Institute for Internet Policy & Law @ Beijing Normal University

On 24 October 2020, 09:00 to 11:00 CET, Prof. Xue was invited to give a guest virtual lecture for the Master Students of Artificial Intelligence at the European University of Rome through Microsoft Teams. More than 60 Master-degree students participated in the Lecture and raised many interesting questions.

Prof. Xue began the lecture with the brief introduction to a variety of national or regional AI strategies coming into being around 2017 and 2018. Although East Asia countries are the most active group for developing the strategic plans, the other leading economies like Singapore, US and EU are not left behind. European Commission has published its people-centered principles for AI application and taken the negative social effects (such as unemployment) into account.

Chinese National Plan, issued by the State Council in 2017 and supported by a few implementation documents, highlighted the 3-step of development and a list of strategic products and areas. According to Prof. Xue’s research, the strategy emphasizes the public investments, market competition and balanced development between the advanced and traditional businesses. Among other things, the Strategy outlines the need of establishing the legal and ethical framework for AI, particularly on the liability and security issues.

Prof. Xue gave an in-depth analysis on the critical legal issues in the international trade law, tort law and IP laws. When the international trading process has been increasingly completed through AI, the legal risk of losing control is real. AI also has the great potential in the application in paperless trade, trade security measures (such as eID management and trust services involving e-seals, timestamp, etc.) and security assessment for data outflow.

Tort law are being challenges with respect to all the critical elements, including malfeasance, fault and liability, once AI comes into play. The traditional liability regime that is based on the human’s free will and choices is not working well in the context of AI above Level 3 (which is more than assistance to human but tending to take control). Prof. Xue suggests that the compulsory insurance may be an alternative to the liability especially in the case of driver-less automobiles, drones and domestic service robots.

With respect to intellectual creations, the criteria in Patent Law and Copyright Law can still be applicable. The problem lies in ownership. Would it become belittling both human and AI to treat the creations as “co-authored” or works for hire? When humans are benefiting from the AI creations, they might not be ready to be liable for the potential infringement risks caused by AI.

Prof. Xue’s lecture was warmed welcomed by the students and opened a new interdisciplinary dialogue across Euro-Asia continent.

UNESCAP 8th Meeting of the Legal and Technical Working Groups on Cross-border Paperless Trade Facilitation was held on 14 OCT 2020 TO 16 OCT 2020 virtually. Prof. Xue took part in the meetings and presented the views on the legal issues in the implementation of the Framework Agreement on Facilitation of Cross-Border Paperless Trade in Asia and the Pacific.

The Framework Agreement on Facilitation of Cross-border Paperless Trade in Asia and the Pacific, a UN treaty deposited with the Secretary General of the United Nations in New York, was adopted by the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific in May 2016.

The Framework Agreement aims at accelerating the implementation of digital trade facilitation measures for trade and development. Designed as an inclusive instrument accessible to countries at all levels of development to develop their capacity to engage in cross-border paperless trade, the final treaty text Trade cost reductions expected from full implementation of cross-border paperless trade are estimated at 10-30% of existing transactions costs, depending on the current state of paperless trade development in the participating countries. Significant benefits in terms of trade compliance are also expected.

Five ESCAP member states (Armenia, Bangladesh, Cambodia, China and Islamic Republic of Iran) formally signed the Framework Agreement in 2017. Azerbaijan acceded to the Framework Agreement in March 2018 and the Philippines acceded in December 2019. Islamic Republic of Iran ratified the Framework Agreement in May 2020 and Bangladesh ratified in October 2020. China is expected to ratify the Framework Agreement very soon and will become the fifth member state that effectuates the Agreement.

Prof. Xue primarily addressed the legal issues of cross-border data transfer and related security enforcement in the process of cross-border paperless trade. China has recently enacted the Export Control Law and prevents the goods, services and technologies (including source codes and algorithms) that endanger national security interests from being exported. The legal mechanism is developed from the technology import & export regulation, which largely divides the technologies into 3 types for the purpose of imports and exports. However, the Cybersecurity Law brings the data outflow into the play (Art. 37). The different legal mechanisms need harmonization and integration to avoid complicating the legal enforcement.

There are many questions left unanswered. Is the technology free for exports subject to the security assessment for data outflow? Are the traders of cross-border paperless trade CII operators? In addition to transaction and logistic documents, are the payment and property certificates (e.g. BLs) the financial data that is within the meaning of “important data “? Are the COs, customs declaration and many other authority sanctions the public service data? Does the data in the IoT, Blockchain and cloud computing outflow and should be subject to security assessment? Should the principle of non-discrimination be applied because the paper-based documents are subject to the same requirements? So many legal uncertainties may become the barriers for the implementation of the Framework Agreement. The concerns were strongly agreed by the other experts at the meetings.

2020年9月26日至27日，中国法学会网络与信息法学研究会2020年年会在武汉隆重召开。会议采用“线上线下”相结合网络直播的方式进行，线上观看现场直播的学术界、务实界、商业界的专家学者达53.8万人。

研究会常务理事薛虹教授在9月27日上午举行的青年论坛上就数字贸易中的跨镜数据流动法律问题进行点评，提出：数字贸易是数字经济的重要组成部分，而数字经济关系到国内大循环为主体、国内国际双循环相互促进的新发展格局的持续稳定发展，应就个人数据、与国家安全有关数据等特殊数据跨境流动进行专门研究，目前关于此方面的多边国际法律处于空白状态，关于电信服务或者信息技术设备的国际法根本无法解决此类新的法律问题，在数字经济中处于强势的国家一般主张跨境自由流动，反之则施加更多的法律障碍（欧盟即为此例）。随着我国数字贸易的发展，企业的贸易投资活动对于跨境流动有更强烈的需求，在多边化式微的今天，更有必要捍卫、推动与缔造国际多边法律的构建。该观点得到了与会同仁的强烈共鸣。

第二届网络空间治理中国论坛暨中国科学技术法学会网络空间法专业委员会2020年年会于2020年9月20日在网上召开。 北京师范大学互联网政策与法律研究中心等 高校研究机构、学术团体为 网络空间治理中国论坛的支持单位。

北京师范大学互联网政策与法律研究中心教授、主任，中国法学会网络与信息法学研究会常务理事，联合国亚太无纸化贸易专家 薛虹教授就电子商务平台知识产权保护机制、风险与未来发表专题演讲。薛教授指出，对电子商务平台的知识产权保护机制进行了结构化梳理，完整路径包括：知识产权人通知、平台措施、平台内经营者的声明、平台措施的终止、公示。平台的知识产权保护有益于促进发展、保护权益、生态治理。但其中存在的难题是，删除与否的选择。对于平台风险控制，从平台选择的角度可考虑的因素包括商业模式、风险偏好、承担能力、成本核算、信用记录。未来则需要生态治理、技术创新和信用体系的协同共建。法律制度规范、经济发展规律以及国际社会发展都是不可或缺的考量因素。

会议持续一天，在精彩分享中落幕。网会期间在线参会的峰值人数达到160人左右，反映了社会各界对网络空间治理的高度关注。在主办单位、协办单位、支持单位的精诚合作之下，经过全体参会人员的共同努力，本次会议取得圆满成功。

当前，我国已经全面进入移动互联网时代，近9亿网民中手机上网比例高达99.1%。 点开APP也就是手机上的应用程序，就可使用各种不同的功能。 万物互联时代，互联网与现实生活已经深度融合。但使用网络的时候，也往往隐藏着风险。 根据2019年《APP违法违规收集使用个人信息专项治理报告》统计，移动互联网应用商店上架推广的APP有近400万款，总下载量超万亿次。用户每天在各类APP上平均花费时长占用户日均上网时长的81.7%。然而，这些APP在给人们生活带来方便的同时也带来了一些隐患。

9月14日到20日是2020年国家网络安全宣传周。2020年9月17日北京师范大学互联网政策与法律研究中心主任薛虹教授在接受央视“焦点访谈”节目采访中谈到， “现在很多的APP都在超范围、超目的地使用（个人信息），这是一个很大的问题。比如很多的像照明类的APP，要收集位置信息、要收集通讯录信息，这是完全没必要的，你是认为那个位置我将提供强光照射吗？”

正是由于个人信息泄露可能给用户带来危害，APP收集的信息越多，泄露之后的风险就越大。因此，什么样的APP可以收集多大范围的个人信息，收集之后如何使用，这些问题就显得非常重要。 2019年1月，中央网信办、工业和信息化部、公安部、市场监管总局四部门联合发布《关于开展App违法违规收集使用个人信息专项治理的公告》，并成立App专项治理工作组。《APP违法违规收集使用个人信息行为认定方法》《个人信息安全规范》等标准规范相继出台完善。