Hong Kong Immigration looks at life in Hong Kong: Those who have lived in Hong Kong often feel that while they have become quite familiar with their Hong Kong friends, working, dining, and gossiping together, these friends rarely share their personal feelings or invite them to their homes. This is because Hong Kong residents generally have a strong awareness of protecting privacy and personal information.
Even so, Hong Kong residents cannot prevent their personal information from being misused. A recent survey report released by the Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data, the only personal data protection agency in Asia, shows that nearly half of the respondents had their personal data misused by banks, telecommunications companies, and beauty centers in the past 12 months, and residents are often harassed by various scam and telemarketing calls.
Large Companies Only "Seem Reliable"
According to Hong Kong media reports, the Privacy Commissioner’s Office commissioned the Social Science Research Centre of the University of Hong Kong to conduct telephone interviews with 1,222 adults from November to December last year to understand public attitudes towards personal data privacy. The report shows that 46% of respondents had their personal data misused in the past 12 months, with banks being the most common institutions involved, which should be the most trustworthy but are actually the least reliable. Following them are telecommunications companies, fitness and beauty centers, and financial companies.
Miss Peng, a stockbroker at a securities company in Hong Kong, said she receives advertising calls almost every day, whether from banks, telecommunications companies, insurance companies, real estate companies, or even beauty salons, promoting new products or services. She is already overwhelmed and feels angry that her personal phone number has been leaked so casually.
For the past seven to eight years, Hong Kong residents have suffered from privacy breaches. In 2008, the data of nearly 160,000 customers of HSBC was stolen; in 2009, a staff member of Hong Kong Baptist University accidentally leaked the detailed personal files of 190 applicants; in 2010, Octopus Cards Limited admitted at a hearing that it had sold the personal data of nearly 2 million customers to two insurance companies since 2006, illegally profiting 44 million Hong Kong dollars. Subsequently, media reports revealed that six banks in Hong Kong had disclosed the data of over 600,000 customers to third parties in the past five years.
Businesses cannot self-regulate and profit unethically, leading to residents being unable to protect their privacy, living as if they are "exposed."
Government Punishments Are Escalating
To curb the misuse of customer data by commercial entities, Hong Kong began implementing the new Personal Data (Privacy) (Amendment) Ordinance in 2013. Any commercial entity that uses or transfers customer data to third parties without prior notification and consent from the customer will face penalties of up to 1 million Hong Kong dollars and 5 years of imprisonment. The new ordinance introduces two requirements: "notification" and "consent," meaning that commercial entities must inform customers before using or transferring their data and must obtain their consent before proceeding. If customers do not respond, it cannot be considered as consent.
Additionally, if any resident suffers losses due to violations of their personal information, they can apply for legal assistance for civil claims from the Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data to seek compensation from the violators.
Commissioner Stephen Wong stated that after the implementation of the new ordinance, direct marketing activities in the market have become more respectful of customer rights, and customer confidence in commercial entities has also been restored.
Most respondents in this survey believe that publicly naming violating institutions by the Office is also an effective measure. If a company violates privacy regulations, its credibility in the eyes of the public will decrease. They hope that institutions will learn lessons and be accountable to the public after being exposed.
Hong Kong has a sound legal system, and residents have multiple avenues to complain after their privacy is breached. Among the six different statutory bodies listed in this survey that handle complaints, the Independent Commission Against Corruption ranks first in credibility, followed by the Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data, with about 70% of respondents expressing trust; next are the Consumer Council, the Ombudsman, the Equal Opportunities Commission, and the Police Force. These departments can handle cases of personal information misuse to varying degrees, demonstrating Hong Kong's determination to combat the misuse of personal information.
Do Not "Sell Information" for Small Discounts
The survey report from the Privacy Commissioner’s Office also reveals the public's contradictory attitude towards privacy protection.
On one hand, residents believe that protecting privacy is important, but over 50% are willing to provide their phone numbers, occupations, and dates of birth in exchange for discounts from merchants, while only 6% are willing to pay 20 Hong Kong dollars a month for an ad-free email service. Stephen Wong believes that the Privacy Commissioner’s Office needs to strengthen educational efforts to remind residents of the consequences of not protecting their personal privacy. Residents themselves also need to place greater importance on protecting their privacy, improving their mindset and behavior in various aspects.
Additionally, 67% of respondents indicated that they would mind if friends provided their names and addresses without their consent to obtain discounts. However, nearly 90% of them have never complained about such misuse, mainly because the person disclosing their information is a friend, and they feel that complaining would be somewhat "excessive."
However, the report also shows that nearly 90% of respondents have changed their Facebook privacy settings, more than doubling compared to a similar survey two years ago, reflecting an increased awareness of privacy protection among Hong Kong residents regarding social networks.
Protecting personal privacy requires the participation of the entire community. Only through the joint efforts of the government, residents, and the industry, through institutional design, social awareness, and industry self-discipline, can residents be free from the disturbance of "selling privacy."