New Thai Law Targets Porn, Politics

BANGKOK, Thailand — A new cyber-crime law that came into effect Wednesday lets Thai police seize computers from homes and businesses if they suspect the computers will be used illegally.

Authorities say the new Computer-Related Crimes Act will help crack down on Internet pornography. However, media rights activists say the law will allow the government to invade people's privacy.

Penalties under the new law include up to 20 years in prison for actions found to be a threat to national security.

"This is to prevent computers being used for sending pornographic material or slanderous messages," Information and Communications Technology Ministry spokesman Vissanu Meeyoo said.

Supinya Klangnarong, a representative of the watchdog group Freedom Against Censorship Thailand, said the new law allows authorities to snoop through private files on people's computers.

"The new law is a threat and violates people's privacy," Supinya said. "It's not preventive as they said; it is a controlling measure."

Since a military coup last year, some 45,000 websites have been blocked by the government and media rights groups say the number is rising. Most of the blocked sites have adult material, but the government also has targeted sites critical of the king or supportive of ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra.

YouTube was blocked in April after clips were posted showing digitally altered images of King Bhumibol Adulyadej. YouTube remains inaccessible in Thailand.

New York-based Human Rights Watch said in May that Thailand was stifling free political debate in the kingdom by shutting down political websites and moving to silence online critics.

Copyright © 2025 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More News

Texas Resumes AV Lawsuit Against Aylo Following SCOTUS Decision

A district court judge in Texas has unfrozen the state’s $1.6 million lawsuit against Aylo for allegedly failing to comply with age verification requirements, Bloomberg Law is reporting.

JuicyAds Wins Trademark Infringement Case Against Fraudulent Domain

JuicyAds has won its World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) case against a website using a similar domain to impersonate the company's site and defraud customers.

Anissa Kate, Jordan Starr Top AEBN for Q2 of 2025

AEBN has published its top-selling stars for the second quarter of 2025, with Anissa Kate landing atop the leaderboard for straight theaters and Jordan Starr heading up the gay rankings.

AEBN Reveals Eva Maxim as Top Trans Star for Q2 of 2025

AEBN has published its top trans stars list for the second quarter of 2025, with Eva Maxim landing atop the leaderboard.

France Reinstates Age Verification Rule for EU Sites

France’s highest court, the Council of State, on Tuesday reinstated age verification rules for EU-based sites under the country’s Security and Regulation of the Digital Space (SREN) law, ruling in favor of the French government and against Hammy Media.

Whisper Fans Joins Pineapple Support as Supporter-Level Sponsor

Whisper Fans has joined the ranks of over 70 adult businesses and organizations committing funds and resources to Pineapple Support.

Utherverse Launches 'Red Light Center' Virtual World

Virtual reality and metaverse technology company Utherverse has launched its new virtual world, RedLightCenter.io.

European Commission Approves AV Guidelines, Unveils Prototype App

The European Commission on Monday released its final, approved guidelines for protecting minors online under the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA) and made public a “white label” age verification app intended to help sites and platforms comply with age verification rules under the DSA.

Show More