Algorithmic recommendation and filing

Algorithm Recommendation Breaches: What Are the Penalties?

What you may need to do

1. Run a compliance self-check against the list of articles named in Article 31 and Article 32
2. Verify the truthfulness of each filing material item by item and keep the supporting evidence
3. When ordered to rectify, complete it on time and feed back in writing
4. Bring penalty risk points into your internal algorithm launch review

Clause basis

One-line conclusion

The consequences of a breach come in three kinds: where laws or administrative regulations already provide for it, it is handled under those other rules; where not, this regulation directly provides a warning, a public notice and an order to correct within a time limit, and if the provider refuses to correct or the circumstances are serious, an order to suspend information updates plus a fine of 10,000 to 100,000 yuan; and separately, there is revocation of filing for filing fraud.

Basis

Article 31 lists one group of articles (Article 7, Article 8, Article 9 paragraph 1, Article 10, Article 14, Article 16, Article 17, Article 22, Article 24 and Article 26): for a breach of these provisions, where laws or administrative regulations provide for it, those provisions apply; where they do not, the cyberspace administration departments together with the relevant departments for telecommunications, public security, market regulation and others give a warning or a public notice according to their duties and order correction within a time limit; where the provider refuses to correct or the circumstances are serious, it is ordered to suspend information updates and fined not less than 10,000 yuan and not more than 100,000 yuan. Where the conduct amounts to a violation of public security administration, a public security administrative penalty is imposed in accordance with law; where it constitutes a crime, criminal liability is pursued in accordance with law.

Article 32 lists another group of articles (Article 6, Article 9 paragraph 2, Article 11, Article 13, Article 15, Article 18, Article 19, Article 20, Article 21, Article 27 and Article 28 paragraph 2), and the handling method is a referral: the relevant departments handle it according to their duties and under the relevant laws, administrative regulations and departmental rules. For example, the differential treatment issue in Article 21 goes through the existing rules on pricing and consumer rights protection.

Article 33 targets improper means in filing: where a provider with public opinion attributes or social mobilisation capacity obtains filing by improper means such as concealing relevant circumstances or providing false materials, the national and the provincial, autonomous-region and municipality cyberspace administration departments revoke the filing and give a warning or a public notice; where the circumstances are serious, it is ordered to suspend information updates and fined not less than 10,000 yuan and not more than 100,000 yuan. The second paragraph of the same article also provides that where a provider terminates service without completing the filing cancellation formalities as required, or where serious violations lead to administrative penalties such as an order to close the website, revocation of the relevant business licence or revocation of the business licence, the filing is cancelled.

What you need to do

• Self-check your own product article by article against the provisions named in Article 31 and Article 32.
• Verify the truthfulness of each filing material item and keep the original supporting evidence (the self-assessment report, the drafts of what was published).
• Keep a rectification ledger, and after receiving an order to correct, finish on time and feed back in writing.
• Assess in advance, at algorithm launch review, the risk of triggering a suspension of information updates.
• When terminating a service, complete the cancellation under Article 24 paragraph 3, so your filing is not simply cancelled for you.

Common pitfalls

Assuming a fine is the only consequence, and overlooking the practical business impact of an order to suspend information updates. Letting a third party draft the filing materials without verifying them, when untrue content still amounts to providing false materials. Treating a rectification notice as something that can be postponed, until the conditions for a finding of refusing to correct are met. Failing to cancel a filing after a business line shuts down, and being left with a record of filing cancelled by the authority on its own initiative.

Common follow-up questions

How the specific discretion on fines is applied is determined by the enforcement department on the facts of the case, and this knowledge base does not speculate about it.

Common follow-up questions

Which situations attract the 10,000 to 100,000 yuan fine?

Article 31 applies it to breaches of the articles it lists, when the provider refuses to correct or the circumstances are serious; Article 33 applies it to obtaining filing by improper means.

If there is a breach, is rectification or penalty first?

Article 31 is sequenced: first an order to correct within a time limit, and only if the provider refuses to correct or the circumstances are serious does it go further to suspending information updates and imposing a fine.

This entry belongs to the China AI Compliance & Filing cluster (42 entries in total): View all · Answers home