Sen. Lito Lapid has filed a new bill that will require users to submit a valid ID when creating a social media account.
Lapid’s Senate Bill No. 1289 will require social media platforms to verify the identity of their new users by asking them to submit a valid ID. The goal is to help fight the spread of hate speech and misinformation online.
The senator said that, just like in the real world, everyone should be responsible for what they say and do. Lapid expressed that doing crimes and spreading misinformation using fake user accounts on social media platforms should be stopped.
As per the bill, social media users may present any valid government-issued identification and/or a barangay certificate, which law enforcers can refer to in case a user commits criminal acts on the said social media platforms.
“While this bill does not prohibit the use of alternate names or handles nor having multiple accounts in the same platform, it mandates that the operators of such platform require that any membership be supported by actual proofs of identification regardless if the same are not disclosed to the public,” the Philippine senator explained.
Lapid also said that all the personal information collected should be in line with the Data Privacy Act.
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Although, users who will use “fake or falsified proofs of identification” will receive a fine of at least Php100,000 or six years of jail time, or both.
Social media platforms that would then fail to verify the user’s identity could face a Php100,000 fine and up to 90 days in prison.
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Users who will then engage in criminal activities like libel, cyberbullying, and selling illicit firearms or drugs will then face a maximum fine.
Whether this bill becomes a law or not is yet to be seen. If you remember, former President Rodrigo Duterte vetoed the SIM Card Registration bill to iron out any possible privacy issues.