CHINA> Photo
8th forum on internet media of China
(chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2008-12-05 11:51

Participants attend the 8th Forum on Internet Media of China in Chongqing, December 5, 2008. Wang Chen, minister of the State Council Information Office, urged the country's online media to help foster a society of integrity and honesty on the forum.[Xinhua] 

There are no major differences in offline and online activities under the law but the anonymous nature of the Internet makes it harder for online activities to be regulated, Qiu Lufeng, a professor from Nanjing University's law school, said.

"The online community is so large that users can hide their real identities, making it hard to trace behavior to a 'real' person. For example, if a person verbally attacks me online, it is troublesome for me to look for or even sue him as I don't know his real name," Qiu said.

The number of Chinese Internet users reached 253 million in June, according to figures from the China Internet Network Information Center (CINIC), making it the largest such group in the world.

A CINIC survey of 16,000 Web users conducted in July found 35 percent of those polled were "dissatisfied" with the credibility of Internet sources, with less than 15 percent of respondents finding online information "authentic".