Chinese tech companies will have to deal with tougher legal restrictions on how they collect, use and manage personal data under a new law that comes into effect on November 1.

China’s top legislature voted to pass the Personal Information Protection Law (PIPL) on Friday at the closing meeting of a regular legislative session of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, according to state-run news agency Xinhua.

Chinese media are describing the law as one of world’s toughest on personal data security. PIPL is set to make it “significantly harder and more expensive for tech firms in China to access and use consumer information,” according to South China Morning Post. Its far-reaching impact is being compared with the implementation of the General Data Protection Regulation in the European Union.

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Companies and even certain government agencies will be required to obtain individual consent when processing sensitive personal information of Chinese citizens. Platforms that illegally process personal data such as biometrics, medical and health, financial accounts and whereabouts will face suspension or termination of services.

While the full text of the final version has not been released, Xinhua reported that the law aims to protect privacy by offering individuals the legal right to reject excessive data collection and empower them with the option to turn off targeted advertising.

China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said on Wednesday that 43 smartphone applications were found to have inappropriately transferred user contact data and location information, or used pop-up ads when users opened the app.

These include popular Chinese apps such as Tencent Holdings’ WeChat, its corporate version WeCom, Tencent Video and Tencent Maps.

Zhang Shaoqin, a member of National People’s Congress, which passed PIPL, said even if a user “authorises the app to access the data operations in the phone, the app should not be allowed to read, copy, modify, disseminate, or delete any personal information in his or her social media apps in violation of regulations.”