China: Consultation opened on draft Guidelines for Identification of Personal Messages on Instant Messaging Service Platforms

On 12 November 2021, China's National Information Security Standardization Technical Committee has published and opened a consultation on a set of draft guidelines for classifying personal information on instant messaging platforms. The guidelines seek to clarify, especially in relation to the Personal Information Protection Law (PIPL), which types of messages would likely be classed as personal information. The consultation will close on 12 December 2021.