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China Deletes 1.4 Million Social Media Posts in Bid to 'Clean' Cyberspace

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Shivani Chauhan
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China erases 1.4 million social media posts in sweeping crac

kdown on independent 'self-media' accounts

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Image Credit: REUTERS/Thomas Peter/File Photo

In an aggressive push towards 'cyberspace cleanliness,' China's top cyber watchdog, the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC), has announced that it deleted 1.4 million social media posts and suspended 67,000 social media accounts within a two-month span. The crackdown is part of an extensive 'rectification' initiative aiming to control misinformation, illegitimate profit generation, and impersonation of state officials.

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Cybersecurity Crackdown on 'Self Media' Accounts

The cleanup targeted a significant number of 'self media' accounts on popular Chinese social media platforms like WeChat, Douyin, and Weibo. These accounts publish news and information independently, not associated with government-approved or state-run media. Since 2021, China has been rigorous in this crackdown, with a goal to purge billions of such accounts to streamline cyberspace and enhance the state's control over the information flow.

Critics highlight the tendency of the Chinese government to suppress citizens and censor accounts that share information deemed sensitive or critical of the Communist Party, the government, or the military. A significant chunk of the 67,000 accounts permanently closed, nearly 8,000, faced action for "spreading fake news, rumors, and harmful information," as per the CAC. A total of 930,000 other accounts encountered lighter punishments, ranging from follower removal to the suspension or revocation of monetization capabilities.

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Combating Fake News and Impersonation

Additionally, the CAC's 'rectification' campaign focused on counteracting the rising issue of online fake news propelled by AI technologies. This led to the termination of over 100,000 accounts allegedly masquerading as news anchors and media agencies. The CAC also targeted almost 13,000 counterfeit military accounts with names like "Chinese Red Army Command", "Chinese Anti-terrorist Force", and "Strategic Missile Force".

The clampdown also hit hard on 25,000 accounts pretending to be public institutions, such as disease prevention centers and state-run research institutes. Around 187,000 faced penalties for impersonating news media businesses, while over 430,000 were targeted for offering professional advice or educational services without proper qualifications.

Moreover, around 45,000 accounts were discontinued for "hyping hot issues, clout-chasing, and illegal monetization." The regulator shared that it had worked closely with public security and market supervision departments to strike and rectify the illegal 'self-media.'

The CAC ended its statement with a call to the public to participate in monitoring and reporting illegal 'self-media,' helping to maintain a clean cyberspace.

Cybersecurity ChinaCyberwatch CleanCyberspace CACCrackdown InformationControl
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