PAID BONUS READ: Spanish Prime Minister Wants To Abandon Anonymity on Social Media
Pedro Sánchez’s proposes more fact-checks, more moderation and digital IDs to identify all users. Video available before paywall!
Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez promises to propose greater control over social media in the European Union at the next European leaders' meeting in Brussels. Among other things, he wants to link every social media user to his or her digital identity for identification purposes.
"First, I propose putting an end to anonymity on social media," Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said in a speech at the World Economic Forum (WEF) meeting in Davos, Switzerland, last week. Sánchez promised to propose, as early as the next meeting of European leaders in Brussels, that every social media user be linked to the European Digital Identity Wallet to identify him or her online. "This way, citizens could use nicknames if they want, but in the case of a crime, public authorities would be able to connect those nicknames to real people and hold them responsible,” Sánchez said.
The current anonymity on social media cannot continue, he added, because it paves the way for the spread of misinformation, hate speech, and cyber harassment. "In a democracy, citizens have the right to privacy – not to anonymity or impunity," he said.