Liability of Network Service Providers: Electronic Commerce Act -1998

Electronic Commerce Act - 1998

Part XI -- Liability of Network Service Providers

48. Liability of Network Service Providers.

(a) A network service provider shall not be subject to any civil or criminal liability under any rule of law in respect of third party material in the form of electronic records to which such provider merely provides access if such liability is founded on:

(i) the making, publication, dissemination or distribution of such materials or any statement made in such material; or

(ii) the infringement of any rights subsisting in or in relation to such material.
(b) Nothing in this section shall affect:

(i) any obligation of the network service provider founded on principles of contract law;

(ii) the obligation of a network service provider as such under a licensing or other regulatory regime established under any enactment for the time being in force; or

(iii) any obligation imposed under any enactment for the time being in force or by a court to remove, block or deny access to any material;

(iv) the provisions of Section 52 of this Act.
(c) Nothing in clause (a) of this section shall render a network service provider immune from liability for any violation of law for the time being in force (including provisions of this Act) committed intentionally or knowingly.
Source: Singapore Electronic Transactions Act §10.

Comment: The protection afforded by this section is intended to encompass Internet access and service providers, as well as providers of online services and providers of telecommunications services necessary to access the Internet or other interactive computer services. The liability of network service providers has been extremely controversial in the United States and other countries. A statute enacted in the United States in 1996, the "Communications Decency Act," included language protecting providers of Internet access from liability as publishers for statements published online by system subscribers or other third-parties. Although the portions of the Communications Decency Act governing indecent material were subsequently found unconstitutional by the United States Supreme Court, the provisions protecting access providers have been held, in several U.S. cases, to protect Internet service and access providers from liability for defamation based upon statements published online by service subscribers. In addition, several statutes currently pending in the United States would, under some circumstances, protect Internet service providers from contributory liability for copyright infringement based on third party activities. In protecting access providers from liability, the courts in the United States have cited the difficulty of screening transmissions on an interactive computer service, as well as the fear of inhibiting the development of Internet communications by imposing liability on network service providers for activities over which they have little control. These principles have been recognized in the International community as well. During the WIPO Diplomatic Convention to adopt new copyright treaties conducted in Geneva in 1996, draft provisions of the treaties that would have imposed liability on Internet service providers and other network operators were deleted from the final drafts of the treaties. Of course, network service providers should not be immunized from intentional acts that are in violation of the law.