'It's not a numbers thing': Edwin Tong says OSC's goal is to learn from previous cases, stop them from happening

Rather than aiming to resolve more cases over time, the Online Safety Commission (OSC) should hope to lower the number of cases it handles by preventing repeated instances long-term, said Minister for Law Edwin Tong.

Speaking at the Online Safety (Relief and Accountability) Act 2025 (OSRAA) partners' appreciation tea event on Wednesday (Sept 23), he reflected on the OSC's progress in the two months since it started.

Since starting operations on June 29, the OSC received over 500 reports and resolved more than 90 per cent of eligible reports , Minister for Digital Development and Information Josephine Teo shared on Tuesday.

"I think that's very encouraging as we work together hand in hand to keep the online space safe," he said.

He added: "These are still very early numbers. And I think beyond numbers, the more important question is what we do with what these numbers and stats are telling us."

Tong also cautioned against measuring the OSC's success by looking at the number of cases resolved in isolation.

"We should drive the number of cases down. We should want people to rely or need the OSC less and less, not more and more," he said, explaining that online platforms would ideally be able to deal with harmful content effectively before the OSC needs to step in.

He said: "We should seek to reduce the occurrence of harm in the first place."

The long-term goal should be to cut down the number of cases by creating a platform that becomes self-regulating over time, while helping people understand the kind of social behaviour that is encouraged.

"We want people to understand that what you do behind a screen will have consequences, and anonymity does not mean immunity," Tong said.

He also said that rather than looking at each case individually, it is more important to evaluate them as a whole, as looking at the bigger picture can help reveal potential trend, such as repeat perpetrators or specific platform features that may propagate online harms.

He said: "It's not a numbers thing. It's not better if we can resolve (cases) faster. But instead, we should try to close the gap that keeps producing those cases."

"We need to study how we can achieve a more holistic solutioning to the problems that victims face and give them a more effective remedy," he said, adding that OSC will share their insights with the public in the future.

Speaking to the media after the event, Tong also shared that the OSC is working closely with platforms to develop a clear framework, sharpen remedies and improve access to relief for victims.

There are 13 online harms that the OSC is set to address, and the commission currently tackles five — intimate image abuse, image-based child abuse, doxxing, online harassment and online stalking — while the remaining eight will be progressively incorporated.

dana.leong@asiaone.com

律政部长唐振辉表示，网络安全委员会（OSC）与其追求随着时间的推移解决更多案件，不如希望通过长期防止类似事件再次发生来减少其处理的案件数量。

周三（9 月 23 日），他在《2025 年网络安全（救济和问责）法案》（OSRAA）合作伙伴答谢茶会上发表讲话，回顾了 OSC 自成立两个月以来取得的进展。

数字发展及新闻部长杨莉明周二表示，自6月29日开始运作以来，安大略省证券委员会（OSC）已收到500多份报告，并解决了90%以上的符合条件的报告。

“我认为这非常令人鼓舞，因为我们正携手合作，共同维护网络空间的安全，”他说。

他补充道：“这些数字还非常初步。我认为，除了数字本身，更重要的问题是，我们如何利用这些数字和统计数据告诉我们的信息。”

Tong 还告诫说，不要仅仅根据结案数量来衡量 OSC 的成功。

“我们应该减少案件数量。我们应该希望人们对安大略省证券委员会（OSC）的依赖越来越少，而不是越来越多，”他解释说，理想情况下，在线平台应该能够在OSC介入之前有效地处理有害内容。

他说：“我们应该首先努力减少伤害的发生。”

长远目标应该是通过创建一个随着时间推移而自我调节的平台来减少案件数量，同时帮助人们理解所鼓励的社会行为类型。

“我们希望人们明白，你在屏幕后面所做的事情会产生后果，匿名并不意味着免责，”童说。

他还表示，与其单独看待每个案件，不如将它们作为一个整体进行评估，因为从大局来看，可以帮助揭示潜在的趋势，例如惯犯或可能传播网络危害的特定平台功能。

他说：“这不是数字的问题。如果我们能更快地解决（案件），那并不是好事。相反，我们应该努力缩小导致这些案件不断产生的差距。”

他说：“我们需要研究如何才能更全面地解决受害者面临的问题，并为他们提供更有效的补救措施。”他还补充说，OSC未来将与公众分享他们的见解。

活动结束后，童在接受媒体采访时还表示，OSC正在与各平台密切合作，制定明确的框架，完善补救措施，并改善受害者获得救济的途径。

OSC 计划解决 13 种网络危害，目前该委员会正在处理其中五种——私密图像滥用、基于图像的儿童虐待、人肉搜索、网络骚扰和网络跟踪——其余八种将逐步纳入其中。

dana.leong@asiaone.com