Legal action is being taken after match officials and players were subjected to online abuse during the Rugby World Cup.
A person in Australia has been charged with online abuse and a court hearing is scheduled for this week.
Multiple charges are also pending in Australia, South Africa, France, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.
World Rugby partnered with online watchdogs for the tournament and reported more than 1,600 fraudulent accounts on social media.
As a result, 90% of the most critical content was removed.
During the seven-week tournament held in France last fall, Signify Group confirmed that all match officials with public social accounts, including family members, and over 900 social media accounts, including World Rugby's official channels, were monitored by Signify Group. Ta.
Match officials receive 49% of the abuse.England's most abused team
World Cup final referee Wayne Barnes I retired After South Africa's 12-11 win over New Zealand in November, he told the BBC that he and his family had received “vicious” abuse on social media that “crossed the line”.
Mr Burns' wife Polly previously said: received a death threat After the match.
Referee Tom Foley announced in December he will be away from international rugby This was because of the “storm of criticism and abuse'' he received after the final when he served as a TV match official (TMO).
Match officials, including the TMO, were the recipients of 49% of all abuse during the tournament, with three of the match officials in the top 10 most targeted individuals, with Mr Burns the most targeted person. and suffered one-third of all abuse.
Game officials and their families were abused via private direct messages, leading to law enforcement intervention.
World Rugby said there was “clear evidence of a correlation” between online and offline comments by players and coaches, leading to abuse of match officials online and on-ground.
“Those who abuse or threaten players, match officials or their families must know there are consequences for their actions,” Burns said.
“It's great to see World Rugby taking the lead and bringing the first charges against the individuals who sent such a horrific message.
“There is no place for such behavior in rugby, in sports, or in society.''
Alan Gilpin, CEO of World Rugby, said: “The rise in online hatred in society and sport is alarming and completely unacceptable. We will continue to support the international game by bringing abusers to justice. “We will do everything possible to protect and support our officers and their families.”
The top geographical origins of fraudulent accounts were Europe (58%), followed by Africa at 19%, Oceania at 10%, and South America at 3%.
19 teams have received targeted abuse on their official accounts, with two European countries in the top three most abused teams, with the England team receiving the most abuse. , followed by South Africa and France.
Players were also subject to a wider range of types of abuse compared to match officials, who received 24% of abuse related to match-fixing.
World Rugby has confirmed that monitoring will continue into 2024 and will also include international match officials who run men's and women's test matches.
Gilpin continued, “We were able to expose and identify abusers and take action through law enforcement in multiple countries. We are confident that prosecutors will send a clear message that such behavior will not be tolerated. “We expect them to send it to us, even if the person is hiding under a false name.” On social media networks, they can be identified and charged.
“It is important to note that this program does not stifle debate, legitimate criticism or freedom of speech, but rather upholds the values of respect, compassion, decent human beings and rugby.”