Data hk is the process of compiling and analysing a large volume of data to identify trends or patterns. This information can then be used to predict future behaviour and improve business operations. It is also important for regulatory compliance. For example, the GDPR requires that all personal data be kept accurate and up to date. Data hk is an important component of this compliance.

Padraig Walsh, a partner in the Hong Kong office of Tanner De Witt’s Data Privacy practice group, explains how data hk is applied under Hong Kong law. He starts by defining what is considered to be a data user under the PDPO. A data user is someone who controls the collection, holding, processing or use of personal data in or from Hong Kong. This includes people who control the processing of data from locations outside Hong Kong and who transfer this data to Hong Kong.

The PDPO provides a wide range of statutory obligations for data users, including the requirement to comply with the six DPPs that form core data privacy principles in Hong Kong. These obligations include ensuring that the purpose for which personal data is collected is lawful, and that the data is not excessive in relation to that purpose. It also requires that the data user informs a data subject about the purposes for which the personal data is being collected on or before the collection of the data. In the case of data transfers, this must also be provided before the transfer.

A recent proposal by the Hong Kong government aims to expand the authority of the city’s data protection watchdog to investigate doxxing, which involves the malicious publication of private or identifying data. The proposal is currently being discussed by the legislature and would give the office the power to request data from technology companies that store personal information on users in Hong Kong or overseas. It is expected to be passed by the end of this year.

HKFP contacted Google, Facebook and Twitter to ask whether they would continue to provide data hk to Hong Kong authorities in light of this new proposal. All three US tech giants responded that they had paused responding to requests from Hong Kong, but that they might reconsider if the proposed law is passed.

The privacy of individuals in Hong Kong is a fundamental right. It is enshrined in Article 14 of the Hong Kong Bill of Rights, which stipulates that no one may be subject to “any arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to any unlawful attacks on his honour and reputation”. However, there is a limit to how far this right extends, and the boundaries are not always clear. Several privacy laws around the world contain some element of extraterritorial application. The PDPO, in contrast, only applies to data users who have operations that control the collection, holding, processing or use of information in or from Hong Kong.