China Proposes Supreme Audit To Undergo Additional Cybersecurity Checks

JAKARTA - China's Ministry of Finance has proposed that financial examiners undergo or carry out additional cybersecurity checks when their work involves national security.

A draft of these new measures, which was announced publicly on Friday, November 10, also explained how accounting companies must manage data related to Chinese companies.

In the last two years, China's cybersecurity authorities have established policies outlining how all businesses should handle and carry out security assessments and checks.

These new measures apply specifically to examiners who have been hired by domestic companies or carry out cross-border work. The main partner of the investigating firm is the person in charge of data security, this draft regulation reads.

This draft is open to public consultations until December 11.

PricewaterhouseCoopers, Deloitte, KPMG, and EY - the world's four largest checkpoints - did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Concerns about data security have prompted Chinese authorities to step up surveillance of examiners in recent years.

The rules issued in May have already determined that state-owned companies and registered companies should strengthen the examination of the accountant's ability to manage information security.

Beijing has asked several state-owned companies to stop using the four largest global checkpoints for trying to limit the influence of Western examiners, Bloomberg News reported in February.

The United States and China last year reached an agreement to resolve a protracted dispute over compliance with US-listed Chinese companies' inspections, agreeing to conduct an audit in Hong Kong as China is reluctant to provide full access to US regulators.