China tightens control over company data with transfer rules

BEIJING (AP) — China’s internet regulator plans to require companies to obtain government approval to transfer data deemed important abroad. Rules announced by the Cyberspace Administration of China would tighten Beijing’s control over information and might disrupt operations for international corporations. The agency said the measure is needed to “safeguard national security.” President Xi Jinping’s government sees information about China’s 1.4 billion people as a potential security risk in private hands. A crackdown on data security fueled anxiety among investors who have knocked more than $1.3 trillion off the total market value of e-commerce platform Alibaba, games and social media operator Tencent and other tech giants.