Crimes of insult and slander using one of the means of information technologyAccording to COMBATING CYBERCRIMES law No.5 of 2012 WhatsApp: +971555570005
Crimes of insult and slander using one of the means of information technology
According to COMBATING CYBERCRIMES law No.5 of 2012
The spread of the internet, modern technology and social media provided ample space to express opinions, ideas and perspectives, and enhanced the freedom of expression and criticism.
But this freedom of expression may be misused by some people to the point of insulting and slandering others, considering that its merely a virtual world with no legal authority over it .and this is a misconception .The UAE legislator has enacted laws that affirm the protection of individuals form insulation, Slandering, defamation, and libeling .As stated in article (20) of federal law No.5 of 2012 on combating cybercrimes in UAE, which stated
“Without prejudice to the crime of slander determined by the Islamic Sharia, shall be punished by imprisonment and a fine not less than two hundred fifty thousand dirhams and not in excess of five hundred thousand dirhams or either of these two penalties whoever insults or accuses another person of a matter of which he shall be subject to punishment or being held in contempt by others, by using a computer network or an information technology means”.
The right of a person to preserve his reputation and respect it by other is inherent and inalienable. the technical ability to photograph people or broadcast their information (whether real or false) this does not entail a change in the human’s right to respect his reputation .so the everyone should be careful when exposing others on the web and should be fully aware of their rights .
The penalty shall be aggravated if the person insulted or contempt is a public official.
“If a slander or insult is committed against a public official or servant in the course of or because of his work, this shall be considered an aggravating factor of the crime”.
When a person is insulted, abused or assigned to any incident that would make him punishable, he must first report through the app or social networking site in order to delete and limit the offending content and report the account of the abuser who misused the application or social networking service, where in sometimes they may block the abuser’s account completely.
From the legal and penal point of view, the victim can file a complaint to the IT Crimes Unit or any Police Department to identify the procedures necessary to file the complaint, he or she must have copies of the conversations and comments which he or she is insulted in, or by using al-Ameen service on the internet, all this done by a competent and technical staff while maintaining the confidentiality and privacy of the victim, where advanced techniques are available in IT crime units that allow access to abusive users through an IP address, which identifies every online device even if a fake user account is used.
The application must be submitted by the person who has been insulted or abused through applications or social media within a maximum period of 90 days from the date of abuse, as it is the maximum period that is maintained by the Internet register, which is allowed to be accessed by the security authorities only.
These laws may be considered strict from the point of view of some as their penalties are more severe than if they occurred in the natural reality, but they provide distinct protection of the image and reputation of individuals and institutions located in the UAE. This is because of the ease of abuse and the rapid expansion of the circle of those who see it when it is through social networks, which increases the victim’s vulnerability.
Finally, we must emphasize the fight against these offensive phenomena through the state and society by fighting the idea of impunity as long as it was defamed electronically, and it was one of the most important features of UAE law dealing with those crimes that it deter them, whether through e-mail or outside.
Mohamed Mahmoud Al Marzooqi law firm
Attorney / Mohamed Al Marzooqi
Mohamed Al Marzooqi advocates & Consultancy
Lawyer in Abu Dhabi, Dubai – UAE
