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The paper aims to explore the national security implications of a potential for a World Trade Organization (WTO) dispute on data flow restrictions. It proposes a basic conceptual framework to assess data flows’ restrictions under General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) security exception.

If a case were to be brought before the WTO dispute settlement, the defender could support its case by invoking the security exception. This paper analyzes three main arguments that could be brought up: protection from cyber espionage, protection from cyberattacks on critical infrastructure and access to data needed to prevent terrorist threats. These three cases are analyzed both legally and technically to assess the relevance of restrictions on data flows under GATS security exception. This analysis can, more generally, inform the debate on the protection of national security in the digital era.

In the three cases, restrictions on data considered critical for national security might raise the cost of certain attacks. However, the risks would remain pervasive and national security would not be significantly enhanced both legally and technically. The implementation of good security standards and encryption techniques appears to be a more effective way to ensure a better response to cyber threats. All in all, it will be important to investigate on a case by case basis whether the scope of the measure (sectors and data covered) is considered proportionate and whether the measure in question in practice reduces the exposure of the country to cyber espionage, cyberattacks and terrorist threats.

This paper represents a contribution to the literature because it is the first paper to address systematically the issue of data flows and national security in the context of a GATS dispute and because it provides a unique perspective that looks both at legal and technical arguments.

This paper aims to investigate China’s policy on digital trade with the objective to highlight the rationales behind such policy.

China’s policy on digital trade is assessed by analysing the main regulations imposed in the country in the period from 1985 to 2016 that have an impact on digital trade.

It was found that there are more than 70 measures imposed today that have a negative impact on digital trade. The measures are diverse and can be justified with several policy objectives, namely, industrial policy, public order and national security, and these support China’s fiscal and state-owned enterprise structure.

This paper analyses China’s policy on digital trade from a new perspective and provides insights on the rationales behind this policy.