Draft law seeks to protect personal data

A draft law submitted to China's top legislature for review has proposed to make provisions against big data-enabled price discrimination against existing customers.

The draft law on the protection of personal information was submitted to the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress for its third reading on Tuesday.

The draft stipulates that automated decision-making using personal information should not unfairly treat individuals in terms of transaction price and other trade conditions.

When pushing information and business marketing to individuals through automated decision-making, personal information processors should provide options that don't target personal characteristics at the same time, or offer ways of rejection, the draft said.

Marking distinctions between large-scale Internet platforms and small personal information processors, the draft stipulates that the former should formulate their own rules on personal information protection following the principles of openness, fairness and justice.

Similar rules for small personal information processors can be formulated by cyberspace authorities.

Targeting the excessive collection of personal data by apps, the draft clarifies that the collection of personal information should be limited to the minimum scope for the purpose of processing.

It also adds provisions prohibiting any body or individual from illegally collecting, using, processing, and transmitting other people's personal data, or illegally trading, sharing, or disclosing other people's personal information.

Strengthening protection for minors, the draft deems personal information of minors under 14 as sensitive, asking personal information processors to formulate special processing protocols for the group. It also proposes improving the relevant mechanism for handling complaints and reports.