Kiwi cyberbullies face jail as New Zealand criminalizes trolling

Jul05

by Sindy Cator on July 5, 2015 at 10:58 am

New Zealand’s government has passed the Harmful Digital Communications Bill, which declares that cyberbullying is a criminal offence. Anyone using digital communications like Facebook, Twitter or even WhatsApp in a way that causes “serious emotional distress” is considered to be breaking the law and could face a number of punishments. Posts that are deemed to be racist, sexist, speaking badly of someone’s sexual orientation or a disability, or showing religious intolerance are all covered by the bill. Ramifications of committing the newly-declared crimes include mediation, fines of up to $33,900 or even a jail sentence. It has also been made…