Internet regulator issues instructions on self-media management

Internet operators have been asked to strengthen management of non-institutional content providers — also known as self-media accounts — on social media platforms such as WeChat and Weibo to prevent rumors and maintain online order, according to a notification.

The notification was made public by the Cyberspace Administration of China, the country's top internet regulator, on its website on Monday.

The administration said websites and platforms should strictly review registered or changed account information to avoid them being imitated by non-institutional producers.

If account information contain names or logos of the Party and government agencies, military organs, news media or administrative departments, they must be reviewed manually, it said, urging websites and platforms not to provide services if finding the accounts are falsified.

Stricter review should be made for self-media accounts involved in finance, education, healthcare and justice, and clear summaries of the qualifications and professional backgrounds of the accounts should also be labeled, it said.

It also pushed websites and platforms to monitor these accounts to annotate their information sources if published content is related to domestic and foreign affairs, policies or social issues.

In addition, content posted by non-institutional accounts should not take words out of context or distort facts to affect the authenticity of information by means of patchwork editing or synthesis forgery.

Furthermore, accounts that produce rumors or spread misinformation will not only be blacklisted and shut down, but also be reported by websites and platforms to cyberspace departments.