The spread of threats of physical violence on social networks is far from a rare occurrence. Being away from his victim, the aggressor sometimes feels impunity and continues to poison the person’s life, intimidating him with his messages.
However, just like in real life, such behavior on the Internet is illegal and is punishable by law, including criminal punishment. The main legal act regulating liability for spreading a threat to human life and health (including on social networks) is Article 119 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.
There is no separate regulation providing for punishment for spreading threats on the Internet.
Composition of the crime of threats via the Internet
A criminal threat is the intent of one person to cause serious harm to the health of another person or even take his life. This intention can be expressed verbally or in writing, supported by specific actions, gestures, and demonstration of objects that could potentially cause damage to health.
It doesn't matter whether the attacker actually intended to carry out his plans or not. The fundamental point is that the potential victim perceives the aggressor’s intentions as a real danger. Constantly being in anticipation of physical violence can cause an actual deterioration in the physical and psychological well-being of an individual.
When assessing the offender's statements, the relationship between the parties to the conflict, the circumstances in which the threat was made, the content of the threat and the frequency of its expression are taken into account.
Federal Trade Commission Act
The Federal Trade Commission Act of 1914 established the US Federal Trade Commission. It was also designed to outlaw unfair practices of competition and unfair practices and practices affecting trade.
Currently, the Federal Trade Commission does not directly determine what information should be included in a website's privacy policy, but it does use its authority to pass regulations, enforce privacy laws, and protect consumers. For example, the Federal Trade Commission may take action against organizations that:
- Failure to comply with the posted privacy policy.
- They transmit personal information in a manner not described in the privacy policy.
- Use privacy and security language in privacy policies that is ambiguous from a consumer perspective.
- Fails to implement or maintain required data security measures.
- Do not comply with the principles of self-regulation applied in the organization's industry.
The Federal Trade Commission plays an important role in regulating the Internet, not least by checking misleading claims by leading technology and social media companies about the privacy of the user data they collect. For example, the Federal Trade Commission has reviewed complaints against Facebook for its use of user data.
Peculiarities
From the point of view of the law, any threat is a crime, and there is a penalty for it. However, since on the Internet it is, in principle, quite easy to encounter manifestations of rudeness and hatred, including from anonymous ill-wishers, the main problems in bringing an aggressor to justice may be confirming the validity of the threats emanating from the criminal, as well as identifying his identity.
It must be proven that the aggressor, intimidating the victim and demonstrating his intentions to harm her life and health, did everything possible to ensure that his actions were perceived as a real danger. We talked more about what intimidation is and what punishment is provided for it in this material.
To confirm illegal actions, it is necessary to take a screenshot of the attacker’s post on a social network, since he can subsequently delete it. It is strongly recommended that the screenshot containing the threat be certified by a notary office. The notary must draw up an “Act of Inspection of a Page on the Internet.”
In addition, if, in addition to online intimidation, the victim receives face-to-face threats either directly from the attacker, or by telephone, or in the form of a letter, it is also advisable to record them: find witnesses and record the telephone conversation (details on what to do if threats are received by telephone read here).
How to protect personal data on the Internet: secure connection
One way to protect your personal data online is to use secure connections. When you search for something on the Internet, send an email, or use a navigator on your phone, you exchange data with the server. While information is in transit, it must be protected.
One of the first steps to protecting your personal information online is to make sure your connection is secure. On your home router you need to set a strong password that is difficult to guess. It would also be a good idea to change the username: it often includes the name of your ISP or router manufacturer. Such information may be useful to attackers. If you have a home Wi-Fi network, use the WPA encryption protocol to prevent strangers from using it.
Now free Wi-Fi is available in many cafes, hotels and other public places - you can surf the Internet almost anywhere. But be careful: public Wi-Fi is extremely insecure. If an open network uses simple authentication, it's easy to connect to. However, you can just as easily become a victim of a cybercriminal. Do not use public Wi-Fi to pay for purchases, transfer funds, or exchange sensitive data.
Use a virtual private network (VPN) to help protect your Wi-Fi from hacking. This technology establishes an encrypted connection between your device and the server. With its help, you will hide your actions on the Internet from prying eyes. So a VPN will keep you safe even if you're using public Wi-Fi.
To transfer sensitive data, it is better to use a secure browser and sites with the HTTPS protocol rather than HTTP. An HTTP page can be hacked by spyware that will remember all the data you entered (for example, login and password for an online account at a bank).
HTTPS sites use SSL and TSL protocols to encrypt your connection. Simply put, this protocol creates a secure digital environment in which you can exchange data through a browser without the risk of being “overheard”—sort of like a secure handshake. When using SSL, a padlock will appear in your browser's address bar, and the website name will begin with https instead of http. If you want to learn more about the site's certificate, click on the padlock.
Some online messengers are very unreliable in terms of privacy. For example, your Facebook conversations are not protected unless you enable Secret Messages mode. This feature is only available in the Facebook Messenger app for iPhone and Android devices; it is not available in the browser version. WhatsApp and Viber messengers, on the other hand, use encryption, so they are much more secure.
Examples
- After a divorce, a woman systematically received messages from her ex-husband on one of the social networks threatening to disfigure her face. The reason for the divorce was the man's alcohol abuse. In addition, he was repeatedly prosecuted for beatings. Knowing the violent nature of her ex-husband, the woman had every reason to fear for her life and file a complaint with the police after receiving threats (you can find out where to go if your ex-husband threatens with violence, insults or stalks you here).
- On one of his posts, the man received a comment from an unknown person: “I would kill for such words!” Since the commentator did not express any other actions of his intention to commit a crime against the author of the post, due to the lack of reality of the threat being carried out, there is no corpus delicti.
Specific example
The man believed that the famous phrase from the film “Gentlemen of Fortune” - “I’ll tear the jaws, I’ll gouge out the blinkers” is an aphorism. In one of the Internet chats, while communicating with someone, he wrote exactly that. After this, what is important, he did not stop threatening, he repeated and repeated this phrase and even began to develop exactly how, where, why and why he would perform the described actions.
The person whom he threatened in such a joking manner, as he believed, wrote a statement against him. Having analyzed all the correspondence and the applicant’s condition, the investigation came to the conclusion that this constitutes a crime under Article 119 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.
Procedure
What to do if you are threatened on the Internet: on VK and other sites? If you receive a threat to life or health, you must immediately contact the police with a corresponding statement. Often the police do not show much activity in bringing the culprit to justice and limit themselves to explanatory conversations with him.
Important. Within the framework of the law, the victim can try to achieve justice by all legal means, in particular if the offender was not punished under Art. 119 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, then you can try to recover compensation from him in court for moral damage caused (Article 151 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation or 128.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).
Algorithm
You need to file a complaint at the police station at your place of registration. There is no uniform standard for the application, but there are some requirements for its content. An approximate sample application can be obtained from the local police officer or downloaded from our website.
The application must state the situation as fully as possible, attaching supporting documents (screenshot of a message with a threat, etc.)
- After registering the application with the police, a pre-investigation check will begin, following which a decision will be made to initiate a criminal case or to refuse. The applicant has the right to familiarize himself with the decision and inspection materials.
- If a refusal is received, the victim can appeal the refusal decision by writing a corresponding statement addressed to the head of the investigative body, to the prosecutor's office, or by sending a statement of claim to the court. In this case, it is necessary to provide convincing evidence that the victim assesses the likelihood of unlawful actions being committed against him as very high.
Legal settlement
If the initiation of a criminal case was refused, but fears for life and health remain, the citizen has the right to send a statement of claim to the district court in accordance with the procedure provided for in Chapter 16 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation.
The statement of claim must contain:
- the name of the judicial authority where the plaintiff submits the application;
- Full name of the plaintiff and address of his place of residence;
- Full name of the defendant;
- the essence of the appeal is the presence of a threat to life and health;
- a detailed statement of the circumstances under which the threat was received;
- providing evidence confirming the fact of an unlawful act.
If necessary, you can contact specialized legal organizations that will help you competently draw up a statement of claim.
In order to convince the court, you need to provide significant evidence that there is a high probability of committing an illegal act. It is advisable to collect additional arguments to substantiate your concerns:
- testimony of witnesses who can confirm the opponent’s hostile attitude;
- certified screenshots on social networks and/or audio/video/photos and other materials containing the fact of a threat: recordings of telephone calls, SMS messages, letters (including emails), etc.
The state fee for filing a claim will be 300 rubles.
US Privacy Act of 1974
Although the Privacy Act of 1974 predates the advent of the Internet, it can be considered the basis of most data and Internet privacy laws in the United States. The law was passed in response to the growing amount of personal data stored in computer databases of US government agencies. The law included the following rights and restrictions:
- The right of US citizens to access data held by government agencies and the right to a copy of that data.
- The right of citizens to correct any information errors.
- The right of agencies to collect only the minimum necessary relevant information necessary to achieve their purposes.
- Restricting access to data on a need-to-know basis.
- Restriction on sharing of information between Federal and non-Federal agencies: Sharing is permitted only under certain conditions.
However, the advent of the Internet has changed the definition of privacy and required new data security laws regarding electronic communications.
Responsibility under Art. 119 for a threat via the Internet
The first part of Art. 119 provides for the following types of punishment for threats to kill or cause grievous bodily harm without qualifying criteria:
- compulsory work up to four hundred eighty hours;
- restriction of freedom for up to two years;
- forced labor for up to two years;
- arrest up to six months;
- imprisonment for up to two years.
The second part applies to threats made based on political, religious, or national hatred. In these cases, more serious penalties are provided, up to five years in prison.
Therefore, you should think carefully before making threats on VK and other Internet sites.
When to file a complaint?
If you cannot agree on a discount with the debt collector, you should file a complaint even for the first and single violation. If a collection company commits many minor or two serious violations, it may be excluded from the FSSP register, deprived of its certificate and prohibited from working in the debt collection market. The same consequences occur with systematic violations committed during the year.
If you ignore a minor violation of the law, debt collectors may feel impunity and move on to more serious actions. For example, insults in a conversation can turn to threats, real violent methods. Not only the debtor himself, but also his family members and close people can suffer.
Sample complaint to the prosecutor's office against debt collectors (18.7 KB)
