The regulation of social media, in light of issues including the spread of fake news and scams, is being considered, says Minister of State Security David Mahlobo.

He was speaking on Sunday during a question and answer session with journalists following a press briefing by the Justice, Crime Prevention and Security Cluster (JCPS) brief.

Mahlobo, responding to a question by a reporter about fake news, said aside from being used for what it was meant for, social media was being abused to, among other things, peddle false information.

He said this was not unique to South Africa.

“We are contemplating to regulate the space. Even the best democracies that are revered, they regulate the space,” Mahlobo said.

He understood that this would not be an easy thing to do and could be seen to be “interfering with human rights”.

It would therefore need to be discussed with various bodies and forums.

“We will be discussing how do we regulate it,” Mahlobo said.

Aside from people misrepresenting themselves on social media, or even purporting to be others, he said problems included photographs being set up to depict fake scenes.

Photoshopping images was also an issue.

News24

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