Kuala Lampur, Sept. 20 -- The Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (Pofma) is perhaps the most controversial piece of legislation passed by Singapore's parliament in recent times.

Becoming law in October 2019, the statute is intended to allow authorities in general and ministers and parliament in particular to combat fake news and misinformation online.

When authorities identifya piece of false or misleading news via Pofma, they can instruct the person/website originating the news to issue acorrection - placing a correction notice typically on the same page as the original article.

They can also ask for the original article to be removed. Failure to comply with a Pofma order can entail a fine and even imprisonment.

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