Data protection was the topic under discussion at the Symposium on Data Protection Law Development in the Information Age at City University of Hong Kong (CityU) on 9 September.

The symposium was jointly organised by CityU’s School of Law (SLW) and the Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data, Hong Kong (PCPD).

Among the officiating guests were Professor Way Kuo, CityU President; Mr Stephen Wong Kai-yi, Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data; Mr Ronald Chan Ngok-pang, Under Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs; and Professor Geraint Howells, Dean of SLW.

Professor Kuo extended a warm welcome to the guests, who came from Macau, the mainland and overseas, during his speech at the opening ceremony. “One of the key elements for society’s advancement is how an individual is respected. The symposium provides a valuable opportunity to look for a solution to privacy protection, which requires contributions from different professions,” said Professor Kuo.

Mr Wong added that a key challenge arising from the rapidly evolving global privacy landscape was how to adapt the law and practice to address the collection, use and transfer of data where it did not merely involve the exchange of goods and services, but also data flow relating to commerce, finance, games, cyberbullying, public order and even crime as we enter the age of artificial intelligence.

In his speech, Mr Chan said that to work out a proper response to the challenges brought about by technological advancement required careful examination and continual review. “I am thankful to the PCPD and CityU for bringing together experts from Hong Kong and other regions to share their valuable experiences in this regard,” he said.

Professor Howells said it was an honour for SLW to have organised the symposium in collaboration with PCPD, emphasising that it demonstrated SLW’s mission to train future professionals for the community.

The one-day symposium consisted of three sessions with presentations and discussions on privacy law in China, privacy law in Asia and experience sharing. Over ten distinguished speakers from mainland China, Germany, South Korea, Macau, Malaysia and Singapore shared their expertise on the development of the relevant laws.