It bans any organizations and individuals from obtaining people's personal digital information via theft or other illegal means, as well as prohibits them from selling or illegally providing the information to others.
Violators can face penalties, including the confiscation of illegal gains, license revocations and website closures, as well as a ban on engaging in the web-related business in the future, according to the decision.
The decision also specifies norms and duties for network service providers regarding the collection, use and protection of citizen's personal digital information.
Service providers will explicitly state their goals, means and scope when collecting or using information, release related rules and obtain owners' consent before obtaining the information.
Network service providers and other government-sponsored institutions and companies should strictly ensure the privacy of personal digital information, it says.
The decision bans service providers, as well as government agencies and their personnel, from leaking or damaging users' digital information, as well as from selling or illegally providing this information to others.
Network service providers are also responsible for taking measures to ensure the safety of information during business activities and adopt countermeasures when information is leaked, damaged or lost, it says.
To tackle surging public complaints regarding spam messages, the decision bans any organization and individuals from sending commercial digital information to fixed-line phones, mobile phones or personal email addresses without consent.
The decision also encourages the public to report illegal activity involving online information to supervisory departments.
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