Contact information, including street address, telephone numbers, e-mail addresses, etc.
Workplace details
Financial information
Family members
The party publishes the information online for malicious purposes. Companies and government entities could be victims of doxing when individuals or groups steal and publish their sensitive information.
Many internet sources contain sensitive and personal information. For example, a party may search social media sites for posts, comments, and tags. In addition, they may “friend” a person to get information.
Other sources of personal information include, but are not limited to:
Voter registration roles
Court and property records
Public conferences
Obituaries
Wedding and engagement announcements
Newsletters
Unprotected networks
Blogs and discussion boards
Web forums
Your personal information may appear on numerous sites you might not even consider. Any website you use could be a resource for doxxers (people who publish personal information online). Doxxers may publish information online for profit, or they may seek revenge against the person they are stalking.
What is Considered Malicious Online Activity in California?
Malicious activity or doxing may take many forms. It includes, but might not be limited to:
Trolling
Cyberstalking
Cyberbullying
Criminal threats
Cyber harassment
Revenge p*rn
Most of the comments we publish online are protected by the First Amendment, even when those comments are mean-spirited or intended to hurt someone’s feelings. However, you can face criminal penalties if there is evidence you intended to cause harm to the victim.
Cyberstalking is a direct form of cyber harassment. It is a direct action against a person. Doxing is an indirect form of harassment. California prosecutes doxing under its electronic cyber-harassment statute (Penal Code §653.2).
Cyber harassment refers to harassment that takes place online. Indirect cyber harassment might involve publishing personally identifiable information on a webpage or posting links to pages that contain the information. The person may e-mail the sensitive information to another party or distribute the information through any electronic device.
The state must prove the following requirements for you to be guilty of doxing:
You shared another individual’s personal information without their consent
You intended to cause that person to reasonably fear for their or their family’s safety
The purpose was to cause the person unwanted injury, physical contact, or harassment
You knew the information shared would likely result in harassment, injury, or physical contact
Harassment is defined as terrorizing or tormenting someone, but it can also mean alarming or annoying them.
For example, you post a person’s address and make a statement about teaching that person a lesson about advocating for a specific cause. Your intent might be for that person to be harassed or physically harmed. The act of putting the person’s home address in the post can be evidence of your intent for harm or injury to come to that person.
However, the law does not require the person to actually be harassed or harmed. Instead, the law centers on the defendant’s “intent” when posting the information.
Penalties for Doxing in California
Individuals arrested and charged with cyber harassment (doxing) under Penal Code §653.2 face up to one year in jail and a fine of up to $1,000. The charge is a misdemeanor charge. A criminal defense lawyer may negotiate a plea agreement for probation instead of jail time.
When the court grants probation, it might include several restrictions. For example, the court might instruct the defendant not to contact the victim or post anything online about or directed to the victim. Violating probation could result in harsh penalties and jail time.
Potential Defenses to Doxing Charges in California
A criminal defense attorney reviews the circ*mstances and facts surrounding the doxing charges. Then, the lawyer develops a defense strategy for beating doxing charges based on those facts.
Potential defenses to doxing in California include:
Lack of evidence that you were the party who posted the information
You had the person’s consent to share the personal or sensitive information
Lack of intent to subject someone to harassment or injury
Violations of your civil rights that result in evidence being inadmissible in court
If the police arrest you for doxing, the best thing you can do is remain silent. Trying to explain your actions could result in incriminating yourself. You are not required to answer questions after being arrested without an attorney present.
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April 2023) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) Doxing or doxxing is the act of publicly providing personally identifiable information about an individual or organization, usually via the Internet and without their consent.
illegal? In California, doxing is considered a serious offense, and individuals engaging in this activity can face legal consequences. The state has laws that prohibit the unauthorized dissemination of personal information with the intent to harass, intimidate, or harm others.
Doxxing can lead to a prison sentence under certain circ*mstances. While doxxing itself is not always illegal, it can lead to other illegal activities. For example, if doxxing leads to harassment, cyberstalking, threats, identity theft, or provokes violent acts, these offenses can be prosecuted.
In California, cyber harassment including doxxing with the intent to put others and their immediate family in danger can put violators in county jail for up to one year or impose a fine of up to $1,000, or both.
According to a study by SafeHome, by 2021, over 43 million Americans had experienced doxxing at least once in their lifetime. It's important to note that doxxing is a serious and often underreported crime, and many people who are doxxed may not report it or seek help.
The Civil Liability for Doxxing Act uses the term “substantial life disruption” to describe any type of harm that may cause significant disruptions in a person's life whose information has been shared.
The state has laws that prohibit the unauthorized dissemination of personal information with the intent to harass, intimidate, or harm others. Violating these laws can result in criminal charges, including stalking, harassment, identity theft, and more.
In California, doxxing may be illegal under California's laws against harassment, which include the following: Intentionally placing another person in reasonable fear for their safety. Causing a person unwanted physical contact, injury, or harassment.
Under AB 1979, victims of doxxing will be able to pursue up to $30,000 in damages through a lawsuit against the person who released their information. It will also allow a court to issue orders, such as an injunction to prevent more doxxing by the defendant, when appropriate.
Penalties for Posting Harmful Information on the Internet
Since violations under PC 653.2 are considered misdemeanor offenses, you can't be sentenced to state prison upon conviction. A conviction under PC 653.2 can result in fines of up to $1,000, jail time of up to one year in county jail, or both.
Further repercussions include fines ranging from as low as US$50 up to US$2,000, six months spent in county jail, or both the fine and imprisonment. A hacker may obtain an individual's dox without making the information public. A hacker may look for this information to extort or coerce a known or unknown target.
The most common way people realize they've been doxxed is when they start to notice the consequences. However, you can also find out if someone is leaking your private details by: Searching your name online. Checking social media.
While anyone can be doxxed, experts believe women are more likely to be targets of mass online attacks, leaks of their sensitive media, such as sexually explicit imagery that was stolen or shared without consent and unsolicited and sexualized messages.
doxing first emerged in the world of online hackers in the 1990s, where anonymity was considered sacred. Feuds between rival hackers would sometimes lead to someone deciding to "drop docs" on somebody else, who had previously only been known as a username or alias.
Doxing in general isn't illegal federally in the US, but there is a specific situation where it is. Doxing a person for the purpose of harassing or getting others to harass a person is considered part of stalking. It is a federal felony.
Instead, the legality of doxxing is determined on a case-by-case basis. While compiling or publishing publicly available information is rarely illegal, there are other crimes that doxxers can be charged for — such as stalking, harassment, identity theft, or incitement to violence.
You cannot share sexual, nude, or intimate media (photos/videos) without the permission of the person involved, or that was taken or appears to have been taken without the consent of the people involved. This includes: hidden camera content featuring nudity, partial nudity, and/or sexual acts.
Platforms may take action against users who engage in such activities, including suspending or banning their accounts. The consequences of doxxing can be severe and can lead to an invasion of privacy, harassment, identity theft, stalking, or even physical harm.
But is it illegal? The answer is usually no: doxing tends not to be illegal, if the information exposed lies within the public domain, and it was obtained using legal methods. That said, depending on your jurisdiction, doxing may fall foul of laws designed to fight stalking, harassment, and threats.
Yes, you can go to jail for doxxing someone. Although doxxing itself is not illegal, it could contribute to another criminal offense like harassment, stalking, intimidation, identity theft, or incitement to violence.
Information published in doxxing incidents may include the individual's home address, phone number, or email address; it may also include images, videos, or other content accessed by hacking the individual's personal account(s).
Introduction: My name is Frankie Dare, I am a funny, beautiful, proud, fair, pleasant, cheerful, enthusiastic person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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