China’s social network decides to tackle fake news

Notice has just been some social network China simultaneously released, said that the user’s location by IP address will be displayed and they cannot turn off this “feature”.

Although Chinese law is not required, social media platforms say this will be the solution to “prevent netizens from pretending to be locals and spreading false rumors”.

Chinese social networks simultaneously display the user’s location Screen capture

Since last month, this feature has been tested by Weibo – a similar social network Facebook in China. Meanwhile, some other social networks such as Jinri Toutiao, Kuaishou or Xiaohongshu said they were preparing to make similar changes.

Douyin and Toutiao assert that this is a solution to maintain the transparency and order of discussions on social networks, as well as reduce the spread of fake news. However, many Chinese netizens expressed their displeasure, saying that their privacy was violated.

As mentioned above, it is not required by Chinese law to display the user’s location. The “voluntary” move by Chinese social networking platforms is said to be in support of the Chinese government’s “online junk cleaning” efforts, including the Air Administration’s campaign to sweep up fake news. China Cyberspace (CAC).