By Liza Soriano
MANILA — Senator Jinggoy Estrada filed a bill that would criminalize the spreading of fake news or false information.
Senate Bill No. 1296 aims to curb the spread of disinformation and false information on the internet by including it in what are considered crimes or cybercrimes under Republic Act No. 10175 or the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012.
“Click baits, propaganda, and manipulation of legitimate news segments to deliberately online falsehoods, false news or disinformation is so common nowadays, making it difficult to distinguish which is actual news to fake ones. Masyado nang talamak ang mga ito,” Estrada said.
Estrada proposed an amendment to Section 3 of RA 10175, to include “fake news” in the definition of terms and its inclusion in Section 4 on the list of cybercrime offenses.
In the bill, fake news refers to misinformation and disinformation of stories, facts, and news which is presented as a fact, the veracity of which cannot be confirmed, with the purpose of distorting the truth and misleading its audience.”
As an offense, Estrada’s bill said the creation and dissemination of fake news is committed through a computer system or any other similar means which may be devised in the future. (ai/mtvn)
