After much debate and delay, South Africa’s new cybercrime laws are close to promulgation. Last week, on 7 November 2018, the Justice and Correctional Services committee approved the latest version of the legislation – now known as the Cybercrimes Bill B6B-2017.
This is the third main version of the law, and its primary goal is to criminalise various forms of cyber-crime, and to provide for the conviction of cyber-related criminals. For example, hacking, using software to try hack another’s system, interfering with or modifying data, cyber related fraud, extortion and other related cyber-criminal offences.
The main changes from the previous B6-2017 version are:
- The Bill no longer makes provision for cyber response infrastructure such as a 24/7 point of contact, a Cyber Response Committee, and various Government structures supporting cybersecurity. As a result, the law has changed names from the “Cybercrimes and Cybersecurity Bill” to the “Cybercrimes Bill”
- Subtle changes to the sections relating to malicious communications to ensure South Africa is keeping up with technological development and changes in communication methodologies.
The new version of the Bill is now pending before the National Assembly, and will likely get the required approval before being sent to the National Council of Provinces as a final rubber stamp, before the final step of the law being signed by the president. We could well see this legislation being signed into law in the first half of 2019.
Once the Cybercrimes Bill is fully effective, revenge pornography will be a criminal offence. What is revenge pornography? Briefly, it is where an intimate image (or video) is captured with the person’s consent. Sometime thereafter, the intimate image is published without that person’s consent – usually, to exact some form of revenge or cause that other person harm and/or embarrassment.
Although victims of this conduct do have legal remedies as the law stands (Protection from Harassment Act, defamation, criminen injuria to name a few), the promulgation of the Cybercrimes Bill will provide specific relief to victims of this nature. Upon conviction, the penalty will be a fine, or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding three years, or both.
Further, to supplement the common law of incitement (provoking unlawful behavior), section 14 and 15 of the Cybercrimes Bill will criminalise any electronic message that incites damage to property or that incites any violence. Further, it will be a criminal offence to threaten any person with damage to property or violence.
There have always been consequences attached to deviant conduct online – the net is now tightening further…
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