 'Core and important data'

      Yes.

      ALL their KYC Know Your Customer data will be. And I would be very surprised if China didn't require segmenting (/hiding) domestic trading/trade-flows too. CCP has been VERY embarrassed by that sort of info in the past. "Skeletons should stay in closets! You are not showing the correct respectful attitude! etc."

  2. Blackjack Silver badge

    Maybe it would be good to just stop doing business in China and so you aren't at the mercy of a dictatorship that changes the rules all the time and does whatever it wants.

    But hey companies will do anything for money...

    1. very angry man

      Why pick on China for inacting American political bias

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      @Blackjack - Yes, but you will have to buy 30% more

      of everything so the US multinational corporations can make the same amount of money and report equivalent growth to Wall Street analysts.

      Sorry to bring this to you but in Capitalism the only reason of existence of a company is to make profit for its owners.

      1. Blackjack Silver badge

        Re: @Blackjack - Yes, but you will have to buy 30% more

        Is not like is a picnic even for the Chinese companies.

        For example the Chinese government told Chinese companies to make a huge spy network so it could monitor people and to add a "Social score" to it so a Chinese citizen freedoms and rights depend on what those companies decide. Several companies did that and now the exact same Chinese government is going after these companies because they are spying on people?

        Oh.my, what a surprise!

    3. veti Silver badge

      Well, sure. And while you're at it, probably better to stop doing business in Russia and India as well. And the EU, UK, Australia, Japan, and every other country that thinks it's "above" good ol' American law.

      Of course companies will do what makes money. That's their entire job description.

      1. llaryllama

        The EU, UK, Australia, Japan and India (sort of) and Russia (just barely) aren't dictatorships.

        Beyond any discussion of ethics it's just not good business sense to work with buyers or sellers who don't follow the same rules and decide on a whim not to buy from you because of some perceived political sleight. Look at Australian wine or the Korean Lotte company.

        I live a stone's throw away from China and dealing with Chinese businesses is like working with aliens from another planet. There may be over a billion Chinese people but most of them are very poor and unless China really needs your commodity you will find it almost impossible to export anything there without giving Chinese companies a very big slice of the pie.

    4. gandalfcn Silver badge

      Just like the GOP "the biggest threat to US democracy is not coming from a foreign adversary, but from the self-proclaimed “grim reaper”, Sen. Mitch McConnell, who made it a personal mission to sink the bill."

  3. BOFH in Training

    Data under multiple jurisdictions.

    I wonder how the CLOUD act from the US holds up with other countries having their own versions of privacy laws such as the GDPR, etc.

    Now China has it's own version of data control law. I wonder "who wins" when a piece of data is under multiple jurisdictions.

    Might end up with a case of die if you do, die if you don't.

    1. Claptrap314 Silver badge
      Unhappy

      Re: Data under multiple jurisdictions.

      My money is on the lawyers...

      1. GloriousVictoryForThePeople

        Re: Data under multiple jurisdictions.

        Oh No! Once Aliexpress does lawyers, the US economy's monopoly on shoddy law is breached.

    2. llaryllama
      Mushroom

      Re: Data under multiple jurisdictions.

      Anyone who watched War Games knows the only winning move is not to play.

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