- "Defamation, at a first approximation, is any form of communication that can injure a third party's reputation."
Cyber torts involve harm caused through electronic communication and activity, such as defamation online or cyberbullying.
Introduction to Cyber Torts: An overview of the basic concepts and principles of cyber torts.
Negligence: An examination of the legal obligation to exercise reasonable care and the various types of damages caused by negligent behavior.
Online Defamation: Defamation is an injury to a person's reputation, and it can occur in various ways online.
Invasion of Privacy: This category of cyber torts covers various actions that violate an individual's privacy rights.
Intellectual Property Infringement: The unlawful use of another person's intellectual property is a commonly occurring cyber tort.
Cyber Bullying and Cyber Harassment: A cyberbullying harasses, threatens, or intimidates another individual online.
Cyber Stalking: A stalker follows or harasses another person online, often with the purpose of causing emotional distress.
Damage to Reputation: Metrics used to assess a personal or brand's reputation have been dramatically impacted by the rise of social media.
Economic Loss: A cyber breach can result in significant financial damage in various sectors of the economy.
Jurisdictional Challenges: The ability to sue for damages in a civil court is often complicated by the international nature of the internet.
Defamation: This occurs when someone posts false or malicious statements about another person or entity online.
Invasion of privacy: This tort can include the unauthorized use of someone's name or image, revealing someone's personal information, or invading someone's personal space by using hidden cameras or other surveillance methods.
Harassment: This refers to the intentional and repeated use of electronic communication to harass, annoy, or threaten someone.
Fraud: This involves the use of deception to gain access to someone's personal or financial information.
Copyright infringement: This occurs when someone uses another person's copyrighted work without permission.
Trademark infringement: This refers to the unauthorized use of someone else's trademark or brand name.
Cyberbullying: This is the use of electronic communication to bully or harass someone.
Cyberstalking: This is the use of electronic communication to stalk or harass someone.
Spamming: This is the unsolicited sending of bulk electronic messages, including emails, text messages, and social media messages.
Hacking: This is the unauthorized access or tampering of a computer system, network, or data.
- "This can include all modes of human-understandable communications: gestures, images, signs, words."
- "It is not necessarily restricted to making assertions that are falsifiable, and can extend to concepts that are more abstract than reputation – like dignity and honour."
- "For a communication to be considered defamatory, it must be conveyed to someone other than the defamed."
- "Depending on the permanence or transience of the communication medium, defamation may be distinguished between libel (written, printed, posted online, published in mass media) and slander (spoken off the record)."
- "It is treated as a civil wrong (tort, delict), as a criminal offence, or both."
- "The exact definition of defamation and related acts, as well as the ways they are dealt with, can vary greatly between countries and jurisdictions."
- "Defamation and related laws can encompass a variety of acts... covering specific entities and social structures."
- "From general defamation and insult – as applicable to every citizen..."
- "Acts against public officials."
- "Acts against state institutions (government, ministries, government agencies, armed forces)."
- "Acts against state symbols."
- "Acts against the state itself."
- "Acts against heads of state."
- "Acts against religions (blasphemy)."
- "Acts against the judiciary or legislature (contempt of court)."
- "To what extent insults and opinions are included in addition to allegations of facts..."
- "To what extent proving the alleged facts is a valid defense."
- "Defamation against a legal person in general."
- "Insult against a legal person in general."