Regulation targeting cyber violence to take effect in China

China has stepped up efforts to curb illegal activities on the Internet as a new regulation is set to go into effect on Sunday prohibiting online users and platforms from engaging in cyber violence and fabrication, among others.

The regulation, released by the Cyberspace Administration of China in late 2019, aims to maintain a clean Internet environment, safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of the citizens, legal persons and other organizations and protect national security and public interests.

The new rules also ban "renrou" (literally meaning human flesh) searches, a practice of dredging up and publicizing personal information of a person who is perceived by the public to have committed grave wrongdoing by Internet users.