China announced regulations to check mobile phones upon entry

China's Ministry of State Security announced three regulations on mobile phone checks for people entering the country on May 28th. The regulations are said to effectively punish espionage activities. According to RFA, the first regulation states that the prerequisite for checking a phone is to perform counterintelligence tasks according to the law. Secondly, the targets of investigation are individuals and organizations involved in counterintelligence activities, such as suspected spies who covertly capture photographs of military and restricted areas. Third, the inspection must be approved by the person in charge of the National Security Agency at the district level or higher. Commenting on this issue, Thomas J. Duesterberg, an expert at the Hudson Institute, believes that we cannot be assured about the three phone inspection regulations of China's National Security Agency. He points out that the content of these regulations is unclear, and the rank of the officer who approved this inspection order is not high. Duesterberg also warned that the new regulations will negatively impact Chinese leader Xi Jinping's plans to attract both foreign investment and students. He believes everyone's phones traveling to China will likely be checked. Xia Youliang, a former Peking University economist, believes that although the move is mainly aimed at people of Chinese descent, it will undoubtedly increase insecurity among Western tourists wanting to visit the country. Chinese students studying abroad will also need to carefully consider commenting on China while using the internet overseas. They now have to worry about self-censorship, not just buying plane tickets to China. China has denied claims that all mobile phones will be checked upon entry, labeling the claim as preposterous.