Nuisance calls, online spam targeted

China will take strong measures to curb spam and nuisance phone calls, and strengthen the management of customers' telecommunication charges, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said on Wednesday.

The ministry has urged telecom authorities and companies to act in response to media reports about users' complaints of unwanted spam messages and calls, and unclear charges on prepaid accounts.

Zhu Wei, deputy director of the Communication Law Research Center at China University of Political Science and Law in Beijing, said many people, including himself, are victims of harassing messages and calls, a problem he believes is intertwined with leaks of personal information, telecom fraud and online phishing advertisements. He said he hopes more action will be taken against the problem. "The issue urgently needs to be addressed," Zhu said.