A United Nations free speech envoy has signaled scrutiny of Korea’s new “anti-false information” law, as Korean lawyers warn it could amount to state censorship and a threat to digital trade. In response to a Korea Times inquiry addressed to Irene Khan, the U.N. special rapporteur on freedom of expression, her secretariat confirmed that the mandate is actively monitoring the situation following President Lee Jae Myung’s approval of the law earlier this week. “The Special Rapporteur is following this matter very closely. We regret that it was not possible to take action before, due to numerous other commitments, but we will continue to work on this matter,” the secretariat said, indicating that further U.N. engagement is under consideration. The law targets the spread of “false” or “manipulated” information online, covering news outlets as well as major digital platforms. It allows courts to order punitive damages of up to five times the proven harm when media organizations or large online channels are found to have intentionally disseminated fabricated content for pr