House bill seeking to ‘criminalize troll farms’ filed
MANILA, Philippines — A bill seeking to “criminalize troll farms and disinformation campaigns” was filed before the House of Representatives.
PBA party-list Rep. Margarita Nograles-Almario and Davao Oriental 2nd District Rep. Cheeno Miguel Almario filed House Bill (HB) 11178 or the Anti-Troll Farm and Election Disinformation Act on December 5.
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According to the lawmakers, the bill aims “to protect the sanctity of Philippine elections by holding perpetrators accountable and promoting truth and transparency in the democratic process.”
“Troll farms are not just digital pranks—they are systematic tools designed to deceive voters and distort democracy,” Nograles-Almario’s statement on Monday reads.
Among the actions that the bill seeks to prohibit are the operation of troll farms, creation and dissemination of electoral disinformation, and collusion for disinformation.
Article continues after this advertisementIt aims to penalize violators with imprisonment of six to 12 years and a fine ranging from P500,000 to P10 million.
Article continues after this advertisementHB 11178 also seeks to “disqualify political candidates” benefiting from troll farms’ activities and hold online platforms accountable for being instruments for disinformation.
The bill aims to protect whistleblowers and task the Commission on Elections to work with the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center, the National Bureau of Investigation, and the Philippine National Police-Anti-Cybercrime Group to probe troll farms.
Moreover, it seeks to promote awareness online through educational campaigns by the Department of Education, the Commission on Higher Education, and the Department of Information and Communications Technology.
“The bill recognizes the critical role of insiders in bringing these clandestine operations to light and provides mechanisms to shield them from retaliation. Transparency is central to the measure, ensuring that investigations into troll farms are conducted fairly and without political bias,” the bill’s authors said.
