Law of the People's Republic of China on Keeping State Secrets
(Adopted at the third meeting of the Standing Committee of the Seventh National People's Congress on September 5, 1988. Adopted at the 14th meeting of the Standing Committee of the Eleventh National People's Congress on April 29, 2010. First revised in February 2024. Second revision at the 8th meeting of the Standing Committee of the 14th National People's Congress on the 27th)
Table of contents
Chapter 1 General Provisions
Chapter 2 Scope and Classification of State Secrets
Chapter 3 Confidentiality System
Chapter 4 Supervision and Management
Chapter 5 Legal Liability
Chapter 6 Supplementary Provisions
Chapter 1 General Provisions
Article 1 This law is enacted in accordance with the Constitution in order to protect state secrets, safeguard national security and interests, and ensure the smooth progress of reform, opening up, and socialist modernization.
Article 2 State secrets are matters related to national security and interests, determined in accordance with legal procedures, and restricted to a certain range of persons within a certain period of time.
Article 3 Upholds the leadership of the Communist Party of China in the work of safeguarding state secrets (hereinafter referred to as confidentiality).
The central secrecy work leading agency leads the national secrecy work, researches, formulates, guides and implements national secrecy work strategies and major principles and policies, coordinates major national secrecy matters and important work, and promotes the construction of national secrecy law.
Article 4: The confidentiality work adheres to the overall national security concept and follows the principles of party management of confidentiality, management in accordance with the law, active prevention, highlighting key points, equal emphasis on technology and management, and innovative development, which not only ensures the security of national secrets, but also facilitates the rational use of information resources.
Matters required to be disclosed by laws and administrative regulations shall be disclosed in accordance with the law.
Article 5 State secrets shall be protected by law.
All state organs and armed forces, all political parties and people's organizations, enterprises, institutions and other social organizations, as well as citizens, have the obligation to keep secrets.
Any behavior that endangers national secrets and security must be prosecuted by law.
Article 6 The state administrative department for secrecy shall be in charge of secrecy work nationwide.
Local confidentiality administrative departments at or above the county level are responsible for the confidentiality work in their respective administrative regions.
Article 7 State agencies and units involved in state secrets (hereinafter referred to as agencies and units) shall manage the confidentiality work of their own agencies and units.
Central state agencies manage or direct the confidentiality work of this system within the scope of their powers.
Article 8 Agencies and units shall implement a confidentiality work responsibility system, set up a confidentiality work agency or designate a dedicated person to be responsible for confidentiality work in accordance with the law, improve the confidentiality management system, improve confidentiality protection measures, carry out confidentiality publicity and education, and strengthen confidentiality supervision and inspection.
Article 9 The state adopts various forms to strengthen confidentiality publicity and education, integrates confidentiality education into the national education system and civil servant education and training system, encourages mass media to conduct confidentiality publicity and education to the society, popularizes confidentiality knowledge, publicizes the rule of law on confidentiality, and enhances the confidentiality of the whole society. consciousness.
Article 10 The state encourages and supports the research and application of confidential science and technology, enhances independent innovation capabilities, and protects intellectual property rights in the field of confidentiality in accordance with the law.
Article 11 People's governments at or above the county level shall incorporate confidentiality work into the national economic and social development plan at the same level, and the required funds shall be included in the budget at the same level.
The funds required by agencies and units to carry out confidentiality work shall be included in the agency or unit's annual budget or annual revenue and expenditure plan.
Article 12 The state strengthens the training and team building of confidential personnel and improves relevant incentive and guarantee mechanisms.
Organizations and individuals that have made outstanding contributions in safeguarding and protecting state secrets shall be commended and rewarded in accordance with relevant national regulations.
Chapter 2 Scope and Classification of State Secrets
Article 13 The following matters involving national security and interests, which may harm the country’s security and interests in the political, economic, national defense, diplomatic and other fields if leaked, shall be determined as state secrets:
(1) Secret matters in major decisions on national affairs;
(2) Secret matters in national defense construction and armed forces activities;
(3) Secret matters in diplomacy and foreign affairs activities and secret matters that are subject to confidentiality obligations to the outside world;
(4) Secret matters in national economic and social development;
(5) Secret matters in science and technology;
(6) Maintaining national security activities and investigating secret matters in criminal crimes;
(7) Other secret matters determined by the state confidentiality administrative department.
Secret matters of political parties that comply with the provisions of the preceding paragraph shall be classified as state secrets.
Article 14 The classification level of state secrets is divided into three levels: top secret, secret and secret.
Top-secret state secrets are the most important state secrets, the leakage of which will cause particularly serious damage to national security and interests; Confidential-level state secrets are important state secrets, the leakage of which will cause serious damage to national security and interests; Secret-level state secrets It is a general state secret, and its leakage will damage national security and interests.
Article 15 The specific scope of state secrets and their classification levels (hereinafter referred to as the scope of confidentiality matters) shall be determined by the state administrative department for confidentiality alone or in conjunction with the relevant central state agencies.
The scope of military confidentiality matters shall be stipulated by the Central Military Commission.
The scope of confidential matters should be determined in accordance with the principles of necessity and reasonableness, scientific evaluation and evaluation, and timely adjustments should be made according to changes in circumstances.
Provisions on the scope of confidential matters shall be announced within the relevant scope.
Article 16 The principal person in charge of an agency or unit and the person designated by him or her is the person responsible for determining state secrets, and is responsible for the determination, change, and release of state secrets of the agency or unit.
When an agency or unit determines, changes or releases the state secrets of its own agency or unit, the person in charge shall put forward specific opinions, which shall be reviewed and approved by the person responsible for classification.
Article 17 The classification level of state secrets shall be determined in accordance with the classification authority.
Central state agencies, provincial-level agencies and their authorized agencies and units may determine top-secret, secret-level and secret-level state secrets; districted municipal-level agencies and their authorized agencies and units may determine confidential-level and secret-level state secrets; Under special circumstances, if it is impossible to authorize classification in accordance with the above provisions, the national security administration department or the provincial, autonomous region, or municipality security administration department may grant agencies or units the authority to classify the information.
The specific classification authority and scope of authorization shall be stipulated by the national security administrative department.
If lower-level agencies or units believe that the relevant classified matters arising from their own agencies or units belong to the classification authority of higher-level agencies or units, they should first take confidentiality measures and immediately report to the higher-level agencies or units for confirmation; if there are no higher-level agencies or units, they should immediately Submit it to the competent business department or confidentiality administrative department with corresponding confidentiality authority for determination.
Public security organs and national security organs shall determine the classification level of state secrets within the scope of their work and in accordance with their prescribed authority.
Article 18 If an agency or unit needs to derive a classification for executing state secret matters determined by superiors or handling state secret matters determined by other agencies or units, it shall be determined based on the classification level of the state secret matter being executed or handled.
Article 19 Agencies and units shall determine the confidentiality level of state secret matters that arise in accordance with the provisions on the scope of confidential matters, and at the same time determine the confidentiality period and scope of knowledge; if conditions permit, they may mark confidential points.
Article 20 The period for keeping state secrets secret shall be limited to a necessary period based on the nature and characteristics of the matter and the need to safeguard national security and interests; if the period cannot be determined, the conditions for declassification shall be determined.
Unless otherwise specified, the confidentiality period of state secrets shall not exceed thirty years at the top secret level, twenty years at the secret level, and ten years at the secret level.
Agencies and units shall determine the specific confidentiality period, declassification time or declassification conditions based on work needs.
If agencies or units decide to disclose matters that need to be kept confidential in the process of deciding and handling relevant matters, and decide to disclose them based on work needs, they will be deemed to be declassified when they are officially announced.
Article 21 The scope of knowledge of state secrets should be limited to the minimum scope based on work needs.
If the scope of knowledge of state secrets can be limited to specific personnel, it shall be limited to specific personnel; if it cannot be limited to specific personnel, it shall be limited to agencies or units, and the agencies or units shall limit it to specific personnel.
Persons outside the scope of knowledge of state secrets who need to know state secrets due to work needs must obtain approval from the principal person in charge of the agency or unit or their designated personnel.
If the original classified agencies or units have clear regulations on expanding the scope of knowledge of state secrets, they shall abide by those regulations.
Article 22 Agencies and units shall mark state secrets on paper media, optical media, electromagnetic media and other carriers carrying state secrets (hereinafter referred to as state secret carriers) as well as equipment and products belonging to state secrets.
Electronic documents involving state secrets shall be marked as state secrets in accordance with relevant state regulations.
If it is not a state secret, no state secret sign shall be made.
Article 23 The classification level, confidentiality period and scope of knowledge of state secrets shall be changed in a timely manner according to changes in circumstances.
Changes in the classification level, confidentiality period and scope of knowledge of state secrets shall be decided by the original classification agency or unit, or may be decided by its superior agency.
If the classification level, confidentiality period and scope of knowledge of a state secret are changed, the agencies, units or persons within the scope of knowledge shall be notified in writing in a timely manner.
Article 24 Agencies and units shall review the determined state secrets every year.
If the confidentiality period of state secrets has expired, they shall be declassified by themselves.
During the confidentiality period, if the scope of confidentiality matters is no longer regarded as a state secret due to the adjustment of the scope, or if it is disclosed without harming national security and interests, and there is no need to continue to keep it confidential, it should be declassified in a timely manner; if it is necessary to extend the confidentiality period, the confidentiality level should be re-determined before the expiration of the original confidentiality period. , confidentiality period and scope of knowledge.
Declassification in advance or extension of the confidentiality period shall be decided by the original classification agency or unit, or by its superior agency.
Article 25 If an agency or unit is unclear or has a dispute as to whether it is a state secret or what level of confidentiality it belongs to, it shall be determined by the national secrecy administrative department or the secrecy administrative department of the province, autonomous region or municipality directly under the Central Government in accordance with the national secrecy regulations.
Chapter 3 Confidentiality System
Article 26 The production, receipt, transmission, use, copying, preservation, maintenance and destruction of state secret carriers shall comply with state confidentiality regulations.
Top-secret state secret carriers shall be kept in facilities and equipment that comply with national confidentiality standards, and designated personnel shall be designated to manage them; they shall not be copied or excerpted without the approval of the original classification agency, unit or its superior authority; sending, receiving, transmitting and carrying out shall be strictly prohibited. Designate personnel to take charge and take necessary safety measures.
Article 27 The development, production, transportation, use, preservation, maintenance and destruction of equipment and products that are state secrets shall comply with state confidentiality regulations.
Article 28 Agencies and units shall strengthen the management of state secret carriers. No organization or individual shall engage in the following acts:
(1) Illegally obtaining and holding state secret carriers;
(2) Buying, selling, transferring or privately destroying state secret carriers;
(3) Delivering state secret carriers through ordinary post, express delivery and other channels without confidentiality measures;
(4) Mailing or consigning state secret carriers out of the country;
(5) Carrying and transmitting state secret carriers out of the country without the approval of the relevant competent authorities;
(6) Other acts that violate the confidentiality provisions of state secret carriers.
Article 29 It is prohibited to illegally copy, record, or store state secrets.
It is prohibited to transmit state secrets on the Internet and other public information networks or wired and wireless communications without taking effective confidentiality measures in accordance with national confidentiality regulations and standards.
It is prohibited to involve state secrets in private interactions and communications.
Article 30 Computer information systems that store and process state secrets (hereinafter referred to as confidential information systems) shall be subject to graded protection according to the degree of confidentiality.
Confidential information systems shall be planned, constructed, operated and maintained in accordance with national confidentiality regulations and standards, and shall be equipped with confidentiality facilities and equipment.
Confidential facilities and equipment should be planned, constructed, and operated simultaneously with confidential information systems.
Confidential information systems should be put into use only after passing the inspection in accordance with regulations, and risk assessments should be carried out regularly.
Article 31 Agencies and units shall strengthen the confidentiality management of information systems and information equipment, build confidentiality self-monitoring facilities, and promptly discover and deal with hidden security and confidentiality risks.
No organization or individual may engage in the following behaviors:
(1) Failure to take effective confidentiality measures in accordance with national confidentiality regulations and standards, and connect confidential information systems and confidential information equipment to the Internet and other public information networks;
(2) Failure to adopt effective confidentiality measures in accordance with national confidentiality regulations and standards, and exchange information between confidential information systems, confidential information equipment and the Internet and other public information networks;
(3) Use non-confidential information systems and non-confidential information equipment to store or process state secrets;
(4) Uninstalling or modifying security technology programs and management programs of confidential information systems without authorization;
(5) Give away, sell, discard or repurpose confidential information equipment that has been withdrawn from use without security technology treatment;
(6) Other behaviors that violate the confidentiality regulations of information systems and information equipment.
Article 32 Security and confidentiality products and confidentiality technical equipment used to protect state secrets shall comply with national confidentiality regulations and standards.
The state has established a random inspection and re-inspection system for security and confidentiality products and confidentiality technical equipment, and inspections are conducted by institutions established or authorized by the national security administration department.
Article 33 The editing, publishing, printing, and distribution of newspapers, books, audio-visual products, and electronic publications, the production and broadcast of radio programs, television programs, and movies, and the production, reproduction, release, and dissemination of network information must comply with National confidentiality regulations.
Article 34 Network operators shall strengthen the management of information released by their users, and cooperate with supervisory agencies, confidentiality administrative departments, public security agencies, and national security agencies in investigating and handling cases suspected of leaking state secrets; if they are found to be using the Internet and other public If the information released by the information network is suspected of leaking state secrets, the transmission of the information shall be stopped immediately, the relevant records shall be kept, and the report shall be reported to the confidentiality administrative department, public security agency, or national security agency; Requirements to delete information involving the leakage of state secrets and conduct technical processing of relevant equipment.
Article 35 Agencies and units shall conduct confidentiality review of information to be disclosed in accordance with the law and abide by national confidentiality regulations.
Article 36: Data processing activities involving state secrets and their safety supervision shall comply with state confidentiality regulations.
The national confidentiality administration department and the confidentiality administration departments of provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the Central Government shall work with relevant competent departments to establish a security and confidentiality prevention and control mechanism, and adopt security and confidentiality prevention and control measures to prevent the risk of leakage caused by data aggregation and association.
Agencies and units should strengthen security management in accordance with the law for data that is classified as state secrets after aggregation and correlation.
Article 37: If agencies and units provide state secrets to overseas organizations or organizations and institutions established overseas in China, and overseas personnel appointed or employed who need to know state secrets due to work needs shall be handled in accordance with relevant national regulations.
Article 38 If holding a conference or other activity involves state secrets, the sponsoring unit shall take confidentiality measures, conduct confidentiality education for participants, and put forward specific confidentiality requirements.
Article 39 Agencies and units shall identify institutions that involve top-secret level or more secret-level or secret-level state secrets as key confidentiality departments, and special places where state secret carriers are concentrated for production, storage, and safekeeping as key confidentiality locations. Equip and use necessary technical protection facilities and equipment in accordance with national confidentiality regulations and standards.
Article 40 Military restricted areas, military management areas and other places and locations that are state secrets and are not open to the public must take confidentiality measures. Without the approval of relevant departments, no decision may be made to open to the public or expand the scope of opening without authorization.
Areas surrounding classified military facilities and other important secret-related units should strengthen confidentiality management in accordance with national confidentiality regulations.
Article 41 Enterprises and institutions engaged in business involving state secrets shall have corresponding confidentiality management capabilities and abide by state confidentiality regulations.
Enterprises and institutions that engage in state secret business such as the production, duplication, maintenance, and destruction of state secret carriers, the integration of classified information systems, the scientific research and production of weapons and equipment, or the construction of secret military facilities must obtain confidentiality qualifications after review and approval.
Article 42 Agencies and units that purchase goods and services that involve state secrets, and units that directly involve project construction, design, construction, supervision, etc. that involve state secrets must abide by state confidentiality regulations.
When agencies or units entrust enterprises or institutions to engage in business involving state secrets, they shall sign confidentiality agreements with them, put forward confidentiality requirements, and adopt confidentiality measures.
Article 43 Personnel working in secret-related positions (hereinafter referred to as secret-related personnel) shall be divided into core secret-related personnel, important secret-related personnel and general secret-related personnel according to the degree of confidentiality, and shall be subject to classified management.
The appointment and employment of confidential personnel shall be reviewed in accordance with relevant national regulations.
Secret-related personnel should have good political quality and conduct, undergo confidentiality education and training, have the working ability and confidentiality knowledge and skills to be competent in secret-related positions, sign a confidentiality commitment letter, strictly abide by national confidentiality regulations, and assume confidentiality responsibilities.
The legitimate rights and interests of confidential personnel are protected by law.
Confidential personnel whose legitimate rights and interests are affected or restricted due to confidentiality reasons shall be given corresponding treatment or compensation in accordance with relevant national regulations.
Article 44 Agencies and units shall establish and improve the management system for confidential personnel, clarify the rights, job responsibilities and requirements of confidential personnel, and carry out regular supervision and inspection of the performance of their duties by confidential personnel.
Article 45 The departure of secret-related personnel must be approved by relevant departments. If the relevant authorities believe that the departure of secret-related personnel will cause harm to national security or cause significant losses to national interests, they shall not approve the departure.
Article 46: Secret personnel who leave their posts must abide by state confidentiality regulations.
Agencies and units should carry out confidentiality education reminders, remove state secret carriers, and implement declassification period management.
During the declassification period, personnel involved in the secrets are not allowed to work or leave the country in violation of regulations, nor are they allowed to disclose state secrets in any way; after the declassification period, they must abide by national confidentiality regulations and continue to perform their confidentiality obligations for known state secrets.
If a secret-related personnel seriously violates national confidentiality regulations when leaving work or during the declassification period, agencies and units shall promptly report to the confidentiality administrative department at the same level, and the confidentiality administrative department shall work with relevant departments to take disposal measures in accordance with the law.
Article 47 When state functionaries or other citizens discover that state secrets have been leaked or may be leaked, they shall immediately take remedial measures and report to relevant agencies and units in a timely manner.
After receiving the report, agencies and units shall deal with it immediately and report to the confidentiality administrative department in a timely manner.
Chapter 4 Supervision and Management
Article 48 The state administrative department for confidentiality shall formulate confidentiality regulations and national confidentiality standards in accordance with the provisions of laws and administrative regulations.
Article 49 The confidentiality administrative department shall organize and carry out confidentiality publicity and education, confidentiality inspections, confidentiality technical protection, investigation and handling of confidentiality violations cases in accordance with the law, and provide guidance, supervision and management of confidentiality work.
Article 50: If the confidentiality administrative department discovers that state secrets have been improperly determined, changed or terminated, they shall promptly notify the relevant agencies and units to make corrections.
Article 51: The confidentiality administrative department shall inspect the compliance of agencies and units with confidentiality laws, regulations and related systems in accordance with the law; if suspected of violating the confidentiality law, they shall promptly investigate and deal with it or organize and urge relevant agencies and units to investigate and deal with it; if they are suspected of committing a crime, they shall It should be transferred to supervisory agencies and judicial organs for processing according to law.
For secret-related personnel who seriously violate national confidentiality regulations, the confidentiality administrative department shall recommend that relevant agencies and units transfer them from secret-related positions.
Relevant agencies, units and individuals shall cooperate with the confidentiality administrative department in performing their duties in accordance with the law.
Article 52: During confidentiality inspections and case investigation and handling, the confidentiality administrative department may review relevant materials, question personnel, record situations in accordance with the law, and register and preserve relevant facilities, equipment, documents, etc. in advance; when necessary, it may conduct confidentiality technical testing .
The administrative department for confidentiality shall confiscate the state secret carriers that are illegally obtained and held during confidentiality inspections and case investigation and handling; if it is found that there is a potential risk of leaking state secrets, it shall require measures to be taken and rectified within a time limit; if there is a potential risk of leaking state secrets, it shall require Facilities, equipment and places must be ordered to stop using them.
Article 53: If an agency handling a case suspected of leaking state secrets needs to identify whether the relevant matter is a state secret and what level of confidentiality it belongs to, the state secrets administrative department or the provincial, autonomous region, or municipality's secrets administrative department shall make the appraisal.
Article 54 If an agency or unit fails to punish persons who violate state confidentiality regulations in accordance with the law, the administrative department for confidentiality shall recommend correction; if it refuses to correct, the agency or unit at the next higher level or the supervisory authority shall be held accountable to the agency or unit. Responsible leaders and directly responsible personnel will be dealt with in accordance with the law.
Article 55: The confidentiality administrative departments at or above the districted municipal level shall establish a confidentiality risk assessment mechanism, monitoring and early warning system, and emergency response system, and work with relevant departments to carry out information collection, analysis, and reporting.
Article 56 Industry organizations such as confidentiality associations carry out activities in accordance with the provisions of laws and administrative regulations to promote industry self-discipline and promote the healthy development of the industry.
Chapter 5 Legal Liability
Article 57 Anyone who violates the provisions of this Law and falls under any of the following circumstances shall be punished in accordance with the law according to the seriousness of the case; if there are any illegal gains, the illegal gains shall be confiscated:
(1) Illegally obtaining and holding state secret carriers;
(2) Buying, selling, transferring or privately destroying state secret carriers;
(3) Transmitting state secret carriers through ordinary postal service, express delivery and other channels without confidentiality measures;
(4) Posting or consigning state secret carriers out of the country, or carrying or delivering state secret carriers out of the country without the approval of the relevant competent authorities;
(5) Illegally copying, recording, and storing state secrets;
(6) Involving state secrets in private interactions and communications;
(7) Failure to take effective confidentiality measures in accordance with national confidentiality regulations and standards, and transmit state secrets on the Internet and other public information networks or wired and wireless communications;
(8) Failing to take effective confidentiality measures in accordance with national confidentiality regulations and standards, and connecting confidential information systems and confidential information equipment to the Internet and other public information networks;
(9) Failure to adopt effective confidentiality measures in accordance with national confidentiality regulations and standards, and exchange information between confidential information systems, confidential information equipment and the Internet and other public information networks;
(10) Using non-confidential information systems and non-confidential information equipment to store and process state secrets;
(11) Uninstalling or modifying security technology programs and management programs of confidential information systems without authorization;
(12) Give away, sell, discard or repurpose confidential information equipment that has been withdrawn from use without security technology treatment;
(13) Other situations that violate the provisions of this law.
For persons who have committed the circumstances in the preceding paragraph that do not constitute a crime and for which sanctions are not applicable, the confidentiality administrative department shall urge their agencies and units to handle the matter.
Article 58 If any agency or unit violates the provisions of this Law and a major case of leaking state secrets occurs, the directly responsible person in charge and other directly responsible personnel shall be punished in accordance with the law.
For those who are not eligible for punishment, the confidentiality administrative department shall urge their competent departments to handle the matter.
If an agency or unit violates the provisions of this Law by not classifying matters that should be classified, classifying matters that should not be classified, or failing to perform declassification review responsibilities, resulting in serious consequences, the directly responsible person in charge and other directly responsible persons shall be punished in accordance with the law. Personnel will be punished.
Article 59 If a network operator violates the provisions of Article 34 of this Law, the public security organs, national security organs, telecommunications authorities, and confidentiality administrative departments shall punish them in accordance with the law according to their respective division of responsibilities.
Article 60 If an enterprise or institution that has obtained confidentiality qualification violates state confidentiality regulations, the confidentiality administrative department shall order rectification within a time limit, give a warning or notify a criticism; if there are illegal gains, the illegal gains shall be confiscated; if the case is serious, the confidentiality-related business and business shall be suspended. The qualification level will be lowered; if the circumstances are particularly serious, the confidentiality qualification will be revoked.
If an enterprise or institution that has not obtained confidentiality qualifications illegally engages in secret-related business as stipulated in Paragraph 2 of Article 41 of this Law, the confidentiality administrative department shall order it to stop its secret-related business and issue a warning or a notice of criticism; any illegal gains shall be confiscated. Illegal gains.
Article 61 Any staff member of the confidentiality administrative department who abuses his power, neglects his duties, or engages in malpractice for personal gain while performing confidentiality management duties shall be punished in accordance with the law.
Article 62 Anyone who violates the provisions of this Law and constitutes a crime shall be investigated for criminal responsibility in accordance with the law.
Chapter 6 Supplementary Provisions
Article 63 The specific regulations for the confidentiality work carried out by the Chinese People's Liberation Army and the Chinese People's Armed Police Force shall be formulated by the Central Military Commission in accordance with this Law.
Article 64: Agencies and units shall apply the work secret management measures to take necessary protective measures for matters that are generated or obtained in the course of performing their functions and are not state secrets but will cause certain adverse effects if leaked.
Measures for the management of work secrets shall be separately stipulated.
Article 65 This law shall come into effect on May 1, 2024.