Lapid bill requires valid ID for social media registration

A man is using his cellphone to access his social media accounts. INQUIRER.net stock image

MANILA, Philippines —A proposal requiring social media users to submit a valid proof of identification before registration and penalizing those who will use fraudulent identities made its return to the Senate.

To combat the spread of misinformation and hate speech, Senator Lito Lapid has filed Senate Bill No. 1289, which would oblige all social media platforms to verify the identity of their users before account creation.

“Kagaya po sa tunay na mundo, kailangan pong maging responsable ang bawat tao sa kanilang salita at gawa. Dapat na pong tapusin ang pag-gawa ng krimen at pagpapakalat ng kasinungalingan gamit ang pekeng user account sa mga social media platform,” Lapid said in his explanatory note of the bill.

Under the measure, social media users may present any valid government-issued identification and/or barangay certificate, which law enforcers can access in cases involving criminal acts committed through these sites.

“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,” Lapid pointed out.

The senator stressed that the Data Privacy Act would apply to all personal information collected by these websites.

However, any individual who verifies information using “fake or falsified proofs of identification” may be penalized under the bill.

Anyone who registers a social media account using a false identity faces a punishment of at least P100,000 or up to six years in prison or both.

Meanwhile, social media companies would face a P100,000 fine and up to 90 days in jail for failing to verify the identity of a user.

What if a social media account engages in criminal activities like cyberbullying, slander, libel, or selling illicit firearms, drugs, or ammunition? The service provider is on the hook for the maximum fine if that occurs.

This is “whether or not such account is linked to a valid identification card number provided by the government to each individual,” the bill pointed out further.

Congress approved a measure that would have mandated the registration of all SIM cards and social media accounts last year.

But this was vetoed by former President Rodrigo Duterte due to the inclusion of social media, which was not in the original version of the measure.

EDV/abc