Trusting the internet: An overview of anti-disinformation laws

As new cases of the novel coronavirus disease known as COVID-19 continue to emerge, so too do reports and posts on the internet and social media platforms about it – many of which have proven to be misleading or outright false. From posts about the source of the virus and its health impact, through to the impact on basic supplies such as toilet paper, the coronavirus has brought into sharp focus the importance of being able to trust what we read online.

In this article, we take an in-depth look at the state of the law in Hong Kong SAR and Mainland China, as well as developments aimed at addressing the challenges of disinformation in Hong Kong SAR and Mainland China, as well as in Singapore and the UK.

Key points include:

• platform operator liability and enforcement in Mainland China;
• recent trends of content removal requests in Hong Kong SAR;
• recent enforcement of the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act in Singapore; and
• UK developments on the first online safety laws of their kind.