The speakers of Plenary 2 – Brazil’s Fake News Bill of ABPI’s 40th International Congress on Intellectual Property, Artur Coimbra de Oliveira, the substitute Secretary of Telecommunications and Senator Angelo Coronel agreed that the fight against fake news should only hold offenders accountable, without compromising the freedom of expression and the privacy of individuals. On the second day of the event, mediated by Luiz Henrique do Amaral, the first vice president of AIPPI – Association Internationale pour la Protection de la Propriété Intellectuelle, the highlight was Bill 2630/2020, which establishes the “Law of Freedom, Responsibility, and Transparency on the Internet”.
Senator Angelo Coronel explained that Bill 2630/2020, already approved by the Senate and sent to the House of Representatives, does not prevent freedom of expression since it imposes the removal of inappropriate content only with a court order. He highlighted, as the key points of the Bill, among others, the obligation to identify fake news spreaders and accounts operated by robots, the transparency of sponsored content, and the traceability of messages that go viral on social networks. To inhibit criminal use through illegal mobile phones, he proposes that operators re-register all microchips by operators. “There is no censorship of freedom of expression in the project, but a restriction on content that incites violence, pedophilia, and others. Freedom of expression has limits”, he stated.
In his presentation, the substitute Secretary of Telecommunications emphasized the damage caused by viral fake news, referencing cases of the killing of Muslims of Rohingya origin in Myanmar, stimulated by social networks, and the use of bots in the American elections. Oliveira said he was in favor of legislation to inhibit misinformation on the internet and pointed out the General Personal Data Protection Law (LGPD) as an “ally” in this regard. On the other hand, he noted that it will not be just an action that, in itself, can eliminate fake news in the digital environment. “A project in this sense is very welcome as long as it does not compromise the freedom of expression and the privacy of the individual”, he said.
If you are an ABPI member and registered for the Congress, you can review this Plenary at any time. Just access the link: https://congresso.abpi.org.br/dia-20-plenaria-2-pl-das-fakes-news/
