The Cyberspace Administration of China pledged on Tuesday to severely punish illegal online activities that damage the image and reputation of enterprises and entrepreneurs.

Shen Yue, director of the CAC's illegal and negative information reporting center, said different sorts of false information targeting enterprises and entrepreneurs, especially private enterprises and entrepreneurs, appear from time to time on the Internet, which has damaged the brand image of enterprises, infringed on the legitimate rights and interests of entrepreneurs, and even affected the normal production and operation of enterprises, resulting in economic losses for enterprises and damage to the reputation of entrepreneurs.

The central government has paid great attention to this issue, and the business community has reacted strongly to the false information infringement, she said.

The CAC plans to launch a special operation to clean up the online environment for business and protect the lawful rights and interests of enterprises, which aims to focus on the typical and prominent problems that damage the business environment online.

"We will protect the legitimate rights and interests of enterprises and entrepreneurs online and step up efforts to address cyberchaos caused by fabricating and spreading false information," she said.

Six types of false and untrue information: fabrication, subjective assumption, distorted interpretation, maliciously creating interrelations, deliberate speculation and stirring up old news related to enterprises on the Internet will be timely dealt with during the operation, she said.

Infringements such as disclosure of privacy, slander and insult, hyping negative news, fabricating criminal facts, and illegal use of names and portraits will also be promptly handled, she said.

Authorities will severely crack down on illegal online activities that damage the image and reputation of enterprises and entrepreneurs and even seek illegal profits from them.