Open Access Research Article
DEFAMATION ON SOCIAL MEDIA
Published Paper
Article Details
“DEFAMATION ON SOCIAL MEDIA.”
AUTHORED BY - ANGEL SINGH
COURSE: BA. LLB
IILM UNIVERSITY
ABSTRACT
Defamation is the act of harming a person’s reputation through words; gestures; [slander] or visible
representation in written [libel]. In today’s modern era social media
plays a vital role in everyone’s life. As everyone like to be updated on social media
platforms. Once post is
made online goes viral in milliseconds. The main key feature
of this research
paper is reputational harm. It also deals with complex balance
between freedom of speech and preventing individual reputation. As it
is our fundamental right of freedom of speech under
Article 19 [1] [A]. Many people tends to misuse this right by online
defaming someone by false accusation on an individual. which also impact individual ‘s both personal
and professional life. Even though there are some laws enacted in India to prevent
cyber defamation but these
laws are not exactly helpful. As different jurisdiction have
different defamation laws which makes it difficult. Many user have anonymous
accounts from fake id’s it make difficult for victim to identify it is the
major research gap. It is also social
media platforms liability
to ensure to safeguards the reputation of their
users. To overcome research gap we have some
recommendation which enables to prevent cyber defamation such as clarifying jurisdiction for cross border defamation, collaborative governance with digital
platforms.
Key word: Fake Accusation, Online defamation; Freedom of speech,
Social media platforms liability, Jurisdiction
INTRODUCTION
Defamation is a type of tort where
an injury to the reputation of a person
is caused. Every person
has an absolute right to preserve
his reputation. This right is acknowledging as an inherent
personal right of every
person. It is right in rem i.e., a right available against the whole world.
Defamation can be done in two ways Libel
and Slander. In libel the
defamatory statement is made in a permanent form it can be either in written
or publish by wireless telegraphy it is for eyes. It is actionable per se which means no additional
proof of damage is require.
In England libel
is a criminal offence. In slander the defamatory statement is made in a temporary
form it is spoken
it is for ear. It is not actionable per se it means damage
is required to be proved
separately. In England slander is a civil wrong.
Social Media has transformed communication at very vast level. Technological age in which society
currently resides Digital Communications have propelled the earth into advanced and fast paced world. Information is disseminated in milliseconds. As it allow people to connect with other across
geographical distance, share information and enhance connections.
The research paper will focus on the role of social media in defamation ,
the legal frameworks of defamation in different jurisdiction , what are the impacts of defamation on an individual , what preventive measures and solutions an individual can be take for cyber defamation , The importance of freedom of
speech and protection against
defamation . The objective of this research paper is to provide a way of
dealing which cyber defamation and to
prevent cyber defamation and what action a person can take on cyber defamation. Also what are the liability
of social media platforms in preventing
cyber defamation.
SOCIAL MEDIA ‘S ROLE IN DEFAMATION
Online content remains
accessible and can easily retrieved, giving defamatory statement a prolonged lifespan.
Due to Internet‘s global nature defamatory
statement are visible to much larger audience. Information shared online goes
viral in seconds and reach millions of people.
The role social media platform plays in
moderating defamatory content is very critical as these platforms have their own
policies to protect an individual reputations. It self delete
any defamatory statement like twitter was secretly removing
and banning some accounts.
The role of
anonymity in spreading online
defamation
The core challenge of online defamation is anonymity often provided by
digital platforms. Individuals can make anonymous accounts
making it difficult for victim to identify the predator. Social
media platforms allow user to post anonymously. So
identifying such user required help from digital platforms which may or may not
comply as depending upon their own privacy policies.
LANDMARK CASE RELATED TO SOCIAL MEDIA
DEFAMATION
SHREYA
SINGHAL VS UNION OF INDIA
DATE: 24 MARCH ,2015
COURT: SUPREME
COURT OF INDIA AUTHOR: R. F. NARIMAN
BENCH: R.F.
NARIMAN, J. CHELAMESWAR NATURE OF THE CASE: CIVIL
& CRIMINAL
ISSUES INVOLVED
-
Whether section 66 A of IT Act is violate
of Article 19 [1] [A] of Indian
Constitution?
-
Whether section 69 A and 79 of IT Act are Constitutionally valid?
-
Whether section 118 [D] of the Kerala
Police Act is liable to be struck
down?
FACTS OF THE CASE
The present writ petition have been filed under Article 32 of the Indian
Constitution for challenging the validity of section 66 A; 69 A and 79 of the Information Technology Act,
2000 [IT Act]. Along with that the petitioner has challenged section
118[D] of the Kerala Police
Act. The court
further determine the section
was not safeguarded by the fact that it constituted a “ reasonable restriction
’’ on the right to free speech as defined by Art. 19[2]. It was decided
that content removal
requests from courts
or other government agencies would be the only times online intermediaries would be
required to remove something. In India, the case is regarded as a turning point
for online free speech.
JUDGEMENT
OF THE CASE
The Hon’ble Apex Court also successfully carried
out its role as a court of law for Indian citizens
by reaching its decision in
this landmark case. The court provided extraordinary and improved clarity to
India‘s free expression jurisprudence in Shreya Singhal vs. Union of India. The case
decision is still recognized as an important court rebuke of government
interference with the right to free speech and expression.
LEGAL FRAMEWORKS & KEY CONCEPTS
Defamation Law in
India
India has established many legal provisions to address the problem of cyber defamation. These
provisions also helps to maintain a balance between the right to free speech
and preserving a person’s reputations.
Ø Indian Penal Code [IPC]: The IPC’s
sections 499 and 500 address general defamation [offline defamation,] but they also apply to some types
of online defamation. The act of making or publishing
any accusation about
a person with the intent
to damage their
reputation is referred to as
defamation.
Ø Information Technology [IT] Act , 2000
: The IT act lays out the legal guidelines for dealing with a
variety of cybercrimes such as cyber defamation which also includes online
harassment , defamatory comment or review , impersonation , false accusation . In the case of online
libel the following
Ø Section 66A: which made illegal to send
offensive message using any electronic device was overturned by the Supreme
court in 2015. Although it is no longer in effect, but it once helped in cyber
defamation.
Ø Section 66C: This section address identity theft
and impersonation, which are frequently related to cyber libel cases the involve the creation of fictitious profiles
or accounts in order to slander people.
Ø Section 66D: This section address impersonating
someone with the intent to defraud and cause reputational harm, which is
referred to as cheating by personification.
Ø Section 67 & 67 A : The law address the dissemination of pornographic or sexually explicit
material
. Although not directly related to defamation these provisions are
frequently used in situations involving revenge porn or the distribution of
explicit defamatory material.
Ø The 1872 Indian Evidence Act: When it
comes to the admissibility of electronic evidence, cyber defamation cases must
adhere to the Indian Evidence Act. The requirement or the admissibility of
electronic records as evidence in court
proceedings are outlined
in section 65 B and 65 A of the act .
Defamation Law in
Russia
The help of Criminal Code and the law on
Information Technologies & Protection of Information. Russia has put laws in place
to address cyber defamation. These laws make it unlawful to spread false information that harm’s someone
reputation.
Defamation law in United
Kingdom
Defamation is covered by a well – established legal system in the UK that
also applies to online media.
Guidelines for identifying and responding to defamatory content, including
online defamation are provided by the Defamation Act of 2013. In the UK, courts weigh a variety of factors including
the public interest, the truth defence, and the
severity of the harm in determining how to balance
the right to freedom of speech and needs to protect one’s reputation.
BALANCING
FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND PROTECT
INDIVIDUAL
‘S REPUTATION
As freedom of speech is a fundamental right under Art. 19 [1] [A] of the Indian
Constitution. which is indirect
contract with tort of defamation . Every
citizen has right to express their views freely
by speech, writing, printing under this article. However
all fundamental rights are not absolute. This right is subject to reasonable
restriction provided under
Art. 19 [2]. According to Art.
19 [2] allows the government to impose reasonable
restrictions in the interests of national security, friendly relation with
foreign states, defamation. Online
platforms have emerge as powerful
tools for individuals to express their views and connect with people
with geographical distance. However
this digital age it also bring new challenges as freedom of speech by sharing
information also lead to online harassment, disinformation. Balancing the need to protect individual reputation
along with the their fundamental right of freedom
of speech & expression. As many individual misuse their this fundamental
right and cause cyber defamation to another person. Freedom of speech is a powerful
weapon on internet
as on the same platform
we share thoughts
but these same platform lead to cyber defamation, online harassment. Now
the question arise that whether freedom of speech & expression on internet should
be restricted to protect an individual reputation. Sometimes, the statement
may prima facie be innocent but because of some
secondary meaning it may considered defamatory.
IMPACT OF DEFAMATION ON AN INDIVIDUAL
The impact of online defamation is much vast as the information on online goes viral in few seconds. It is very
difficult to remove these posts once goes viral. It impacts an individual’s
mental health as the person will have emotional distress. It also lead to the downfall of the person’s
reputation. Along side the good will of
business also goes down, which lead to an individual to become job less. As no one is ready to collaborate with the person who is facing
cyber defamation as it can also effect their reputation. As in today’s
era people believe on the
information available on social media platforms. An individual will be facing
erosion of trust which will also lead to damage personal
relationship. Even in some online defamation cases
an individual may experience physical harm as well. Defamation is both civil as well as
criminal offence
PREVENTIVE
MEASURES AN INDIVIDUAL CAN TAKE FOR
DEALING WITH CYBER DEFAMATION
As cyber cries are ongoing threats these days. Cybercrime are happening
online which also include cyber defamation , hacking, revenge pornography ,
cyber stalking so some preventive measures an individual can take are listed
below :
·
Use full service
internet security suite.
·
Monitoring your online
presence.
·
Privacy settings
·
Secure your Accounts
by maintaining strong passwords.
·
Think before you post. Avoid
sharing sensitive information.
·
Report and block if you encounter any defamatory content.
·
Request the removal
of defamatory content
from the social media platform
·
Issue a Public
statement to clarify
the truth.
·
Keep record of any negative
impact you faced professional or personal life.
CONCLUSION
In this research paper reputation is the key finding .As this research
paper also explore the complex relationship
between freedom of speech and balancing the individual‘s reputation. It consist of various legal perspective on online defamations. It also states
various laws for preventing online
defamation such as Indian
Evidence Act; Indian Penal Code; Information Technology Act 2000. It also states
various legal frameworks of different jurisdiction
Russia; UK. As the information shared online goes viral in milliseconds and it
becomes very difficult to remove that defamatory post because many user use anonymous accounts to post something
defamatory about an individual which
become difficult to track as many times person who post some defamatory content may be staying in countries like USA so it becomes
out of reach to track as it requires
permission from higher authority and support
of cyber security
but as India do not want to spoil
their relation with other countries so some of the times
the permission is denied but in some extreme cases if permission is granted till that time the cyber
department can could take any action till
that time post has become so viral that it is difficult to remove it. Even if the online defamation is done within a state
of India still it is difficult to track
down as each states have different laws related to cyber defamation. Defamation is both civil as well
as criminal offence under BNS section
356. It is our fundamental right to speech and expression national and international. But many people tends to
misuse there freedom
of speech and expression right.
Regarding to this issue we also address a case law SHREYA SINGHAL vs. UNION OF INDIA 2015. which addresses this issue in a border way to
understand it’s important to maintain a balance between freedom of speech and
expression along with protecting individual reputation. In this research paper we also study the types of defamation
along with that what are impacts of cyber
defamation on an individual. We also learnt about the preventive measure an
individual can take to protect themselves from cyber defamation. I would also
like to make some recommendations for future enhancing intermediary liability and responsibility; enhance
content modern protocols; clarifying jurisdiction for cross border defamation;
promoting self regulation & collaborative governance with digital platforms.
References
·
CRIMINOLOGY & PENOLOGY
BY N.V. PARANJAPE
·
LAW OF TORT BY DR.R.K.
BANGIA
·
INDIAN PENAL
CODE BY S.N. MISRA
·
CONSTITUTIONAL LAW OF INDIA
BY KAILASH RAI
·
DEFAMATION & FREEDOM
OF SPEECH BY DARIO
MILO
·
REPUTATION, CELEBRITY & DEFAMATION LAW BY DAVID
ROLPH.
·
MANUPATRA ACADEMY
Article Information
DEFAMATION ON SOCIAL MEDIA
Authors: ANGEL SINGH
- Journal IJLRA
- ISSN 2582-6433
- Published 2025/03/29
- Issue 7
About Journal
International Journal for Legal Research and Analysis
- Abbreviation IJLRA
- ISSN 2582-6433
- Access Open Access
- License CC 4.0
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