[kictanet] Talk to NCIC Day 3: Government Regulation of Fake News

[Brian Munyao Longwe]

Unfortunately the originators of fake news tend to use pseudonyms or fake
identities to mask their true identities. IMHO these are the real culprits;
people who repeat/resend/republish the fake news might actually have been
duped into believing that it is authentic. How then does one go about
catching/pinpointing the bad guys/gals?

On Fri, Aug 18, 2017 at 2:07 PM, Adam Lane via kictanet <
kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:

> I think that IF there is to be a civil crime/penalty for such an act there
> should be a distinction made between the creators of false, misleading or
> fictitious data and those who spread it (creating it should incur a greater
> penalty than spreading it).
>
>
>
> Certainly IF this is the case, then a deterrence for those spreading the
> news will ensure people do read, research and assess before spreading, and
> this is important. Too many people not only are not assessing such news but
> are spreading it, and because others may trust them, the news is inherently
> trusted by the reader; whereas if the reader was sent the news from an
> unrelated person they would have more suspicion towards the news. Such a
> deterrence would be a good thing.
>
>
>
> IF this bill becomes an act, it will be interesting to see how it will be
> enforced. It would be fairly simple to set-up a reporting mechanism but
> harder to ensure fines are paid (though such fines would cover the costs of
> any monitoring mechanism; it may be useful to have a set standard for fines
> to ensure prompt and fair action, just like traffic offenses).
>
>
>
> The issue of real-name social media accounts, linking accounts to sim
> cards etc would be thorny; let alone the mechanisms to collect fines in
> such large numbers.
>
>
>
> Is there a way that one does not need a fine, instead individuals may
> value their personal reputation enough to not forward fake news? If we
> constantly forward fake news (and if it is recognized as such at some
> point), don’t we lose our social capital, and thus limit this behavior?
> Just like in the offline world… if we value our reputations?
>
>
>
> *From:* kictanet [mailto:kictanet-bounces+adam.lane=huawei.com at lists.
> kictanet.or.ke] *On Behalf Of *kanini mutemi via kictanet
> *Sent:* Friday, August 18, 2017 2:27 PM
> *To:* Adam Lane <adam.lane at huawei.com>
> *Cc:* kanini mutemi <kaninimutemi at gmail.com>
> *Subject:* Re: [kictanet] Talk to NCIC Day 3: Government Regulation of
> Fake News
>
>
>
> I have attached a copy of the *Computer and Cybercrimes Bill, 2017 *published
> on 13th June, 2017. Clause 12 reads:
>
> *'A person who intentionally publishes false, misleading or fictitious
> data or misinforms with intent that the data shall be considered or acted
> upon as authentic, with or without any financial gain, commits an offence
> and shall, on conviction, be liable to a fine not exceeding five million
> shillings or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years, or to
> both.'*
>
> ​Is there a drawback to this approach? ​
>
>
> --
>
> *Mercy Mutemi*.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
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