Philippines pushes platform accountability, seeks ASEAN backing for tougher social media rules

The Philippines is getting tougher on social media platforms and called attention to the backlash that Meta in particular has faced.

The country’s Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) said it expects a bill imposing stronger regulations on social media platforms to be passed into law within two months.

DICT Secretary Henry Aguda told reporters Tuesday that once enacted, platforms such as Meta will be required to comply. A House panel approved a similar measure earlier this week. It follows criticism from the Cybercrime Investigation and Security Council (CICC) over platforms’ slow response in removing violent content linked to a recent school shooting.

Meta has said its AI systems failed to detect a livestream of a school shooting on August 18. The shooting occurred at Ateneo de Zamboanga University, which remained online for 14 minutes, and was later reuploaded more than 1,700 times before being taken down.

Aguda said the government has asked Meta to integrate the Philippine national ID into account verification, similar to measures Roblox has promised to adopt. Roblox signed an agreement with the country to integrate PhilSys into its age assurance stack. Aguda added that platforms must make it easier to identify individuals who commit crimes online. The secretary urged the platform to be more proactive.

“Let’s not wait until this reaches the point of a lawsuit,” he said in Tagalog (translated by ABS CBN). “Right now, under our laws, the platform has no liability. Let’s not repeat what happened to you in the States — you faced lawsuits left and right. Let’s fix your platform now so that no one will have to file a class action suit.”

Aguda was referring to the lawsuits filed against Meta for alleged harms caused by the design of its social media platforms Facebook and Instagram, which recently led to an $18 billion settlement and plans for enhanced age assurance and protections for younger users.

Meta has committed to send a technical working group to the Philippines this month to coordinate with law enforcement, and to establish a local office to improve response times.

DICT also plans to tighten oversight of Discord, which it claims is an unmonitored space exploited by predators and used for radicalization.

Social media harms elevated to regional concern

Aguda also said the Philippines will raise the issue of Big Tech accountability at upcoming ASEAN meetings in October. Regional cooperation is needed, he argued, to strengthen protections against harmful content, scams, misinformation and other cross‑border threats.

Scam Watch Pilipinas has urged the Philippines to lead discussions on ASEAN digital sovereignty. Co‑founder Jocel De Guzman said a regional framework would give member states greater leverage in dealing with global platforms.

During recent talks in Singapore, Meta agreed to strengthen coordination with Philippine authorities on harmful content, child exploitation material, deepfakes and cybercrime requests. Roblox also pledged to enhance safeguards for younger users, including age verification and parental controls.

Aguda said ASEAN’s nearly 700 million people represent collective strength that can be used to demand accountability from major technology companies. “If Big Tech wants access to the ASEAN market, accountability to ASEAN governments, and protection of ASEAN citizens must come with that access,” he said.

Fellow ASEAN members are all taking action for online safety. Authorities in Singapore have linked Roblox to online radicalization and the arrest of a boy planning a mass casualty attack; the country is planning on rolling out relevant online safety legislation early in 2027.

Indonesia is cracking down with age assurance laws and requirements for social media platforms. Thai authorities have met with Roblox about the possible use of Thailand’s National Digital ID system for age verification. Malaysia is in the process of setting some of the world’s strictest age verification rules for social media.

The Philippines joins a broader shift in online safety policy. Governments are increasingly requiring platforms to take greater responsibility for the harms their services enable. Australia’s proposed digital duty of care is one example of this emerging model, placing a legal obligation on platforms to reduce foreseeable risks before they occur.

Article Topics

age verification  |  ASEAN  |  Meta  |  national ID  |  Philippines  |  regulation  |  social media