The U.S.-based hospitality service Airbnb announced that it will start sharing guest information with Chinese authorities on Friday, March 30. The company explained that it has to comply with China’s rules on residency.
- According to the Chinese laws, tourists and residents must register their stay with authorities upon their arrival in the country within 24 hours.
- The local police will handle the guest information.
Airbnb recently had to shut down the service in Beijing for about a month as the local surveillance on dissidents and immigrants became stricter in the midst of the annual parliament session.
Airbnb China notified hosts that the latest change is not different from the decisions from other Chinese hospitality services. Hosts that do not agree with the changes are free to delete their listings.
Airbnb China must comply with local laws and regulations, including privacy and information disclosure laws,
AirBnb China told its hosts.
A spokesperson for the company confirmed the news.
China’s Strict Rules Makes AirBnb’s Life Harder
In 2016, the San-Francisco-based company agreed to store data about his guests and hosts on servers in China. The move was met with concern as the information could be easily compromised. AirBnb also agreed to create a Chinese arm to comply with the country’s laws.
Last year, China forced non-domestic and local tech companies to store the data they collect on local servers and even offer technical assistance to authorities that seek access to that data.
AirBnb troubles are not over yet in China since the hospitality market includes fierce rivals such as Xiaozhu.com and Tujia.com. Both Chinese companies agreed to store the data on their customers on local servers, shut down their services during political events, and beam guest data to local authorities.
Image Source: Airbnb
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