Current Affairs

Issue

Australia’s Online Safety Act has come into effect. The law was passed in July 2021 and allows adults to report cases of online bullying in the country.

 

Details

• The eSafety commissioner has powers to order social media websites to take down content related to bullying against Australian adults within 24 hours.

• Failure of conforming to the order can lead to heavy fines up to $555,000. The issue of is bullying is more detailed than current cyber laws in the country. 

• The removal of bullying content from online site has been shortened to 24 hours from the present 48 hours. The law is especially made for adults.

 

The act

• The eSafety commissioner will be responsible for implementing the act to promote the online safety of Australians.

• The commissioner will be required to supervise the complaints and objections regarding sharing intimate images without consent.

• After a complaint is registered, a removal notice would also be sent to the hosting service provider or the person who had posted the cyber-bullying content.

• A similar process will be followed for non-consensual posting of intimate pictures. They will be liable for penalty if not adhered.

• The commissioner can send a link-deletion notice to search engines to stop providing links to certain material.

 

Process

• Firstly, individuals have to report on the social media app they are being bullied or abused. Next, a complaint with the police should be filed.

• The issue can be reported to the eSafety commissioner if the content is not removed. They will provide notice for removing the content.

 

The online trolling bill

• The proposed bill would allow the government to hold social media companies responsible for the trolling comments and content posted on their website.

• Social media organization would be asked to unveil the identity of the trolls, failing of which would attract penalty.