05.08.2024 10:12:00
Дата публикации
The TaspaNews publication published a large article about data leaks and their protection in Kazakhstan, about the new law on state statistics, as well as about the use of Chinese technologies and the risks associated with it. The head of the legal practice of the Eurasian Digital Foundation, Yelzhan Kabyshev, was invited as one of the experts.
We publish some excerpts from the article.
Yelzhan Kabyshev believes that Kazakhstan needs to significantly strengthen the level of cybersecurity:
“Recently, cases of theft and leaks of personal data of citizens of our country have become more frequent in the republic. Among the most high-profile are the so-called “Aika list”, the scandalous “list of KazNU students”, the collection of information about Kazakhstanis by Chinese hackers, and others. All this is the result of improper work on information security.”
Discussing the law on state statistics, he noted that the existing legislation has a provision on the use of data without the consent of users, but at the same time there is an article that implies the depersonalization of such information, and then it can no longer be applied to a specific person.
The data obtained automatically from telecom operators and housing and communal services can be significantly higher in quality compared to data collected directly from respondents. Because:
• Automated systems regularly collect large volumes of accurate data.
• This data is less susceptible to errors and bias.
• Data collection is ongoing, which allows for accurate tracking of changes.
• The data covers broad demographic and geographic groups of users.
Regarding the law "On online platforms and online advertising", Kabyshev believes that the work on the document was not carried out at the level he expected. This concerns both the conceptual apparatus and the involvement of representatives of Internet platforms - for example, from the large foreign services, only representatives of the Chinese social network TikTok participated in the discussion:
"There is a suspicion that China continues to exert political influence on the Internet space in our country by participating in such initiatives. I do not think that this is bad or good, but when only 1 voice of a foreign platform is heard, and other social networks and messengers, such as Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Telegram and others do not participate in any way, this raises serious concerns."
At the same time, he considers the recent calls by the authorities to exclude the Chinese social network from the information space to be unconstructive, since this is the only platform that has an official representative office in the Republic of Kazakhstan, which makes it possible to discuss further joint work with it, and not just threaten to close it.
The expert also draws attention to the rule on the provision of information about users by platforms at the request of law enforcement agencies. The law does not specify that the request must be sent within the framework of the criminal cases under consideration.
Online platform users may experience fear or pressure when expressing their opinions or distributing information on online platforms if they know that their content may be requested or verified by authorized bodies.
“This may lead to self-censorship or refusal to use online platforms at all. In addition, there is a possibility of abuse of power, a corruption component, the consequence of which may be personal data falling into unwanted hands,” notes Kabyshev.
The lawyer also assessed the positive aspects of the change in legislation. Thanks to the innovations, it has become easier for law enforcement agencies to combat offenders who distribute truly prohibited content.
“But the main thing is that government agencies should communicate with online platforms on real violations of the law, and not stretch an owl onto a globe and see violations of the law where there is none,” added Yelzhan Kabyshev.
(text translation is done automatically)
We publish some excerpts from the article.
Yelzhan Kabyshev believes that Kazakhstan needs to significantly strengthen the level of cybersecurity:
“Recently, cases of theft and leaks of personal data of citizens of our country have become more frequent in the republic. Among the most high-profile are the so-called “Aika list”, the scandalous “list of KazNU students”, the collection of information about Kazakhstanis by Chinese hackers, and others. All this is the result of improper work on information security.”
Discussing the law on state statistics, he noted that the existing legislation has a provision on the use of data without the consent of users, but at the same time there is an article that implies the depersonalization of such information, and then it can no longer be applied to a specific person.
The data obtained automatically from telecom operators and housing and communal services can be significantly higher in quality compared to data collected directly from respondents. Because:
• Automated systems regularly collect large volumes of accurate data.
• This data is less susceptible to errors and bias.
• Data collection is ongoing, which allows for accurate tracking of changes.
• The data covers broad demographic and geographic groups of users.
Regarding the law "On online platforms and online advertising", Kabyshev believes that the work on the document was not carried out at the level he expected. This concerns both the conceptual apparatus and the involvement of representatives of Internet platforms - for example, from the large foreign services, only representatives of the Chinese social network TikTok participated in the discussion:
"There is a suspicion that China continues to exert political influence on the Internet space in our country by participating in such initiatives. I do not think that this is bad or good, but when only 1 voice of a foreign platform is heard, and other social networks and messengers, such as Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Telegram and others do not participate in any way, this raises serious concerns."
At the same time, he considers the recent calls by the authorities to exclude the Chinese social network from the information space to be unconstructive, since this is the only platform that has an official representative office in the Republic of Kazakhstan, which makes it possible to discuss further joint work with it, and not just threaten to close it.
The expert also draws attention to the rule on the provision of information about users by platforms at the request of law enforcement agencies. The law does not specify that the request must be sent within the framework of the criminal cases under consideration.
Online platform users may experience fear or pressure when expressing their opinions or distributing information on online platforms if they know that their content may be requested or verified by authorized bodies.
“This may lead to self-censorship or refusal to use online platforms at all. In addition, there is a possibility of abuse of power, a corruption component, the consequence of which may be personal data falling into unwanted hands,” notes Kabyshev.
The lawyer also assessed the positive aspects of the change in legislation. Thanks to the innovations, it has become easier for law enforcement agencies to combat offenders who distribute truly prohibited content.
“But the main thing is that government agencies should communicate with online platforms on real violations of the law, and not stretch an owl onto a globe and see violations of the law where there is none,” added Yelzhan Kabyshev.
You can read the full article at this link.
(text translation is done automatically)
