Chinese Foreign Ministry

China has never required, nor will it require, companies or individuals to collect or provide data and intelligence located overseas for the Chinese government in violation of local laws, said Guo Jiakun, spokesperson of China's Foreign Ministry, at the regular press conference on Friday.

The remarks were made in response to media question regarding the Austrian organization Noyb's filing of complaints in several EU countries against six Chinese companies in which it accuses them of "illegally" sending EU user data to China.

The Chinese government places great importance on protecting data privacy and security in accordance with the law, the spokesperson noted. He urged relevant parties to respect the principles of market economy and fair competition and provide a fair, transparent, and non-discriminatory business environment for Chinese enterprises.

TikTok, Xiaomi and four other Chinese companies were named in a privacy complaint filed on Thursday by Austrian advocacy group Noyb which claimed the firms were unlawfully sending EU user data to China, Reuters reported.

Noyb is known for filing complaints against American companies such as Apple, Alphabet, and Meta, which has led to several investigations and billions of dollars in fines, per the report, adding that the Vienna-based advocacy group claimed this is their first complaint against Chinese firms.

Responding to the allegation, Xiaomi said in a statement shared with the Global Times on Friday that "We are aware of a complaint sent by a non-profit organization to a national data protection authority in Europe and we are examining the allegations made therein."

The company's privacy policy has been developed to comply with applicable regulations such as the EU's General Data Protection Regulation, according to the statement.

By complying with local applicable laws and regulations in markets where Xiaomi operates, user data are stored and processed in compliance with local laws, per the statement.

Respecting user privacy has always been among Xiaomi's core values, which includes transparency, accountability, user control, security, and legal compliance, according to Xiaomi, noting that "in case any national data protection authority will approach Xiaomi in the future due to this complaint, we will fully cooperate with the authority to resolve the matter."

Other relevant companies had not yet responded to requests for comment as of press time.

Responding to the Austrian organization Noyb's filing of complaints in several EU countries against the Chinese companies, accusing them of "illegally" sending EU user data to China, the China Chamber of Commerce to the EU told the Global Times in an exclusive interview on Friday that Chinese enterprises operating in Europe adhere to compliance, particularly in the digital sector, by strictly following the EU's stringent requirements for data privacy protection, such as "data storage within Europe," and have established data centers in Europe and rigorously protect user privacy in their operations.