60 to 70 percent of the country’s cyber world is ‘bots’
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60 to 70 percent of the total traffic in the country’s cyber world is bot or artificial activity, claimed Rehan Asif Asad, adviser to the Prime Minister on Posts, Telecommunications and Information Technology. He said, analyzing ‘cyber bullying’ or online reactions without understanding this reality risks reaching wrong conclusions.
Rehan Asif Asad highlighted this information in the speech given in the dialogue titled ‘Multi-stakeholder Dialogue on Cyber Security Legislation, Freedom of Expression and Platform Governance in Bangladesh’. Drik, Citizen Coalition and United Nations Electoral Project ‘Ballot’ are the organizers of this dialogue in a hotel in Gulshan of the capital on Wednesday afternoon.
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Highlighting recent online traffic analysis data, Rehan Asif Asad said that most of the online comments, reactions and interactions are not from real users. It’s hard to pinpoint the root of the problem if you can’t separate organic vs. non-organic traffic.
UNESCO’s International Expert on Freedom of Expression, Media Regulation and Digital Governance, Joan Barata emphasized on following international human rights standards in making laws on digital platform control, cyber security and information security in Bangladesh. In the dialogue, he said, since Bangladesh is a signatory to important human rights charters, the legislation should also reflect that standard.
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Freedom of expression should not be curbed in the name of combating cybercrime, Joanne Barata said. “Defining online speech separately as a crime creates an opportunity for additional regulation,” he said. What is illegal offline is also illegal online – no more, no less.’ For that reason, he called for the same standards ‘online-offline’ to be followed in the enforcement of this law.
Vague and broad definitions—such as ‘spreading rumours’ or ‘disseminating false information’—may conflict with international standards if included in the law, Joanne Barata noted. Besides, he emphasized on ensuring the efficiency and independence of the concerned institutions in the enforcement of cyber laws.
UNESCO’s Bangladesh representative Suzanne Vaiz said that although freedom of expression is important, it needs to have some limits, which are mainly to protect the society. At the same time, care must be taken that these limits do not unduly curtail people’s right to express themselves.
Suzanne Vaize said, besides legislation, it is important to have effective ‘protocols’ to deal with unexpected situations. Any problem should be resolved through a transparent and fair process. Everyone’s experience is different, so it’s important to listen to everyone.
Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) Chairman Major General (Retd.) Md. Emdad Ul Bari said, as a regulator, BTRC does not directly prosecute content or bring complaints; They coordinate with the platforms upon request by various agencies—such as law enforcement or cyber security agencies. In the last year, about 27,000 posts or links were requested to be removed, but about 63 percent of the requests were made.
Emdad Ul Bari said that while excess regulation is risky, lack of regulation can increase online violence, fraud and confusion; Therefore, integrated development of law, technology and awareness is essential.
On the question of digital regulation, the ‘to regulate or not’ debate is no longer relevant; Rather, how to control, so that one right does not undermine the other, is the main issue, said photographer and human rights activist Shahidul Alam.
Shahidul Alam said that to build an effective cyber governance system, it is important to ensure things like independent supervision, data protection and proper legal process. He raised the question of whether harmful and illegal content are being treated the same, how much redress is available to citizens when the law is abused, and how independent regulatory agencies are.
Apart from this, UPL Managing Director Mahrukh Mohiuddin, Citizen Coalition Co-Coordinator Fahim Mashroor, Supreme Court Lawyer Priya Ahsan Chowdhury, Former Missing Commission Member Nabila Idris, Press Institute of Bangladesh (PIB) Director General Farooq Wasif and many others spoke in the dialogue.
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