New laws strengthen online drug controls and juvenile protection

Drug control and juvenile protection rules have been tightened for certain Internet businesses, according to two revised local laws passed by the city's legislature on Friday.

Shanghai's revised anti-drug regulation for the first time to specify the obligations of Internet platforms to report the trade of certain drugs, food and cosmetic products.

The regulation bans the trading of medicines covered by special administrative rules nationwide, such as narcotic and psychotropic drugs, food and cosmetic products that illegally contain these substances as additives as well as other objects otherwise stipulated in national laws.

Operators of Internet trading platforms are obliged to take necessary actions, keep records and report to food and drug and market watchdogs as well as police when they discover such illegal activities.

Also, operators of the platforms, businesses operating on the platforms and those who operate trading business through self-owned websites, social networking sites and livestreaming services are required to publish the registration or license information of products as well as other information stipulated by laws.

With the new rules, Shanghai has taken a step ahead of the rest of the country in further tightening drug control on the Internet.

Li Jian, director of the anti-drug instruction department of Shanghai Anti-drug Office, said the new rules were introduced amid a recent surge in the drug trade in other parts of the world due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

"The drug trade has been kept under good control in Shanghai as well as in China, but the international drug situation requires us to take more sophisticated approaches to prevent the problems entering our country," he said.

At the same time, the revised juvenile protection law further specifies rules for Internet product and service providers to ensure healthy access for their youngest users.

The Internet businesses are now required to tailor-make their products and services for juveniles by introducing functions to limit their time spent on websites, and their access and consumption on the websites.

They're further required to remove, block or correct the content, functions or user rules that are considered to be "harmful to the physical and mental health of juveniles" and report to the authorities.

Both revised laws will take effect from March 1.