Neural personal information and its legal protection: evidence from China

The rapid advancements in neuroscience highlight the pressing need to safeguard neural personal information (NPI). China has achieved significant progress in brain-computer interface technology and its clinical applications. Considering the intrinsic vulnerability of NPI and the paucity of legal scrutiny concerning NPI breaches, a thorough assessment of the adequacy of China's personal information protection legislation is essential. This analysis contends that NPI should be classified as sensitive personal information. The absence of bespoke provisions for NPI in current legislation underscores persistent challenges in its protection. To address these gaps, this work proposes the establishment of a concentric-circle hard-soft law continuum to support a hybrid governance model for NPI, rooted in fundamental human rights principles.