Improving Protection of Data Privacy

China Economic Weekly Issue 20, 2019

Starting this year, investigation has been conducted on a number of big data companies, credit consulting companies, and Internet finance companies conducting business in big data.

At the sixth World Internet Conference in Wuzhen, legal protection of cyberspace data was discussed at length. Government officials, academic experts, and leading enterprise representatives around the world expressed their views on issues such as data security, personal information protection and rule of law in cyber space, as well as law-based data governance to strengthen data risk prevention and build a secure and credible digital world.

During the time right after automobiles were invented, someone filed a lawsuit purposing that automobiles be taken off the road since they moved too fast, and the consequences of car accidents were unthinkable. Besides, a carriage could meet all the needs of the people. Of course this did not change the arrival of the Auto Era. Instead, a set of laws and rules were established, and people were educated on how to drive and ride in cars.

Big data perhaps is the new “automobile” of this era. While we are looking forward to its bright future and infinite charm, it is time to make rules for it. Otherwise, it will really hurt people, and the harm may extend far beyond our imagination. The whole society needs to work together to develop a set of good rules, and as such, everyone may need to get a driver’s license for handling big data.