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China's National Cultural Heritage Administration (NCHA) and the Office of the Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission have jointly announced a special campaign to "combat and prevent cultural relic crimes and strengthen regulation of content related to ancient tombs presented in short videos and livestreaming activities," according to a notice from the official website of the NCHA.

"This campaign represents a positive step by strictly managing and regulating issues related to treasure hunting and artifact identification online and in society. Such measures will help contribute to fostering a healthy social atmosphere," Liu Zheng, a member of the China Cultural Relics Academy, told the Global Times.

According to the notice, currently, some online short videos and livestreams include content about tomb raiding, ancient tomb exploration, faking archaeological sites, and illegal identification of unearthed artifacts. In pursuit of views, certain video creators and influencers are distorting the values of archaeology, using themes like "treasure hunting," "adventure," and "sky-high prices" as bait, promoting harmful beliefs such as superstition and instant wealth.

Additionally, some video creators and influencers also "facilitate" illegal activities related to tomb raiding or "assist" the offline trafficking of artifacts through online promotion, misleading the public, disrupting cultural heritage management, and endangering artifact safety, said the notice.

"The behaviors of these video creators not only violate the law but also undermine the protection of cultural heritage," Sun Hang, a Hangzhou-based lawyer, told the Global Times.

According to Sun, China's regulations have established strict legal boundaries against such actions. Specifically, activities like tomb raiding and trafficking in cultural relics are serious criminal offenses. "If a blogger directly participates in these activities or aids a crime by providing information, technical support, or other means, they may be charged with the crime of aiding the information network for criminal activities. In severe cases, they could face imprisonment and fines," said Sun.

The campaign will focus on the listed harmful content. It will target content that distorts the significance of archaeological work, promotes illegal artifact identification, and misleads the public.

Amid the crackdown, across various regions, many cultural heritage protection associations and academies have been established under the guidance of cultural relic departments, Liu noted. With their support, those in need of artifact identification can rely on these organizations for their needs and participation in preservation activities, making the process "more reliable and effective." 

The notice said that several online platform companies were invited to participate in a discussion forum. Authorities urged these platforms to strengthen the implementation of their responsibilities, enhance content moderation, and standardize operations for key short videos and livestreams. Platforms have been asked to cooperate closely with law enforcement on cases of suspected criminal activity, sharing relevant data when needed.

Cultural heritage and cybersecurity departments across various regions will also enhance collaboration, streamline reporting channels, and work together to create a clean and positive online environment and public discourse, said the notice.

In recent years, both national and local governments have introduced a series of policies and regulations to standardize the development of the streaming industry, Sun told the Global Times. The Provisions on the Administration of Internet Live-Streaming Services and other laws clarify the regulatory obligations of internet platforms.

"Platforms should take actions to enhance content moderation, such as utilizing AI recognition and manual review to strictly control content related to tomb raiding and archaeological forgery, promptly taking down any harmful information that appears," Sun said. 

Additionally, platforms should establish rapid reporting mechanisms to promptly report suspected illegal content to relevant authorities and assist law enforcement in investigations, Sun added.