Regulating instant messaging services an urgent task

BEIJING - A regulation announced by the Chinese government Thursday to manage instant messaging services, including the popular WeChat app, is a necessary step for a clean and healthy Internet.

China will now require users of instant messaging services to use their real names when registering in an effort to hold users responsible for the content they send.

The Chinese government has been inclusive and supportive of the fast growth of instant messaging services and considers them a positive force.The regulation is in line with the original supportive stance and will help clean up illegal and harmful information sent through these services.

Earlier this month, a message saying a probable case of Ebola was reported in Shanghai circulated via instant messaging services. The information turned out to be a rumor, and no Ebola cases have been reported in China.

Rumors destroy people's trust in each other and their trust in these services because they will not know which messages are true.

Instant messaging services have also been used by some people to spread content related to violence, terrorism, pornography and fraud.

The situation is grave. Tencent has shut down about 20 million WeChat accounts since January for prostitution-related content.

The spread of terror audio and video on these services is no less harmful as it undermines national security.

According to the State Internet Information Office (SIIO), as Internet and mobile phone technologies grow, cyberspace has become a new battleground as the East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM) increases online publication of propaganda, images designed to incite violence, and terrorist training manuals.

The SIIO said many of the videos were transmitted via mobile phones by ETIM, which is listed by the United Nations Security Council as a terrorist group.

The regulation is also aimed at protecting citizens' rights of freedom of speech, because a space filled with rumors, violence, cheating, sex and terrorism is in nobody's interest and interrupts normal channels of expression.

By stemming information that damages other people's rights and public security, the regulation will enhance the flow of content that people really need.