網際網路違法內容治理之比較觀察──以歐盟與英國法制為例

Comparative Analysis of Online Illegal Content Governance: A Study of the Legal Frameworks of the European Union and the United Kingdom

隨著網際網路連線服務與高速連網個人裝置的普及化，網際網路已成為現代大眾傳播與接收資訊的重要管道。其雖有利於服務創新和資訊傳播，然而，也使網際網路輕易被利用作為傳播各種違法與有害內容的工具。惟當政府欲以傳統高權手段處置網際網路上之違法內容時，因網路內容具有跨境、匿名、多元、快速、大量、重複的特性，於管制或取締違法內容時往往面臨諸多困難。究其根源，實與網際網路去中心化之特質密切相關。因此，歐盟數位服務法和英國線上安全法均選擇對於傳播網路資訊具有關鍵性地位的數位中介服務者予以規範，期收就源整治之效。本文探討網際網路違法內容的特性、違法內容的界定與相關網際網路服務提供者責任等議題，以歐盟數位服務法（Digital Services Act）和英國線上安全法（Online Safety Act）為例進行比較觀察，剖析兩者立法模式的主要差異，進而省視我國目前法制下網際網路服務業者之責任限制問題及新近個別議題式網路立法趨勢。

With the widespread availability of internet services and high-speed internet connecting personal devices, the internet has become an essential channel for modern mass communication and information reception. While it facilitates service innovation and information dissemination, it also makes the internet an easy tool for spreading illegal and harmful content. However, when governments attempt to use traditional regulatory means to address illegal content online, they often face numerous challenges due to the characteristics of online illegal content, which are cross-border, anonymous, various, fast-spreading, massive, and repetitive. The root of these challenges is closely related to the internet’s decentralized nature. As a result, the European Union’s Digital Services Act and the United Kingdom’s Online Safety Act both choose to regulate internet intermediaries that play a key role in disseminating online information, hoping to achieve a source-based regulatory effect. This paper explores the characteristics of online illegal content, the definition of illegal content, and the responsibilities of relevant internet service providers, comparing the EU’s Digital Services Act and the UK’s Online Safety Act. It analyzes the major differences between the legislative models and reflects on the current legal framework in Taiwan concerning internet service providers’liability and the emerging trend of issue-specific online legislation.