In modern society there is an active development of communications. Information systems have become an integral part of human life, which makes it possible to obtain, distort and falsify information about a person. These actions are crimes against human rights prescribed in the Constitution. In addition, such violations are criminalized, as evidenced by Art. 137.
Privacy protection
The fact that no one has the right to infringe on the honor and personal and family life of a citizen is said not only in the main state law, but also in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. What does violating privacy mean? This concept means the unauthorized interference of citizens, the state, its bodies and any officials in family and personal secrets. Legal mechanisms protect the privacy of every citizen. The level of this guarantee is the degree of freedom and democratic society. Violations in this area are criminally punishable, as art. 137.
Comment
The Constitution spells out the rights that are protected by the Criminal Code. Their violation is prosecuted by law. So, in Art. 137 it is a question of protecting personal or family secrets, the disclosure of which may lead to punishment of varying degrees. The subject here is social relations, which ensure the interests of each individual citizen. Private life - a set of rights, secrets, information that have a natural or acquired character. Any dissemination of such information is criminally punishable, with the exception of certain cases provided for by the Federal Law.
Dissemination of Information
The law prohibits the transfer of information about a person’s personal life without his consent. Especially if this information discredits honor. The collection and dissemination of such information is punishable in accordance with Art. 137 of the Criminal Code, with a fine, imprisonment or a ban on holding certain posts. Moreover, personal information can also be understood as personal correspondence, one of the participants of which is the accused.
In judicial practice, there are cases when citizens applied to the courts with a statement on the dissemination of personal information, which had the form of private correspondence on a social network. In one of these cases, the accused, having visited a rather visited site, published correspondence with the victim in a form accessible to other users. This information somewhat undermined the reputation of a citizen, for which she took such decisive measures. The size of the fine for such a crime is up to two hundred thousand rubles (part 1 of article 137). Imprisonment is also provided. But in this case, the case did not reach the verdict. The victim later filed a lawsuit with the court to dismiss the case, since the conflict was resolved peacefully.
Personal secret
The most severely punished is the disclosure of information relating to the particularly sensitive side of a person’s private life. Personal secrets - information that may relate to health status, addictions, physical disabilities, etc. Members of almost every family store information that is undesirable for distribution to outsiders. In this case, we are talking about family secrets, an example of which can be information about adoption.
In one of the courts of the Perm Territory in 2015, a case was examined on the charge of a certain citizen of a crime, the punishment of which is provided for in Art. 137 of the Criminal Code.The bottom line was to publish photos of an intimate nature all in the same social network. Privacy violation is a crime, the punishment for which depends on the court decision. As already mentioned, the accused can be fined and detained. In some cases, for the commission of a crime falling under Art. 137, the court may impose a ban on holding a position. In the case of a Perm user of a social network, a fine was imposed. The amount amounted to 50 thousand rubles, according to Art. 137 of the Criminal Code. The court took into account the fact that the accused was not previously involved, and also admitted his deed.
Crime and use of official position
In Art. 137 para. 2 states that if a person violated the privacy of another and did so using his official position, he may be punished by a court with a fine of one hundred thousand rubles. Imprisonment for such a crime can be up to four years.
Dissemination of information in the media
If a person’s personal secret is publicly demonstrated, then the punishment of the author of such actions is much stricter than in the cases described above. The size of the fine will be from one hundred and fifty thousand. If the guilt is proven, and in the case of the accused there are some aggravating circumstances, he can spend up to five years behind bars.
In February 2015, a woman appealed to the court with a complaint against the editorial office of a well-known newspaper, whose activities mainly boil down to publishing scandalous information. The official website of this periodical contained material that contained information about the plaintiff's intimate life. The victim claimed moral damages in the amount of five million rubles from the defendant.
The arguments were not only the published text, but also the photos that were attached to it. But the lawsuit was only partially satisfied. The fact is that the photos were taken in public, accessible places, and for a fee. The victim gave an interview to one of the newspaper’s employees on a voluntary basis. But nevertheless, the court sentenced. The newspaper’s editors were forced to compensate the plaintiff for moral damage, but the fine amounted to only thirty thousand rubles.
On the rights of journalists
The federal law spells out the rights of journalists. Representatives of this profession have the right to disclose information if these actions are in the public interest. In a democracy, freedom of speech and thought are important categories. The public has the right to receive information of various nature. A journalist contributes to the realization of this right and does not violate the law as long as his activities do not go beyond the interests of individual citizens. Information about individuals can be collected and disseminated publicly only with their written consent.
Crime against a minor
If the victim in the proceedings under Art. 137, a person who is under the age of sixteen is advocated; the trial takes place according to the same pattern. The fine, if the accused is proven guilty, can be three hundred and fifty thousand. Imprisonment, with the worst picture for the accused, is five years. Also, the distributor of information regarding the life of a minor citizen may be deprived of the right to occupy a certain position for six years.
If a citizen, possessing information on adoption, a fact of which occurred in a family he is familiar with, disseminates this information to other persons, such actions can be considered in court. In this case, you can refer to parts 1 and 3 of the criminal article in question.
On practice
The activities of journalists are related to the collection and transmission to the public of information of a different nature.Therefore, in court practice, as a rule, cases related to the unauthorized distribution of intimate information from the life of a famous person in the media are considered. However, violating constitutional law is not only the representatives of the yellow press.
With the development of the media, many netizens who do not have a high moral character believe that Internet sites are a suitable place where the ill-wisher can be discredited, put in an unsightly form. Few victims of such acts are aware of the criminal liability that their offenders must bear. And if they know, then they are in no hurry to contact the police. The materials that serve as the main evidence in such a case, not everyone wants to demonstrate to the executive branch.
As a rule, in judicial practice, cases involving the violation of personal secrets end with the reconciliation of the parties. But if this does not happen, the defendant pays a small fine. Very rarely, punishment can be more severe. So, in one of the Russian courts, the case was considered on charges of disseminating personal information about his ex-girlfriend. The defendant was sentenced to six months of corrective labor. And this is taking into account the fact that he had not been prosecuted before.
For someone who ignores constitutional rights and not only disseminates information defaming a person, but also bases it on speculation and his own imagination, the consequences can be completely sad. So, in one of the cities in the Urals, a girl, on the basis of jealousy, published a photo of her rival on the Web with a note on the provision of the last intimate services. She also indicated the phone and other contact details. The case was considered not only on the basis of an article on violation of personal life. The fact of slander was also taken into account. The girl faces up to two years in prison.
Knowledge of the Criminal Code provides security. Many citizens, being a victim of a violation of constitutional rights, not knowing about it, do not take appropriate measures, thereby indirectly contributing to further illegal activities. It takes place today in the media, its authors are often employees of collection agencies. Ordinary people violate the law, believing that a small revenge in the form of publishing scandalous information on the Internet will go unpunished.
