China Expands Public Security Inspection Powers Across Corporate Networks, Data, and Foreign Operations

China’s Ministry of Public Security has finalized sweeping new enforcement regulations that expand police inspection powers beyond standard internet services to encompass corporate data processing, personal information management, and international data transfers. The regulations, issued on August 7 as Ministry of Public Security Decree No. 176 and titled the “Measures for Public Security Organs to Supervise and Inspect Cyberspace Security,” will formally take effect on October 1, 2026. The framework supersedes Decree No. 151, the internet safety inspection rules enacted in 2018. The statutory scope shifts police oversight from traditional “internet safety” to a unified definition of “cyberspace security,” integrating…