The controversial cybersecurity laws passed on Monday by the Chinese government was met with massive criticism from foreign companies and human rights groups. The rules will be implemented in June 2017, a government official said.

Yang Heging, an official at the National People's Congress Standing Committee, said that the move was an "objective need" as China is one of world power when it comes to the internet.

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"China is an internet power, and as one of the countries that face the greatest internet security risks, we urgently need to establish and perfect network security legal systems," said Yang.

Under the new cybersecurity law, companies will be required to localize data, be put under surveillance, and register their users' real names and personal information while censoring content that is "prohibited." 

When the new laws come into place, critical infrastructure operators would be required to store data in China, a move which Human Rights Watch is strongly against.

"The law will effectively put China's internet companies and hundreds of millions of Internet users under greater state control," said Human Rights Watch director Sophie Richardson.

Richardson added that Chinese authorities have neglected the request by international corporations for a revision of the restrictive laws for over a year.

"Chinese have pressed ahead with this restrictive law without making meaningful changes," she said.

According to James Zimmerman, the chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in China, China is at risk of "becoming isolated technologically from the rest of the world."

"Requirements for national security reviews and data sharing will unnecessarily weaken security and expose personal information," he noted. "The new law creates barriers to trade and innovation."

Zhao Zeliang, director of the Cyberspace Administration of China, however, defended the move, stating that trade links were not broken, nor does the country plan to inhibit foreign companies from operating.

"They believe that [phrases such as] independent control, secure and reliable, that these are signs of trade protectionism. They are synonymous. This is a kind of misunderstanding, a kind of prejudice," said Zhao. 

Tagschina, Human Rights Watch, cybersecurity laws, cybersecurity