The Author, Rakshit Sharma is a 3rd year, BBA.LLB (H), New Law College, Bhartiya Vidyapeeth University, Pune. He is currently interning with LatestLaws.com

For a long time now, the world has been battling a flood of misinformation and influence operations. Today the world is struggling with the pandemic caused by the new Coronavirus, COVID-19; authorities all over the world have been driven upon digital platforms to tackle a flood of fake news.

The rise of the Internet and social media has given terrorists, idolaters and sovereign states a free ride. This so-called 'infodemic' challenges the world's best concerted efforts to curb Coronavirus. Though million of us are in our homes due to strict lockdowns laws, on the social platforms like Whatsapp, Facebook and other websites are packed with all sorts of posts, ranging from information about the outbreak of the disease to false news about its origin, cure and spread .

The Coronavirus has been spread across the world and people are forced to stay at home in quarantine this resulted in higher usage of internet than usual as people are tend to online platform for work from home, remotely, free lancing, seeking knowledge, internships and reached out to loved ones during this crisis and also people are keen to share personal information and any misinformation which may have devastating consequences. [1]Since its outbreak in December in China the social media specially Whatsapp, Facebook and on other mediums also fake news has been spread continuously. In fact, the messages claimed to be an advisory from UNICEF, debunked in the first week of March, recommended frequent washing of clothes since coronavirus remains for nine hours on fabrics. Another recommendation was that to increase intake of vitamin c in your meal which will kill the virus. Many videos were also uploaded on Youtube and Facebook showing dead body lying on streets, police shooting infected people on site, wrong medicines and home remedies to prevent from the virus, etc to show the gross impact of Coronavirus on world.

Rumors are a lethal weapon that affects people's morals due to which their trust have shifted from traditional to social platforms. The Law enforcement authorities have power under law to take legal action against anyone who spreads rumors about the virus and causes a state of panic among the general population.

"Were we to view this [pandemic] as a conflict, then we could talk about two fronts," Carl Miller, research director of the Centre for the Analysis of Social Media at United Kingdom

The first is the public health reaction, and the second front are the waves of social and political chaos that have been caused by the virus and our response to it - this is a key battle on that front."

India

Currently India lacks any concrete law to counter the threat of false news, but it still has legal provisions under the Indian Penal Code, 1860, etc. Some existing legal provisions are as under:

Section 505(1) of Indian Penal Code, 1860: The punishment for making, publishing or circulating any statement, rumour or report which may cause fear or alarm to the public, or to any section of the public.

Punishment: Imprisonment which may extend to 3 years or fine or both.
 

Section 66D of Information Technology Act: Whoever, by means for any communication device or computer resource cheats by personating.

Punishment: imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to three years and shall also be liable to fine which may extend to one lakh rupees.

Section 54 of the Disaster Management Act, 2005: Whoever makes or circulates a false alarm or warning as to disaster or its severity

Punishment: Imprisonment which may extend to one year or with fine.

Before creating, posting, sharing and forwarding any message, one needs to be aware about the implications of the same if not true and create panic in any way. One needs to refrain from forwarding any corona related messages without verifying specially in this age of “infodemic “which the World Health Organization defines as – “an overabundance of information—some accurate and some not—that makes it hard for people to find trustworthy sources and reliable guidance when they need it.

But now there is need of legal provisions for fake news within the IT Act is more crucial.

Other legislation

South Korea

Defamatory fake news can be punished under Korean law. When fake news publisher distribute false s, the originator of fake news shall be punished under Article 307(2) of the Criminal Act.

The Public Official Election Act 60 can cover fake news relating to political candidates. Article 250 states that any person who publishes false information about a candidate and his/her family will be punished by imprisonment with prison labor or by fine.

The Framework Act on Telecommunications Article 47(1) provides: "Any person who exercises false communication via electronic device for the purpose of ruining public interest will be punished by prison term up to 5 years or by penalty by 50 million Won (U.S. $50,000).

The proposed revision of the Public Official Election Act contains a new clause Article 82(8) of the bill states that no one is allowed to distribute fake news through the information networks, and fake news victims may request the Election Management Commission to mark the complained-of online information as "fake news."

Singapore

The new law to fight fake information will require social media platforms to warn against publish that the government deems false.

Punishment: On Violations of law, the fine is up to S$ 1 million ($737,500) and 10 years in prison.

France

In 2018, France adopted two fake news laws. The law allows the authority to cancel the license or suspend the TV channels "controlled by a foreign state” If false information is transmitted.

Punishment- whoever violates the law shall be punished with one year in prison and a fine of 75,000 euro.

Russia

State has the power to block websites and impose fines on Russians spreading what the authorities find to be fake news or showing contempt for the government online.

Punishment: Individuals can be fined up to 400,000 rouble ($6,120) for circulating false information online.

Malaysia

1. Communications and Multimedia Act 1998

Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 states:

(1) A person who—

(a) by means of any network facilities or network service or applications service knowingly—

(i) makes, creates or solicits; and

(ii) initiates the transmission of,             

any comment, request, suggestion or other communication which is obscene, indecent, false, menacing or offensive in character with intent to annoy, abuse, threaten or harass another person; or

(b) initiates a communication using any applications service, whether continuously, repeatedly or otherwise, during which communication may or may not ensue, with or without disclosing his identity and with intent to annoy, abuse, threaten or harass any person at any number or electronic address commits an offence.

The penalty for an offense under this provision is a fine of up to fifty thousand ringgit (approx. US$12,270) or imprisonment for up to one year, or both, with a further fine of one thousand ringgit (approx. US$245) applying for every day that the offense is continued after conviction.\

 Australia

Law will fine social media and web hosting companies and imprison executives if violent content is not removed "expeditiously", Reuters reported. Under the new law, companies could face fines of up to 10 per cent of their annual global turnover, while executives could be sentenced to up to three years jail if they do not remove any videos or photographs that show terrorism, murder, rape or other serious crimes without delay.[2]

In these troubled times people are supposed to maintain a higher degree of precaution. With governmental and public resources stretched to limits, vigilance in their communications with respect to the pandemic is incumbent upon the general public.

India and other nations are taking all kinds of precautionary measures, from advising on social distancing, quarantine, lockdowns and curfews. The existing legal provisions do cater to penalizing creation of false content and the malicious distribution thereof, but in the absence of any designated legislation which enables for timely/instant removal of such content once it has been published. The state and its various regulatory authorities in the online and virtual worlds should remain ever vigilant in order to protect individuals and society from the potential dangers of an infodemic. This includes early identification of content before it becomes viral and causes widespread harm, eliminating it with the aid of social media sites and intermediaries, and monitoring the origins of such misfortune. It is also the duty of media outlets and the press to inform people and to enhance awareness on the risks of fake news and misinformation.

Picture Source :

 
Rakshit Sharma