Chinese search giant Baidu has denied allegations of an internal data breach after the teenage daughter of a top executive was accused of posting personal details of internet users online, triggering a heated public debate on data security.
The controversy erupted after online users accused the daughter of Baidu vice president Xie Guangjun of sharing phone numbers and other sensitive data following an online fight.
The allegations raised concerns that she may have accessed Baidu's internal databases through her father.
Baidu, however, refuted the claims, saying that all employees and executives were strictly prohibited from accessing user data. The company asserted that the leaked information originated from "doxing databases" illegally compiled on foreign platforms that aggregate stolen private data.
As public scrutiny intensified, Xie on Monday issued an apology via his personal WeChat feed, clarifying that his daughter had obtained the information from overseas social networking sites.
Meanwhile, Baidu filed a police report against the spread of false information, including claims that Xie had given his daughter access to internal databases.
The incident has reignited discussions about personal data security in China, where authorities have tightened data protection laws to combat illicit data trading and prevent online privacy breaches.
In response to the controversy, Chinese regulators are expected to further reinforce measures against doxxing and data misuse.
Baidu, one of China's largest cloud service providers, continues to face scrutiny over its handling of user privacy.
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