ILLEGAL ACTIVITIES ON SOCIAL NETWORKS

1. Illegal acts on social networks

Social networks are very convenient and used a lot around the world. However, if you do not use it correctly, there is a possibility that it is illegal. The Internet can be used equally all over the world normally, but social media laws are different in each country. I explain some topics about illegal acts on social networks in Japan.

2. Illegal acts on expression (Defamation, violation of privacy and insult, etc.)

(1) Introduction

The most common illegal activities on the Internet are illegal expressions about others, such as defamation, violation of the right to privacy or insult, through social networks. This issue is the most common Internet-related legal problem I get as a lawyer.

Expressions that harm others can be illegal. However, there is freedom of expression for all people. So, you need to know from what point you can express and from what point it will be illegal. When you think about illegal acts, you need to find out that there are two types of illegal acts: Criminal and Civil.

(2) Criminal

I Types of crimes

Possible crimes related to social media expression include defamation, insult, intimidation, business obstruction, trust defamation, etc.

Ii Crime of defamation (Meiyo Kison Zai (Article 230 of the criminal law))

Expressing facts that can damage a person's social reputation before an indeterminate number of people can be the crime of defamation. Expression on social networks is usually considered expression before an indeterminate number of people because anyone can see it. Whether the facts you have expressed are true or untrue is not important. It is necessary that others can understand who is the person who is expressed. But the name of the person is not necessary because if some people can assume who the person expressed is, it may be that the reputation would be damaged.

However, if the expression that damages another meets the following requirements, it would not be this crime:

(I) That facts of public interest are expressed

(Ii) That the purpose of the declaration was exclusively in the public interest.

(Iii) That its veracity has been proven.

For example, expression about the illegal acts of public persons such as governors, president of companies can meet these requirements and would not be a crime of defamation in many cases.

Iii Crime of Insults (Bujoku Zai (Article 231 of the criminal law))

The crime of injury is committed when a person insults another person in front of an indeterminate number of people. Insulting another person on social networks is usually considered insulting to an indeterminate number of people. The main difference between the crime of defamation and that of insult is that defamation needs to show a fact and insult does not need it. Writing "Fuck", "son of a bitch" is a crime of insult because it is not an expression of a fact. Writing "He made a robbery", "he and she do infidelity" is defamation because it is an expression of a fact.

Iv Other crimes

The crime of defamation and the crime of insult are the main part of crimes of expression on social networks. However, the illegal expression on social networks can also be several other crimes such as intimidation (Kyohaku Zai (Article 222 of the criminal law)), obstruction of business (Iryoku Gyomu Bogai Zai (Article 234 of the criminal law)), or defamation of trust (Shinyo Kison Zai (Article 233 of the criminal law)).

V Deportation

When a foreigner has committed a crime, it is necessary to think about the risk of deportation. If he commits the crime of defamation or insult and is sentenced to a prison sentence of one year or more, he would be deported. This regulation applies to all regardless of the type of visa you have.

(3) Civil

The main civil liability is an obligation to pay compensation for the victim. In practice, the number of cases that become criminal cases is not high, and in many cases only civil liability is pursued. The civil liability requirements of defamation and insult do not differ significantly from the requirements in criminal cases. However, criminal investigations are usually only carried out in serious cases. Therefore, in non-serious cases it is usually practiced only in civil cases. In civil cases, you can claim compensation and you can also claim that you delete illegal messages or articles on social networks.

In case you can know who the person who makes the expression illegal is, it won't be a big problem and you can claim against this person from the beginning. However, in case you cannot know who the person of illegal expression is, hard legal procedures are needed to find the person's information. For these procedures, several legal procedures are usually needed through the court and these procedures would take a long time and it costs a high cost to ask for a lawyer. Therefore, unfortunately it is not easy to pursue responsibility when the person who makes the illegal expression does not know.

In the case of invasion of privacy, it is only civil liability, since there is no crime of invasion of privacy and criminal responsibility cannot be prosecuted. The civil liability requirements for invasion of privacy are as follows:

(I) That expresses a private fact or the content that others think of as the private fact

(Ii) That expresses the fact that normal people do not want to show.

(Iii) That expresses the fact that you have not yet learned from others.

However, if the expression of violation of privacy is for high public interests, it may be legal.

There is no crime of violation of privacy. However, of course, if the invasion of privacy also fits into other crimes, such as the violation of defamation or trust defamation, the blame for these crimes will be put. Especially the expression of the invasion of privacy from time to time also constitutes defamation.

3. Internet Casinos

In Japan, gambling activities other than those specifically allowed, such as horse and bicycle races, are prohibited, and online casinos on which money is spent cannot be legally exploited. It is illegal to participate in gambling in Japan, even if the operation is carried out abroad. If you engage in gambling illegally, you may commit the crime of gambling (Tobaku Zai (Article 185 of the criminal law)).

So, aren't making raffles or raffles on the internet illegal gambling? First, only when participants have both the possibility of winning goods and losing their goods would it be illegal. In many cases in raffles or raffles the participants do not have the risk of losing their own assets. That's why that's not illegal. Second, it is not illegal if the game object is something about temporary entertainment. For example, when the object of play is juice or a small meal, it is not illegal even if participants are at risk of losing goods. That is, if the participants are at risk of losing goods and the object is not trivial things, raffles or raffles can also be illegal.

When a person who only has a work visa commits a gambling crime and is guilty in a criminal case, he can be deported even if he is sentenced to a light penalty.

4. The laws related to online sales

There are many people who start a sales business using the internet these days. When you start selling online, it would be better to take care of the laws so that it does not violate regulations. There is no law that regulates online sales in general, so a combination of different laws must be taken into account. Since online sales are a form of mail order, the Specific Business Operations Act (Tokutei Shotorihiki Ho) applies. There are detailed rules on the content of the ads, how to request them and how to return them etc. by this law. Other laws related to online sales are the Electronic Consumer Contracts Act (Shohisya Denshi Keiyaku Ho). There are several other laws related to online sales. For example, the Unjustifiable Premiums Act and Misleading Statements (Futo Keihin Rui Oyobi Futo Hyoji Boshi Ho) and the Personal Data Protection Act (Kojin Joho Hogo Ho) are other laws that are often problematic for online sales.