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The government is proposing to introduce new regulations on the online space to protect users from harmful content, said Minister for Communications and Information (MCI) Josephine Teo in a Facebook post on Jun. 20.

The proposed new regulations are two legally-binding codes of practice, and will be put forward for public consultation.

The codes of practice will impact social media services by requiring them to implement specific processes, and to be directed to "take action" against content flagged by the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA).

For example, the proposed "Code of Practice for Online Safety" will require social media services to have system-wide processes to enhance online safety for all users, especially young users.

Under this code of practice, users should have access to reporting mechanisms to flag matters like the non-consensual distribution of intimate videos.

It will also cover areas like community standards to reduce users' exposure to harmful or inappropriate content, such as content promoting self-harm, said Teo.

Meanwhile, the proposed "Content Code for Social Media Services" will allow IMDA to direct social media services to "take action against harmful online content" to protect users, Teo said in her post.

The code aims to protect users from "egregious harms", said Teo, citing sexual harm and self-harm as examples.

Teo also drew attention to the Covid-19 pandemic as an example of how "content that can threaten public health" is also an area for concern.

“For the proposed content code for social media services, IMDA will be granted powers to direct any social media service accessible from Singapore to disable access to specified types of egregious harmful content or disallow specified online accounts to communicate such content and/or interact with users in Singapore,” said the Ministry of Communications and Information, according to CNA.

Codes of practice will have force of law

The codes of practice "will have the force of law" and will be "effectively enforced" with the help of "appropriate legislative updates", said Teo previously, during the Committee of Supply (COS) Debate on Mar. 4, 2022.

A public consultation exercise will commence in July, Teo said.

She explained that Singapore's "preferred approach" to strengthen online regulation is to do so "in a consultative and collaborative manner".

This approach includes engaging tech companies on the latest developments and innovations, Teo said.

Platforms may not put society's interests first

It was announced in March 2021 that the government is reviewing potential options to protect Singapore society from harmful online content.

Then, Teo acknowledged that dealing with harmful content may not be the priority for online platforms, saying that platforms are "driven by their own values and commercial interests."

"Not every platform puts society’s interests first," said Teo, even while acknowledging that "some platforms" have taken action to deal with harmful content.

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Top photo by Jeremy Bezanger on Unsplash