China's latest crackdown on message groups chills WeChat users

As smartphones became pervasive, users shifted to then-nascent WeChat, which was under less scrutiny than Weibo.

Self-censorship is kicking in fast on WeChat as China’s new rules on message groups casts a chill among the 963 million users of Tencent Holdings Ltd.’s social network.

Regulations released Sept 7 made creators of online groups responsible for managing information within their forums and the behaviour of members. While they don’t take effect until October, authorities have jumped into action by disciplining 40 people in one group for spreading petition letters while arresting a man who complained about police raids, according to reports in official Chinese media.