China’s top internet watchdog said Tuesday it is planning a crackdown on illegal online acts that maliciously damage the image and reputation of businesses and entrepreneurs.
The Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) plans to launch the campaign this year, with a major focus on the spread of false information, in order to create a better online environment for businesses while protecting their rights and interests, said Shen Yue, a CAC official.
False information online has “damaged the brand image of enterprises, infringed on the legitimate rights and interests of entrepreneurs, and even affected the normal production and operation of businesses, resulting in economic losses,” said Shen at a press conference.
The crackdown follows a recent vow by China’s top leadership to “unwaveringly” support the private sector, which has suffered under strict Covid controls and regulatory crackdowns in recent years.
In early March, President Xi Jinping said efforts should be made to optimize the environment for private businesses’ development, remove institutional barriers that prevent them from competing fairly in the market, protect their property rights as well as the rights and interests of entrepreneurs according to the law, state media reported.
The CAC campaign will target six types of false information online involving businesses, namely fabricated facts, unproven assumptions, distorted interpretations, malicious associations, deliberate speculation and rehashing and exaggeration of old rumors, Shen said.
It will also target online content that violates entrepreneurs’ rights, such as content that reveals their personal information, fictionalizes their personal lives or is abusive.
The crackdown will also combat illegal and irregular online practices that intentionally damage the image and reputation of companies and entrepreneurs, especially actions that are financially lucrative.
Contact reporter Wang Xintong (xintongwang@caixin.com) and editor Jonathan Breen (jonathanbreen@caixin.com)
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