Beijing’s latest push to crack down on cyberbullying came after some cases caught national attention. The ministry said cyberbullying had been rampant in recent years and some cases had resulted in victims killing themselves or becoming mentally ill.
02:48
Teacher suicide sparks protests against parent bullies in South Korea
Teacher suicide sparks protests against parent bullies in South Korea
“We have always maintained a ‘zero-tolerance’ attitude and dealt with a number of internet violence cases where individuals slandered others, spread rumours or invaded privacy online,” the ministry’s statement said.
In one typical example, Zhang, who lives in eastern China’s Jiangsu province, installed a positioning device and spyware to obtain a person’s information. Zhang then hired a group online to spread fake videos, pictures and insulting articles about the victim, leading to the victim developing post-traumatic stress disorder.
In January, Zhang was detained and was later sentenced to six years in prison and fined 10,000 yuan (US$1,409) for invading others’ privacy, picking quarrels and provoking trouble and intentional injury.
Picking quarrels and provoking trouble is a criminal offence that could lead to up to 10 years in jail under Chinese laws.
In other cases, individuals were detained after spreading rumours that a victim’s wife “had an affair” and a teacher was harassed by her superior.
Being hired to defame others is also not tolerated. In two cases, individuals were hired by others to expose victims’ private information online, send insulting text messages and mail paper money and other funeral items to the victims. Local police detained the hired perpetrators, according to the ministry.
In September, China’s top three legal bodies – the Supreme People’s Court, Supreme People’s Procuratorate and Ministry of Public Security – jointly issued a directive on cyberbullying.
The document clarified how online violence may be punished under different existing laws, specifically stressing bullying against minors and people with disabilities, the deployment of paid posters, spreading sex-related rumours, the use of deepfake technology and cyberbullying organised by websites.
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How former law student Emilia Wong overcame bullying and started challenging body-image ideals
How former law student Emilia Wong overcame bullying and started challenging body-image ideals
China does not have a law against online violence, and there have been calls to strengthen regulations to crack down on such abuse.
In recent years, cyberbullying has become more rampant and is subject to trends. This year has seen a new “box-opening” movement surface in which a victim’s telephone number, ID number, address, photo and even hotel check-in information is publicly displayed online.
‘We don’t talk enough about this’: cyberbullying and how to tackle it
‘We don’t talk enough about this’: cyberbullying and how to tackle it
Liu’s adoptive family sued two influencers this year and the case is still being processed.
