By Eva Dou
BEIJING--China's government will set up cybersecurity police
units at major Internet companies, in Beijing's latest move to
tighten control over the country's online forums.
China's Ministry of Public Security will set up the units at key
websites and Internet companies to help them prevent crimes such as
fraud and "spreading of rumors," China's official Xinhua news
service said late Tuesday.
China's Ministry of Public Security didn't say which companies
will have the new police units. China's Internet sector is
dominated by three companies: e-commerce giant Alibaba Group
Holding Ltd., gaming and messaging company Tencent Holdings Ltd.
and search-engine provider Baidu Inc.
An Alibaba spokesman said the company works with Chinese
authorities to combat illegal activities online. "It is our
priority to maintain the reliability and security of our platforms
to protect our customers," he said.
Tencent, Baidu and the ministry didn't respond immediately to
requests for comment Wednesday. It wasn't immediately clear whether
the cyberpolice units would apply to international, as well as
domestic, tech firms operating in China.
The physical police units at Web companies are part of Beijing's
broader efforts to exert greater control over China's Internet.
China tightened regulation of social networks earlier this year,
banning usernames that could harm national security or promote
illegal services. The country has long required Web companies to
delete accounts that it believes are spreading rumors, criticizing
the Chinese Communist Party or disseminating pornography or other
illegal content.
The measure also comes amid heightened tensions between the U.S.
and China over cybersecurity. U.S. officials believe a recent cyber
break-in at the U.S. Office of Personnel Management--which resulted
in the theft of millions of personnel records and the likely loss
of sensitive security-clearance information--came from China,
though Obama administration officials haven't publicly accused
Beijing of being behind the attack. China says it is a victim and
not a perpetrator of hacking.
China's lawmakers are also now reviewing a broad-sweeping draft
cybersecurity law that will expand the government's powers in this
area. The country's officials have made passage of the law a
priority this year. Beijing has ratcheted up its cybersecurity
measures after former U.S. security contractor Edward Snowden said
U.S. intelligence agencies were using tech companies to spy on
foreign governments.
Write to Eva Dou at eva.dou@wsj.com
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