[Editorial] ‘Cyber wrecker’ YouTubers

South Korean public opinion is turning in favor of stricter regulations on YouTube after extreme and violent YouTubers disrupted a ruling party’s political event on Monday and so-called “cyber wreckers” were revealed last week to have exploited a popular YouTuber over her past.

Another shocking incident -- a YouTuber who posted a controversial video of her allegedly undergoing an abortion at 36 weeks of pregnancy last month -- prompted a police investigation Monday, sparking disputes over abortion in South Korea as well as the authenticity and motive for posting the video.

In South Korea and elsewhere, YouTube has long been engulfed in conflicts and controversies. In recent years, in particular, the harmful and unregulated acts of cyber wreckers -- YouTube channels that post groundless and negative rumors to generate online traffic for greater profits -- have touched off a torrent of public disputes. A growing number of people are asking the government and the National Assembly to come up with effective legal measures and tough regulations for YouTube, which continues to avoid taking prompt and proactive measures against these online villains.

There is, however, an embarrassing problem that is hard to resolve in a short time. YouTube, the No. 1 video streaming service, is headquartered in California and is one of tech giant Google’s subsidiaries. This means that YouTube remains largely outside of Korean regulations, and acquiring YouTube channel hosts’ information requires an order from a California court. This makes it difficult for both Korean authorities and individuals to get YouTube to reveal the identities of rogue YouTubers, many of who keep their anonymity, for legal proceedings and to take punitive steps against illegal acts in time.

Another underlying problem is the outsized negative influence of some YouTubers, who tend to take profits through extreme acts. A striking example is the physical clashes committed by extreme political YouTubers at an event of the ruling People Power Party in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, Monday. People were stunned to see the fight in which a YouTuber hit another YouTuber on the back of the head.

Last week, it was revealed that three YouTubers had discussed a potential blackmail against Tzuyang, a famous YouTuber with over 10 million subscribers, to profit off her past of being exploited and abused by her late ex-boyfriend. One of the YouTubers received money from Tzuyang for not posting about her past, which he shared with another YouTuber. The three issued apologies Monday, but all denied they had blackmailed Tzuyang.

Tzuyang’s legal representatives said they plan to file charges against the YouTubers for blackmail, with the prosecution reportedly considering of an investigation into the incident.

The incident involving Tzuyang sparked a nationwide outrage over the harmful practices of cyber wreckers and debates over why YouTube is slow to delete such channels greedily churning out damaging information and harassing innocent people with hateful videos.

On Monday, YouTube confirmed that it suspended the monetization of the three channels in question, citing the violations of its policy on creators -- a relatively fast move that seems to reflect the social impact of the incident. But YouTube did not delete the YouTube channels. And its measures against the cyber wreckers are not permanent, as they could reapply for the monetization partner program later.

There is nothing that the Korean government can do about YouTube’s lax internal guidelines, whose enforcement is voluntary. Under the current Korean regulations, the authorities here can impose obligations on YouTube to remove controversial content or take other necessary measures, but there is no penalty clause for failing to follow the obligations.

To prevent and punish cyber wreckers, it is time for the Korean government and lawmakers to consider introducing legislation similar to the EU’s Digital Services Act that ensures YouTubers remove fake news and malicious content.