The Council of Ministers, at its weekly meeting chaired by Mostafa Madbouly on Wednesday, October 28, 2026, discussed the findings of a committee formed by Prime Minister’s Decision No. 2417 of 2026 to study how to counter “negative practices” on social media. Its recommendations included establishing a national system to automatically monitor violating content and identify those responsible for it, and an operations room that would decide on a warning, suspension of service, blocking, or referral to the competent authorities. Justice Minister Mahmoud Helmy El-Sherif presented the committee’s findings, and Madbouly ordered the formation of a working group to follow up on implementing its outputs.
The committee proposes that the system rely on the capabilities of the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, the National Telecom Regulatory Authority, and the Supreme Council for Media Regulation, which holds blocking and removal powers, and that the “Content Unit” at the National Telecom Regulatory Authority, the state’s channel for dealing with digital platforms, be turned into an integrated national technical center that would start by operating an automated system to monitor violations. Detected violations would be referred to an operations room including a representative of the Ministry of State for Media and experts in social, psychological, cultural and artistic fields, which would classify them, distinguish between individual violations and organized, systematic practices, and escalate measures according to their severity.
On the legislative level, the committee recommended preparing a draft law amending the Penal Code to toughen fines for rumor and false news offenses, and agreeing on general rules for digital safety through the anticipated “Digital Safety Law,” in a way that strengthens the state’s role in regulating and overseeing the digital environment. It also recommended that the Ministry of Awqaf, Al-Azhar and the Coptic Church explain how these practices conflict with religious values, that the Ministry of Education dedicate a curriculum and classes to their risks, and that the Ministries of Communications and State for Media launch awareness campaigns and send warning text messages.
Madbouly had held a meeting on Wednesday, July 29, 2026, with the ministers of communications, justice and state for media and the heads of the media bodies and the National Telecom Regulatory Authority to discuss executive frameworks for countering the risks of social media, in which he said the government respects freedom of opinion and expression, but social media has become an arena for irresponsible behavior. Participants agreed at the time on wide awareness campaigns, a legislative review and tougher financial penalties.
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