CPPCC members call for stronger protection of personal information

Many political advisers called for stronger protection of personal information, with tougher punishment to those who infringe on the information, Guo Weimin, the spokesman of the fourth session of the 13th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, said at a news briefing on Wednesday.

He noted the CPPCC National Committee, the country's top political advisory body, has made great efforts in personal information protection in recent years, and solicited opinions from its members when holding meetings.

"Since big data, artificial intelligence and some other advanced internet technologies are widely applied, problems in information safety and privacy protection have become serious, and people leaking, abusing or even purchasing others' personal information also have triggered public concerns," he said.

"So, a number of CPPCC members consider how to regulate internet enterprises to collect, store or use personal information in line with laws and effectively ensure the information safety as very important," he said. "Some have provided proposals that personal information protection must be intensified and relevant supervision also needs to be increased."

Among these members, some are from internet enterprises.

"They also participated in discussions on the issues with us during the meetings, pledging to protect users' legitimate rights by improving self-regulation, balancing the relationship between information service providing and information management and shouldering their responsibility," he said.

In recent years, China has attached importance to personal information protection, and some government agencies have taken action.

For example, a draft law on personal information protection was submitted to the country's top legislature for a first review last year.

Also, departments for regulating cyberspace, public security and market order also launched campaigns and took measures to stop people who infringe on others' personal information and solve new problems found in new technology applications.