Beijing Internet Court concluded 4,667 online infringement disputes involving the elderly in 8 years

China News Service, Beijing, October 16 (Reporter Chen Hang) Over the past eight years since its establishment, the Beijing Internet Court has accepted a total of 4,671 online infringement disputes involving elderly people over 60 years old, and concluded a total of 4,667 cases, of which 68% were concluded through mediation or withdrawal of lawsuits. Relevant cases show that network technology has a dual impact on the elderly’s rights protection.

This reporter learned this from the Beijing Internet Court’s press conference on the hearing of online infringement cases involving the elderly on the 16th.

The Beijing Internet Court was established on September 9, 2018. Vice President Yi Jun said at the press conference that the virtuality of cyberspace and the immediacy of information dissemination make infringements more concealed and make related electronic evidence easier to lose. The technical characteristics of online platforms provide natural advantages for rights protection. Online behaviors usually leave digital traces such as publication records and interaction data. The infringed party promptly collects and fixes relevant evidence through notarization, blockchain certification, and platform assistance, which helps provide support for subsequent rights protection.

Yi Jun said that new technologies such as AI are being used improperly, and the elderly are facing new challenges in protecting their rights. For example, in cases involving the portrait rights and voice rights of the elderly, there have been cases where AI technology has been illegally used to deeply synthesize the portraits or voices of the elderly for improper purposes. Such disputes often involve multiple entities such as technology providers, content producers, and publishing platforms. The elderly are more likely to be at a disadvantage in terms of identifying the infringing subject, proving the identifiability of the infringing content, and being familiar with the platform's complaint handling rules.

Yi Jun said that the Beijing Internet Court clarified that merchants using AI to synthesize the voices of elderly people for commercial promotion should be held responsible. In the "Infringement Case of Anchor Delivering Products Using AI Technology", the merchant synthesized the voice of an elderly person for commercial promotion without permission. If the voice can identify a specific elderly person based on the timbre, intonation, rhythm of pronunciation and social popularity, it constitutes an infringement of their personality rights; if the client fails to fulfill its duty of care in review, it shall bear joint and several liability.