With a surge in the recent use of social media, we have seen an increased use of the Anti-Cyber Crime Law against individuals posting defamatory comments on Twitter and other social media platforms.
Consequently, we have acted and advised on a number of cases involving the Anti-Cyber Crime Law. As violations constitute criminal actions, a complainant would be entitled to file a criminal complaint against the alleged perpetrator, which the Bureau of Public Prosecution may pursue in its discretion, as well as to bring civil actions for compensation against the defendant in question.
In our experience, we have noted a trend in the judiciary taking an expansive view of what constitutes a crime for the purposes of the Anti-Cyber Crime Law, with alleged ”defamatory” comments on social media platforms being regarded as breaches of the widely-worded articles 3(5) (defaming or inflicting damage upon others through IT devices) or 6(1) (transmitting material that impinges on public order, religious values, public morals, and privacy through information networks or computers) of the law.
We have also advised on civil claims for compensation in relation to reputational damages arising from defamatory comments made on social media platforms and other media formats.
