- California (Silicon Valley), USA on 12 September 2016, hosted by Microsoft Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on 03 November 2016, hosted by the Institute of Strategic and International Studies (ISIS), Malaysia Some 45 participants from the private sector, civil society and academia and regional organizations attended each workshop (Annex 1). An Advisory Group involving UN representatives, senior policy representatives from global technology companies, academic and civil society experts and regional organizations accompanied implementation of the project and the workshops (Annex 2). 2. Key findings 2.1 An Emerging Policy Framework Unlike other sectors such as the financial services and the telecommunications sectors, which are highly regulated and where which formal requirements and obligations have already been established, regulation vis-à-vis the internet and the services and products that operate through it remains largely voluntary, due in large part to the trans-border complexities of the domain itself. This poses challenges on a number of fronts, particularly when dealing with online terrorist or violent extremist content and activity. There is a growing trend, however, of self-regulation efforts among by industry actors in response to online terrorist content and activity. Indeed, in some regions, technology and social media companies are sharing experiences, policy and practice on content management-related issues and participating in multi-stakeholder or public-private initiatives such as the Global Network Initiative dialogue or the EU Internet Forum. 1 The combined results of these efforts, which in some instances combine with stepped-up efforts of the telecommunications sector to respond to important normative concerns, suggest the emergence of a voluntary policy framework guiding both private and public sector action in this area.2 While still at an early stage, this emerging policy framework recognizes the importance of enhancing public safety with actions that remain anchored in the rule of law, protecting and respecting human rights and fundamental freedoms consistent with international law, including international human rights law, and upholding core principles such as transparency, accountability, predictability and remedy.3 1 In 2015, GNI launched a policy dialogue to explore key questions and considerations concerning government efforts to restrict online content with the aim of protecting public safety, and to discuss the human rights implications of such government actions. To this end it has convened a series of roundtable discussions with academic, civil society, investor, and company participants with other experts and representatives from governments and international organizations. The consultations and extensive deliberations have resulted in a set of recommendations for governments and companies. See ‘Extremist Content and the ICT Sector: A Global Initiative Policy Brief’, forthcoming, November 2016. Available at: Available at: https://www.globalnetworkinitiative.org/sites/default/files/Extremist-Content-andICT-Sector.pdf The EU Internet Forum was established in December 2015. It brings together EU Interior Ministers, high-level representatives of major internet companies, Europol, the EU Counter Terrorism Co-ordinator and the European Parliament. The goal is to reach a joint, voluntary approach based on a public-private partnership to detect and address harmful material online by protecting the public from the spread of terrorist material and terrorist exploitation of communication channels to facilitate and direct their activities and making better use of the Internet to challenge terrorist narratives and online hate speech. See: http://europa.eu/rapid/pressrelease_IP-15-6243_en.htm 2 On the telecommunications industry and key normative issues such as freedom of expression and privacy, see the Telecommunications Industry Dialogue as well as the growing participation of telecommunications companies in the GNI’s work, including its policy dialogues: http://www.telecomindustrydialogue.org and https://www.globalnetworkinitiative.org/news/global-networkinitiative-and-telecommunications-industry-dialogue-join-forces-advance-freedom 3 Ibid. See also the UN Business and Human Rights Principles in Business and Human Rights: Implementing the United Nations “Protect, Respect and Remedy Framework” (A/HRC/17/4 and A/HRC/17/31); the European Commission’s ICT Sector Guide on Implementing the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights; the Manila Principles of Intermediary Liability; and the African Declaration on Internet Rights and Freedoms and the GNI Principles on Freedom of Expression and Privacy. 4