The Chinese
government is building one of the most comprehensive data regimes in the world
with a spate of new measures governing cross-border data flows, data security,
consumer privacy, algorithms, and data trading exchanges. While China’s
so-called tech “crackdown” has drawn media headlines as China’s largest
internet platforms face scrutiny, rules for how companies handle their data
have been in the works for many years. Unpacking the drivers, impact, and
future of digital policy in China requires an understanding of the Cybersecurity
Law of 2016 as the centerpiece of an interlocking matrix of laws, policies,
regulations, and standards—the latest development being the twin Data Security
Law and Personal Information Protection Law that took effect in fall 2021.
Implementation of new requirements remain uncertain amid rigorous debate inside
China’s political system over data ownership, subject to competing pulls
between economic and security objectives of different stakeholders. The outcome
of this debate will not only impact development of China’s digital economy, but
also have ripple effects around the world as governments from India to Europe
and the United States grapple with daunting challenges in digital governance.
Beyond China, data has moved to the center of the U.S.-China tech conflict as
U.S. policymakers seek to block Beijing’s access to American datasets. This
deep dive will examine the landscape from Beijing and Washington as both
governments increasingly look to wall off data from the other with implications
for national security, innovation, economic competitiveness, and future of
internet governance.
Jared Ragland
Business Software Alliance
Business Software Alliance
The industry insights were valuable and otherwise difficult to get.
Kenton Thibaut
Atlantic Council
Atlantic Council
Officials working on issues around China's digital laws, regulations, and policies as well as opportunities for cross-border data flows, including the development of interoperability mechanisms.
People responsible for formulating and executing public policy outcomes for their companies with respect to data governance, privacy, cybersecurity as well as complying with cyber regulations in China and global markets, addressing barriers to cross-border data flows and seeking interoperability that enables data flows between countries.
People engaged in developing and
advocating policy solutions in areas such as privacy and cybersecurity.
Learn about the Chinese
leadership’s
approach to data governance by examining the motivations behind and practical implications of a sprawling framework that includes the Cybersecurity
Law, Personal Information Protection Law, Data Security Law, as well as rules
for data exchanges, data classification, and critical information
infrastructure.
We will analyze a debate unfolding inside China’s political system over the meaning of data ownership, consumer privacy, and state access to data.
Understand why Washington and
Beijing are seeking to cut off access to data from the other, and the policy
tools at play.
We will discuss how the EU, UK, India, Japan, and others are responding to China’s data governance regime, looking at the global landscape in which the U.S.-China data conflict is unfolding.
Samm Sacks is a Senior Fellow at Yale Law School’s Paul Tsai China Center. Her research examines China’s information and communications technology (ICT) policies, with a focus on China’s cybersecurity legal system, the U.S.-China technology relationship, and the geopolitics of data privacy and cross-border data flows. She is writing a book (forthcoming from the University of Chicago Press) with called "Data in Common: the United States, China, and the Future of Digital Policy." Previously, Sacks launched the industrial cyber business for Siemens in China, Japan, and South Korea. Prior to this, she led China technology sector analysis at the political risk consultancy Eurasia Group and worked as an analyst and Chinese linguist with the national security community. She is a frequent contributor to the media and her articles have appeared in outlets including The Atlantic, Foreign Affairs, MIT Tech Review, and Slate. She has testified multiple times before Congress on China’s technology and cyber policies. She reads and speaks Mandarin.
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