The public security department has handled more than 3,100 criminal cases involving infringements on citizen's privacy in its clean-the-internet campaign as of Dec 20 last year, detaining more than 9,700 criminal suspects.

Many of the cases are related to the illegal obtaining and selling of personal information that citizens are required to provide for the implementation of epidemic prevention and control measures.

Meanwhile, more than 1,500 people, whose invasions of privacy were deemed not to be breaches of the Criminal law, have received punishments according to the Regulations on Administrative Penalties for Public Security.

The cases represent only the tip of the iceberg, as not only is personal information so poorly protected that collecting and selling it has developed into a lucrative business, but also dealing with it has evolved into a cat-and-mouse game between the law enforcers and lawbreakers.

For instance, after the public health department discloses the movements of those infected with the novel coronavirus over the 14 days prior to confirmation of their infection there are always some who try to dig up detailed personal information of the person infected through data mining or other means, and publicize it on the internet, causing tremendous trouble to those infected and their families.

The leaked personal information of people who are infected with the virus quickly becomes a hot topic for online discussion, which shows how far the public awareness of privacy protection is detached from the requirements of the privacy protection law.

It has a lot to do with the negligence of the companies that provide the digital platforms and those responsible for e-governance in protecting people's personal information. As many a case indicates, institutional loopholes and thieves from within are the origins of the already sizable underground personal information market.

To better protect people's personal information entails systematic fence mending, and the whole supply chain of the illegal business must be dealt with rather than only those minions at the bottom of the pyramid.

The protection of privacy along with other legal rights is the foundation for a society and a country.