page_title: Classified information
section_title: People's Republic of China
hierarchical_section_title: Classified information / By country / People's Republic of China
caption_attribution_description: English: An office building in Wuhan (near Hongshan Square) housing a number of agencies of the Hubei Provincial government: Hubei Provincial Foreign Experts Office; Hubei People's Society for Friendship with Foreign Countries; Hubei People's Government's Office of Hong Kong and Macao Affairs; Hubei People's Government's Office of Huaqiao Affairs; Hubei People's Government's Office of Foreign Affairs. The red slogan reminds that "Protection of national secrets is a duty of every citizen" (保守国家秘密是每个公民应尽的义务). Русский: Здание возле площади Хуншань в Ухане, в котором размещаются несколько государственных учреждений и организаций: Хубэйское провинциальное управление по делам иностранных специалистов; Хубэйское народное общество дружбы с зарубежными странами; Управление правительства провинции Хубэй по делам, связанным с Гонконгом и Макао; Управление правительства провинции Хубэй по делам хуацяо; Управление правительства провинции Хубэй по иностранным делам.
context_page_description: Classified information is material that a government body deems to be sensitive information that must be protected. Access is restricted by law or regulation to particular groups of people with the necessary security clearance and need to know, and mishandling of the material can incur criminal penalties.
  A formal security clearance is required to view or handle classified documents or to access classified data. The clearance process requires a satisfactory background investigation. Documents and other information must be properly marked "by the author" with one of several levels of sensitivity—e.g. restricted, confidential, secret and top secret. The choice of level is based on an impact assessment; governments have their own criteria, which include how to determine the classification of an information asset, and rules on how to protect information classified at each level. This often includes security clearances for personnel handling the information.
  Although "classified information" refers to the formal categorization and marking of material by level of sensitivity, it has also developed a sense synonymous with "censored" in US English.
context_section_description: The Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China (which is not operative in the Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong and Macau) makes it a crime to release a state secret. Regulation and enforcement is carried out by the National Administration for the Protection of State Secrets.
  Under the 1989 "Law on Guarding State Secrets," state secrets are defined as those that concern:
  Major policy decisions on state affairs
  The building of national defence and in the activities of the armed forces
  Diplomatic activities and in activities related to foreign countries and those to be maintained as commitments to foreign countries
  National economic and social development
  Science and technology
  Activities for preserving state security and the investigation of criminal offences
  Any other matters classified as "state secrets" by the national State Secrets Bureau
  Secrets can be classified into three categories:
  Top secret (绝密): defined as "vital state secrets whose disclosure would cause extremely serious harm to state security and national interests"
  Highly secret (机密): defined as "important state secrets whose disclosure would cause serious harm to state security and national interests"
  Secret (秘密): defined as "ordinary state secrets whose disclosure would cause harm to state security and national interests"
caption: A building in Wuhan housing provincial offices for dealing with foreign countries etc. The red slogan says, "Protection of national secrets is a duty of every citizen".
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