(Yicai) Dec. 11 -- The Chinese government should hike punishments for the illicit disclosure of personal information on internet platforms, as the consequences for such leaks can be quite severe for those affected and yet the perpetrators get off lightly, members of the legal profession said.

Recently some users on short video site Bilibili exposed the personal details of a number of content creators, which led them to being directly attacked online. An investigation found over 40 people to be involved, most of whom were minors. Yet the most severe punishment meted out by authorities was 10 days’ detention.

From a legal point of view, it is difficult to prove violations of personal privacy, Li Wei, a partner of Beijing Fada Law Firm, told Yicai. Moreover, different platforms have different supervision mechanisms, making it difficult to deal with these behaviors across platforms, he added.

Such leaks can have serious consequences, such as suicide. But to convict perpetrators of manslaughter by negligence or intentional homicide, it is necessary to prove that there is a direct connection between the information disclosures and the person’s death, said Yuan Chengpeng, a lawyer at Beijing Dacheng Law Offices.

China should consider improving its related laws, increasing penalties, strengthening supervision and establishing a cross-platform cooperation mechanism, Li said.

Punishments for disclosing personal information are relatively light in China. In the past five years, nearly 99 percent of such defendants in Beijing have been sentenced to less than five years in prison and 73 percent to less than three years. And 83 percent of them have been given fines of below CNY100,000 (USD13, 912), Yuan said.

Last month, China’s cyberspace watchdog launched a one-month crackdown on the leaking of private information on social media, short video and livestreaming platforms as well as on cyber violence such as slander and defamation.

Editors: Dou Shicong, Kim Taylor