The anonymity in social networks enables many abuse cases, but the French justice system is reacting faster and punishing cyber harassment. In France, a man was sentenced to one year in prison after harassing and threatening the streamer Maghla.
Some people on the internet believe that they can do anything behind the anonymity of their screens. Over the years, the numbers of harassment and threats have increased and now pose a real problem.
Under the protection of a pseudonym that conceals their identity, unfortunately, there are some people who cross boundaries and become digital harassers.
In 2014, the French government took a first step against cyber harassment by adding Article 222-33-2 to the Penal Code. This law was subsequently amended in 2018 and states that cyber harassment is an aggravated/serious form of moral harassment.
A fixed prison sentence
The streamer Maghla filed a complaint against a 27-year-old man for harassment through an online communication service. The man had sent her countless messages and hoped that she would help him become a webcaster.
Furthermore, the man claimed to be in love with her and could also appear very threatening. During the trial, the man said: ‘I would have liked to meet this woman. I wish her no harm.’
A psychiatric assessment presented to the judges shows schizophrenic traits and highlights an impairment of the defendant’s judgment.
The court sentenced the man to a one-year prison term, of which he will spend 6 months in custody, a three-year restraining order against the victim, and a five-year ban on working as a streamer.
More and more cases of this kind are reaching the courts, but cyberbullying remains widespread. Nonetheless, it is encouraging and shows that anonymity on the internet is rightly not guaranteed when one breaks the law.
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