Question
To ask Her Majesty's Government what consideration they have given the proposal made by Lord Beecham on 19 November 2013 (HL Deb, col GC376) to establish a panel to determine whether information identifying the name of a person posting damaging or malicious comments online should be released, particularly in relation to comments about hotel or catering services posted on TripAdvisor.
Answer
The Government is making important progress in tackling online safety issues through the Digital Charter, which is guided by a number of principles and whose core purpose is to make the Internet work for everyone – for citizens, businesses and society as a whole.
Online anonymity is an important part of a free and open internet, providing essential protection for those who need it and allowing for many kinds of self expression and communication that would not otherwise be possible. But being anonymous online does not give anyone the right to abuse others or break the law.
In the Winter, the Government will publish an Online Harms White Paper setting out a range of legislative and non-legislative measures to ensure tech companies take more responsibility for the safety of their users.