Portals beef up measures against malicious postings

Internet portals have taken measures to prevent more people falling victim to malicious postings, after a recent string of celebrity suicides which were blamed on negative comments posted online by anonymous users.

NHN-operated Naver, the largest Web portal, said yesterday that it has implemented a simplified process whereby Internet users can almost immediately block groundless rumors or postings that are considered to violate privacy.

In the past, Internet users had to wait for days after submitting a request to the portal for the blocking of problematic posts.

Daum Communications, the No. 2 Web portal, has also added changes to its Web site.

Comments were shown in their entirety in the past, but Daum users now have to click on a different box if they want to read other Web users’ comments.

Daum also plans to develop a curriculum on Internet ethics education aimed at young students in conjunction with the Jeju Special Self-Governing Provincial Office of Education.

Cyworld, a local social-networking Web site managed by SK Communications, is also conducting a campaign to encourage its users not to make negative postings.

Cyworld adopted a real-name policy in 2003. This means that all users currently use their real names instead of Internet IDs.

Paran, the smallest Web portal, also recently decided to strengthen monitoring of malicious comments.

Users who habitually slander other people will be barred from leaving postings, and their Internet IDs will be released to other Web users.

Meanwhile, according to a recent survey conducted by Albamon.com, an online job search Web site for college students, one out of five college students said they have posted malicious comments on the Internet at least once.

The survey was conducted among 1,476 college students. Of the respondents, 23.2 percent of male students and 8.8 percent of female students said they had posted negative comments.

When asked why, 27.3 percent said it was because the Internet guarantees their anonymity.

In addition, 28.2 percent said they did not feel any guilt over their actions.

By Sung So-young Staff Reporter [so@joongang.co.kr]