Have secrets, will travel? Not so fast, China says

livemint.com:

SINGAPORE—China’s government is tightening its rules on the protection of confidential information, including intensified scrutiny on international travel by people privy to state secrets, as concerns over espionage rise amid an increase in global tensions. The changes also put a heavier burden on the country’s internet companies to stop leaks of sensitive information.

Published this week, the new regulations offer direction to authorities in implementing China’s state-secrets law, which was updated in February as part of Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s efforts to shore up safeguards against espionage and other threats to national security. The changes require state agencies to draft lists of state secrets related to their areas of responsibility.

The agencies are also required to ensure that personnel who handle classified information receive permission and undergo confidentiality training before traveling abroad. All entities defined as “network operators"—a category that includes internet companies and network infrastructure vendors—must establish mechanisms for detecting and dealing with leaks of confidential information and other secrecy breaches, according to the new regulations.

They must also cooperate with authorities in investigations and regulatory actions related to state secrets. “State secrets have become increasingly digitalized and networked, and the risks of leaks and thefts have become more diverse and hidden," officials from China’s Justice Ministry and the National Administration of State Secrets Protection told the government-run Xinhua News Agency.