Leo Lewis, Asia Business Correspondent
Win VIP tickets
Cyber-bullies who plague internet chat rooms with obscene and insulting comments will be banned under the first national scheme to strip them of their anonymity.
People going online will be forced to provide their real names and social security numbers under a new law that makes internet portals responsible for policing message boards and weblogs.
The law has been introduced in South Korea, and is certain to be closely monitored by other countries where there is concern over online abuse.
The move, which is decried by some as an overly fierce infringement of online liberties, aims to curb the most damaging excesses of so-called “keyboard warriors” – people who concoct sex-scandals, fraud allegations and other libels that chiefly target figures in the public eye.
At least two Korean celebrities are believed to have committed suicide after being subjected to long-running and vicious internet campaigns.
British experts said that cyber-bullying had increased “significantly” in the past five years, and was now a “serious problem” that accounted for a third of all bullying.
Peter Smith, a professor of psychology at Goldsmiths College, London, said, however, that the South Korean measures seemed “heavy-handed” as a first step, and that a better approach would be to educate people about their rights when they are the victims of abusive posts.
“At the moment an ISP in Britain cannot be forced to identify a person who has made a post in a forum unless there is a legal requirement to do so,” said Professor Smith, who is chairman of the research group at the AntiBullying Alliance.
“Victims should be aware, however, that they can request an ISP to instruct a site to take material down if it is threatening or harassing.”
A set of guidelines soon to be issued by the Department for Education and Skills aimed to ensure that children and their parents were familiar with the steps they could take if they found themselves victims of cyber-bullying, he said.
The experience in South Korea, and the reaction of its politicians to the scourge of cyber-bullying is likely to guide governments elsewhere that have begun to look East to Korea and Japan to learn how the next life-changing impact of the internet will take shape.
Because it has the world’s largest population of broadband internet users, Korea has been the first to experience the social impact of the next generation internet, known as Web 2.0. It has led the way in online gaming – and suffered from some of its unintended consequences including attacks in the real world for something that happenbed only in cyberspace.
The legal change is also expected to have a limited impact on cyberspace bullying between schoolchildren – a factor thought to be behind rising suicide levels in South Korea and increased cases of physical violence in schools.
Under the new law intenet portals will be required to give up the real identities of any keyboard warriors when the victims of their cyber-abuse try to track them down to sue them.
Yesterday a spokesman for Daum, a portal site that runs bulletin boards and boasts about 38 million users in South Korea, said it had changed its site so that users must submit their name and social security number before their message is accepted by the server. Another 33 sites – each with more than 300,000 visits per day – are affected by the law.
Win a luxury weekend to Newcastle and its neighbour Gateshead, find out more here
Risk, resilience and embracing new technology
Industry sectors news at a glance. Interactive heatmap, video and podcast
Discover the power of collective thinking. Submit a solution and be in with a chance to win a Media Hub Home Entertainment System
The inside track on current trends in the charity, not for profit and social enterprise sectors
Everything the Business Traveller needs to know to make a better trip
Make the most of the summer and enter our fabulous photographic competition, you could win a £5000 holiday
Corsica is an island of beauty and contrast, an ideal holiday destination
Enjoy further reading from Travel to Fashion, Business to Sport, discover more
Shortcuts to help you find sections and articles
The clever way to lease a new car is with Car leasing made simple™
2009
per month on 36-month
Personal Contract Hire (PCH)
2008
42850
Car Insurance
£23,093 - £56,211
The Office for National Statistics
Newport, South Wales
£60,000
The Environment Agency
Bristol
Up to £90K
Boots
Midlands
OTE £85k
Credit Protection Association
Nationwide Opportunities
Completely London
Luxury Condo's in Manhattan with NYC views
The best new homes in Wimbledon?
Nationwide
Fabulous Cruise And Cruise & Stay Offers Including Virgin Atlantic Flights Prices Start From Only £699pp!
Last Minute Cruise And Cruise & Stay Offers. Med From £499pp, Caribbean From £699pp!
5 star quality at a 3 star price.
8 fabulous Canadian cities ...you won’t find cheaper
Contact our advertising team for advertising and sponsorship in Times Online, The Times and The Sunday Times, or place your advertisement.
Times Online Services: Dating | Jobs | Property Search | Used Cars | Holidays | Births, Marriages, Deaths | Subscriptions | E-paper
News International associated websites: Globrix Property Search | Property Finder | Milkround
Copyright 2009 Times Newspapers Ltd.
This service is provided on Times Newspapers' standard Terms and Conditions. Please read our Privacy Policy.To inquire about a licence to reproduce material from Times Online, The Times or The Sunday Times, click here.This website is published by a member of the News International Group. News International Limited, 1 Virginia St, London E98 1XY, is the holding company for the News International group and is registered in England No 81701. VAT number GB 243 8054 69.
adult bullying of children should be a crime and punished . But when a adult is to scared to defend himself that should be a big tuff to bad . I for one don,t want want the goverment to pass any law to restick my right of free speach . One day your restricked and the next you no long
r.laws, farmington , usa
Do any of you have any idea how bad cyberbullying has gotten? Dozens of celebrities and teenagers committe suicide over the terrible threats and harassment they've gotten from cyber bullies. Its disgusting that people are out there who would ridicule someone else with words to the point of suicide.
Julie, Orlando, U.S.A
Bullying is old bullying has been happening since my days at my old School and the Teachers use to be the worse at Bullying you'd thought the Teachers would know better well Teachers don't know better than some of my peers that did that too. Mrs Concentine Jennifer Scarf Mr. Jolly. Mr. Chisem did.
M Clifton, Scarborough, UK
Sticks and stones may break my bones but names will never hurt me.
Any attempts to restrict freedom of expression is always an attack on the majority by the minority elite in power, however it may appear otherwise.
Sadly, throughout history, the deceived and divided majority have repeatedly accepted such oppression.
harlan Leyside, basildon, essex
Shocking and sad how far people go to remove offensive speech from the internet. They take a few idiots and use them as justification to impose surveillance on everyone. Its all about control, control, control.
Gringo, Denver, USA
It's sad to think that this is necessary. But, unfortunately, it may be.
As a blogger, my blog is plagued by nasty, offensive comments obviously written to insult me or other commenters. Why do people do this? Studies have shown that people who are offensive online are unable to defend themselves when confronted in normal day-to-day life. They take out their frustrations by being offensive to others under cover of anonymity. Take that cover away and they should behave.
Right?
Maybe the South Korean test will tell us.
Maria, Wickenburg, AZ
This is pretty much the most rediculous thing I've heard today. "Cyber bullying"? Let me introduce you to the "Home" button on your browser. It'll take you to a nice, safe place you choose, where you don't have to worry about people using mean words.
RoBotkin, Omaha, Nebraska
Sticks and stones may break my bones but names will never hurt me.
Any attempts to restrict freedom of expression is always an attack on the majority by the minority elite in power, however it may appear otherwise.
Sadly, throughout history, the deceived and divided majority have repeatedly accepted such oppression.
harlan Leyside, basildon, essex
How would an abused woman ask for help on a web forum?
Is a rape victim supposed to announce herself to the world?
Rick, Seattle, WA, USA
I hate this idea. Now only do we have to prove who we are in real life through a National ID, we now have to prove who we are online. This is ridiculous, but I see lemmings love it since they have absolutely no idea how CIA and other shadow governments actually collect data about internet activity. The overwhelming majority of internet activity is benign, but for the price of a few bad apples, we are losing out freedom of identity. You people are stupid.
afadsf8af8787, tokyo, japan
Excellent!...... this should apply around all over the world.
Zheta, Caracas, Venezuela
Freedom of speech? Out the window!! Britain's politicians are lining up with America's 'Fairness Doctrine" czars.
Allan, Bellevue, WA USA
We need new laws to control and restrict every human behavior on every medium. Then we must tax all these behaviors. This is the best for all mankind.
John, london, uk
You cannot be bullied online. You choose to be a victim. If you don't accept to be a part of the equation the equation falls apart.
Where are all these eastern Zen masters when you need them?
And to save a few pampered souls everybody has to sacrifice their anonimity.
I loathe humanity.
Frances, london, uK
does this law mean that anyone can find the real identity of any one else on the web?
I think that is very dangerous...
Any man, - potentially a harmful man, can find the details and identity of aany woman he cares to stalk?
Ugh......
Bad move........ dont you think?
J
John, Ascot, UK
I don't understand? Why not just ban those who break the site's rules on etiquette?
jane, London , UK
Dirty secrets will remain dirty secrets, since no one will risk threats or jail. Is this good now?
christina, athens,
Excellent ! is also my reply. There is so much harm going on out there that the strictest of measures should be taken - this would certainly help to curb the ever growing numbers of pedophiles in these chat-rooms. The highways of the web need to be policed and its taking too long to get started.
Ann Johnson, Brussels, Belgium
Great idea, why allow nasties to remain anonymous?
sonny, london,
A great decision.... yet we dont know whether people are providing real information, profiles about themselves or not, as they are personal information concerning their security, secrets,etc, ..plus, who knows where will all these go for? We have no idea for whom, we are giving such information, anyway...
Me, Lanchow, China
This is a bad idea. Korea is not fully democratic. It is bad enough they bloc certain Japanese political sites and now they want to further extend internet censorship by probihbiting people to post mean comments without showing their identity. This is a disaster in Korea where people bully others with their age, money, or social status and now they are going to take that to the internet by removing people;s anonymous identities and making them face the bullying of powerful people with their social staus or money.
Hyuk-Joon, Seoul, South Korea
I think it is an EXCELLENT idea and I wish we could do it in the United States. Someone needs to take a stand and this will be a great step in the right direction.
Angie, Dallas, Texas, United States
It strikes me that this would be good to implement in the UK, perhaps in a different form ,so that it would curb all the nasty crimes that go on online. If the person actually realised that he was identifiable then he will probably think twice.
Sergei, London, UK