Exclusive | Didi’s founder heads up data security committee, yielding to China’s regulatory demands as ‘a matter of survival’
- Didi’s founder Cheng Wei will head the Information and Data Security committee, while CTO Zhang Bo will be the executive deputy director
- The committee will oversee data security, cyberspace and information security, personal information protection, algorithm security, content security and overseas business privacy, according to a memo

Didi Chuxing has set up a committee headed by its founder to oversee the overhaul of its data management, as the ride-hailing giant accedes to regulators’ demands in a move described internally as “a matter of survival”.
Didi’s founder and chief executive Cheng Wei will head the Information and Data Security (IDS) committee established in July, according to an internal memo seen by South China Morning Post. Chief technology officer Zhang Bo will be the executive deputy director, marking a significant departure from the previous practice that had the committee as a supporting unit established in 2016.
The committee will comprise a number of units that oversee data security, cyberspace and information security, personal information protection, algorithm security, content security and overseas business privacy. A special secretariat was also created to handle emergency matters relating to data security, according to the memo.
Every business division at Didi had to “fully cooperate with the state investigation”, Cheng said during an August 13 meeting because the “survival” of the company was at stake, according to an attendee who declined to be named for discussing a confidential matter. The Beijing-based company must study and implement the government’s policies and regulations, cooperate with the investigation and conduct rectifications, the person said, citing Cheng. Every Didi division has signed “a letter of commitment” about data security, the source added.
