Abstract: As a preliminary proposition for the construction of the rule of law,the academic community has yet to reach a consensus on the legal nature of the authorized operation of public data. Constrained by the limitations of research methods and perspectives, existing theories fail to accurately define the legal nature of this practice.From the perspective of the administrative process theory, the authorized operation of public data can be divided into two phases: the authorization act and the operation act. Among them, the authorization act falls within the scope of administrative decision-making and constitutes an internal administrative act; whereas the operation act should be characterized as an administrative agreement.The legitimacy control of the authorized operation of public data should also be carried out around these two phases. In the authorization phase, procedural systems such as information disclosure and impact assessment should be established. In the operation phase, it is necessary to limit the boundary of the exercise of administrative privileges while ensuring the realization of social rights.