The government is to propose a legislative amendment to impose heavier fines on private companies found guilty of leaking personal data, Vice Premier Cheng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦) said yesterday.
In addition, the government would establish an “independent watch mechanism” for better protection of personal data, Cheng said at an inauguration ceremony in Taipei for the National Institute of Cyber Security (NICS).
The proposed amendments to the Personal Data Protection Act (個人資料保護法) would increase the fines as soon as possible for personal data leaks by private companies, he said.
Photo: Tu Chien-jung, Taipei Times
Article 48 of the act allows for fines of NT$20,000 to NT$200,000 against companies that fail to prevent theft or disclosure of private data that they collect, or allow it to be compromised.
Cheng’s pledge to increase the penalties came one day after iRent, a Taiwanese vehicle-sharing platform, was fined NT$200,000 by the Directorate-General of Highways for leaking the personal data of about 400,000 people.
The Taipei City Government on Thursday issued a NT$90,000 fine to iRent, which is run by Ho Ing Mobility Service (和雲行動服務), a subsidiary of automotive conglomerate Hotai Motor Co (和泰汽車).
Cheng said that the highways authority’s fine was “too light,” and that the public and private sectors need to step up their efforts to improve protections of personal data.
At the ceremony, Minister of Digital Affairs Audrey Tang (唐鳳) also addressed the data protection issue, saying that the NICS would intervene in data leak incidents in the private sector and help companies tighten their cybersecurity systems.
The NICS, a public body established primarily to improve cybersecurity in Taiwan, would also seek to foster talent in that field, and develop advanced technologies and tools to protect the nation’s digital assets, Tang said.
Headed by Ho Chuan-te (何全德), who was previously in charge of cybersecurity at the Presidential Office, the NISC would play a pivotal role in reinforcing Taiwan’s digital environment, Tang said.
The NICS was set up under the Ministry of Digital Affairs in accordance with the Act for the Establishment of the National Institute of Cyber Security (國家資通安全研究院設置條例), which took effect at the start of this year.
President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), who also attended the ceremony, said the establishment of the NICS was part of the government’s efforts to tackle ever-evolving cybersecurity threats from external forces.
“Information security is national security,” Tsai said, adding that the government needs to continue investing in Taiwan’s cybersecurity infrastructure.
South Korea has adjusted its electronic arrival card system to no longer list Taiwan as a part of China, a move that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said would help facilitate exchanges between the two sides. South Korea previously listed “Taiwan” as “Taiwan (China)” in the drop-down menus of its online arrival card system, where people had to fill out where they came from and their next destination. The ministry had requested South Korea make a revision and said it would change South Korea’s name on Taiwan’s online immigration system from “Republic of Korea” to “Korea (South),” should the issue not be
Tainan, Taipei and New Taipei City recorded the highest fines nationwide for illegal accommodations in the first quarter of this year, with fines issued in the three cities each exceeding NT$7 million (US$220,639), Tourism Administration data showed. Among them, Taipei had the highest number of illegal short-term rental units, with 410. There were 3,280 legally registered hotels nationwide in the first quarter, down by 14 properties, or 0.43 percent, from a year earlier, likely indicating operators exiting the market, the agency said. However, the number of unregistered properties rose to 1,174, including 314 illegal hotels and 860 illegal short-term rental
ECONOMIC COERCION: Such actions are often inconsistently applied, sometimes resumed, and sometimes just halted, the Presidential Office spokeswoman said The government backs healthy and orderly cross-strait exchanges, but such arrangements should not be made with political conditions attached and never be used as leverage for political maneuvering or partisan agendas, Presidential Office spokeswoman Karen Kuo (郭雅慧) said yesterday. Kuo made the remarks after China earlier in the day announced 10 new “incentive measures” for Taiwan, following a landmark meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) in Beijing on Friday. The measures, unveiled by China’s Xinhua news agency, include plans to resume individual travel by residents of Shanghai and China’s Fujian
Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) and Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Chairwoman Cheng Li-wun (鄭麗文) met in Beijing yesterday, where they vowed to bring people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait closer to facilitate the “great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.” The meeting was held in the East Hall of the Great Hall of the People, a venue typically reserved for meetings between Xi and foreign heads of state. In public remarks prior to a closed-door meeting, Xi, in his role as head of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), said that Taiwan is historically part of China, and remains an “inalienable” and
RSS