Lennon Chang, an expert on cybersecurity at Monash University, told Radio Sputnik that large internet companies always voice concerns about infringement of freedoms whenever a country announces laws on cybersecurity, and China is no different.
"No matter which country is drafting these kinds of laws there is always this kind of reaction from major industry or individuals towards infringement of their freedom," he said.
Chang thinks that a military response to a cyberattack in the traditional sense is unlikely, and China's reference to the military is more likely to refer to the possibility of hacking foreign institutions.
"It may be that the government doesn't want to collaborate in (a foreign) investigation or prosecution, and some hackers from China could try to hack into other countries' investigations that the Chinese government doesn't want to help. It might be quite likely that that would happen," he said.