"Political and Financial Influencers, Reveal Real Names" Chinese Government's Warning

If You Have Over 500,000 Followers by December
Content in Food, Cosmetics, and Other Fields Is Excluded

As China steps up control over online influencers who have a significant impact on public opinion, the Chinese version of X (formerly Twitter), Weibo, has established a principle of disclosing the real names of popular influencers.

On the 16th, the Chinese state-run media Global Times reported that Sina Weibo, one of the Weibo services, will start publicly displaying the real names of online influencers with more than 1 million subscribers on their accounts from the end of this month.

On the 16th, China's state-run media Global Times reported that Sina Weibo, one of the Weibo services, will start publicly displaying the real names of online influencers with more than one million subscribers on their accounts from the end of this month.
[Photo by EPA·Yonhap News]

According to the media, some online influencers have received notices about this new regulation. The changes will be implemented in phases, with users having more than 1 million fans required to display their real names on their accounts by the end of this month, and those with more than 500,000 fans by the end of December, the notice stated.

The new regulation applies to the political, financial, and entertainment sectors, while the food and cosmetics sectors are reportedly excluded. Experts explained that real-name disclosure will help prevent fake news and online violence and assist in verifying the authenticity of content.

Chinese Government Strengthens Control Over One-Person Media

The General Office of the Central Cybersecurity and Informatization Commission of the Communist Party of China announced in July that it will strongly crack down on individual media that exaggerate social issues or spread harmful information, rumors, and vulgar or sensational videos that cause social harm. [Photo source=Pixabay]

This measure comes as Chinese authorities intensify control over one-person media.

The Office of the Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission of the Chinese Communist Party announced in July that it would strongly crack down on one-person media that exaggerate social issues, spread harmful information and rumors, and distribute vulgar and sensational videos causing social harm.

Chinese media explain that the real-name disclosure policy aims to prevent the spread of false information that stirs social chaos and to correct the harms caused by one-person media such as fraud. However, some opinions suggest that it is a measure to block criticism against the Communist Party and the government. The fact that the real-name disclosure targets are limited to the political, financial, and entertainment fields supports this interpretation.

As Sina Weibo’s new regulation became known through various online influencers, extensive discussions broke out among Chinese netizens.

Some netizens supported the move, saying it would deal a blow to online misinformation and malicious cyber violence, while others expressed reluctance, arguing that the gradual reduction of online anonymity would infringe on privacy.

Meanwhile, domestically, China operates a high-intensity internet control system known as the "Great Firewall," restricting ordinary people’s access to overseas sites. Emphasizing internet security, China is also extremely cautious about the leakage of important information abroad.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.