China announced on Wednesday that bloggers and chatroom users will now be required to register their names with operators so that their activities can be regulated. Apart from registering their names, they also have to swear in writing not to challenge the communist political system.
This new announcement comes after technology companies claim that there were official efforts for the past years to block the different virtual private networks (VPNs) to bypass China's Internet filters.
For the past years, regulations enacted to monitor Internet activities were not as successful as the government hoped them to be. For example, Beijing necessitated Internet companies since 2012 to gather the real names of users. However, compliance cannot be ensured. The rules did not clarify what services were covered either.
With this new rule, all users of microblogs are required to register their real names as well. No one can comment anonymously either anymore, as real-name registration is extended to include website comment sections.
Interestingly, all users have to sign a contract saying they would avoid "illegal and unhealthy" activity. Users also have to avoid saying anything malicious about the state power or national security that would be considered as threats. Operators are required to deactivate the accounts of those who would violate this.
With all these new regulations, China's Internet users are starting to feel put off from using the social media, even though at the present, the country still has the world's biggest population of netizens.