The Cabinet approved Tuesday a privacy protection bill designed to set a legal framework to regulate the acquisition and dissemination of personal information for commercial use.
The move comes as rapid advances in telecommunications and other technologies have made it possible for personal data to be used in a broader manner than current legal frameworks cover.
Officials said the government hopes to have the bill passed during the current Diet session and hopes to enforce the law by spring 2003.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.