35 Travel and Ticketing Apps Notified for Illegal Data Collection in China
Chinese authorities have identified 35 travel and ticketing mobile applications and mini-programs that illegally collected and used personal information. The violations include undisclosed data collection rules, improper handling of minors' data, and lack of user consent.
China's Cyberspace Administration, along with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the Ministry of Public Security, have announced that 35 mobile applications and mini-programs related to travel and ticketing have been found to illegally collect and use personal information. This action follows an investigation into compliance with national cybersecurity and personal information protection laws.
The findings indicate that nine applications failed to disclose their rules for collecting and using personal data. Five applications were found to have processed the personal information of minors under 14 without specific rules or parental consent. Additionally, 23 applications were cited for collecting user data without proper consent.
Several applications, including "Songguo Chuxing" and "Yuebus," were listed for multiple violations. One app, "Huo Che Piao Ding Piao Zhu Shou," was flagged for forcing users to agree to the collection of non-essential personal information. Another, "Bashi Guan Jia Ding Qi Che Piao Huo Che Piao Ji Piao Pin Bao Che," was identified for collecting data beyond necessary scope and in unrelated scenarios without explicit user agreement.
In related news, 11 applications previously flagged in a prior announcement still exhibited issues upon re-inspection and have since been removed from app distribution platforms. This ongoing regulatory scrutiny highlights efforts to enforce data privacy standards in China's digital landscape.