IS THERE REALLY A NEED TO REPEAL RA 10175???
CYBERCRIME LAW OF 2012 (RA 10175) AND THE MAGNA CARTA FOR PHILIPPINE INTERNET FREEDOM (Senate Bill 3327).
In the fast pacing world today, information and technology became one of the factors why things come very easy. I am amazed, am sure you'll agree, how technology plays a big role in our lives and how it evolved very fast from time to time. Every aspect of human life involves the use of technology such as in the field of studies, transportation, medical, widget, communication and the likes.
Communicating nowadays became very easy, unlike before where telegram is the only tool in communicating to our relatives in different side of the world which takes days or even months to receive. And for that, thanks to the one who discovered internet and to those people who formulated different programs in the computer that makes communicating very easy with just a span of a minute.
Hundreds, thousands or even millions of people uses computer every day or even every hour through their phones, ipod, ipad, android, laptop and the likes.
They are fund of surfing the net, opening their FB accounts to be updated with what's happening to their friends and became one of the ways also to express their thoughts and feelings. Signing in with their twitter accounts to be aware with what's happening to their favorite artist or with the one they're following. Uploading pictures through the use of instgram where you can upload as many pictures as you want and to share it to the whole world.
I love how social media such as facebook touch everybody’s life. My heart melted whenever I browse my account and saw that everyone is trying to help in their own little ways, helping to spread the photo of a missing person, and eventually finding them.
But sometimes it can be the other way around. Sometimes or more often it can degrade or humiliate one’s own identity like the AMALAYER thing. It can be seen by a lot of people with just a span of a minute because of the internet. Anyone can easily utter or indict a person without first knowing the whole story.
Lots of people uses internet for different purposes such as in the business, online gaming, research, or as required by their jobs.
Online business or market has burgeoned in the recent years. Online shoppers or the netizens became very hooked in buying online because of its convenience. Almost every business today has their own sites. There you can find information about the said business, the products they are selling, the prices, location and the modes of payment.
Thus, use of computer together with internet became one of the hubbies of the generation today.
Though the use of internet became very useful, it has a dark side also. There can be a lot of crimes that can be committed like destroyings someone's name or what we call internet libel, using one's identity or identity theft, cybersex, pornorgraphy, terrorism through hacking one's site and many more.
Therefore, we need a tough law to adopt with the fast changing world today because of the technology and the internet.
There has been a recent law which was passed last year and it is the cybercrime law of 2012 and here comes the senate Bill 3327 or the Magna Carta for Philippine Internet Freedom that was introduced by Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago that was intended to repeal the former.
Let us discuss what SB 3327 and RA 10175 is all about and what are the prohibited acts in each law. After that we can now conclude whether the RA 10175 is lacking and if there is really a need to repeal RA 10175.
WHAT IS RA 10175?
Republic Act 10175 or what we known as Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012 is an act defining cybercrime, providing for the prevention, investigation, suppression and the imposition of penalties therefor and for other purposes.
What is cyber? It refers to a computer network, the electronic medium in which online communication takes place. What is cybercrime? It is a crime involving the use of a computer, such as sabotaging or stealing electronically stored data (black's law dictionary).
From the definition itself, this act aims to protect the rights of an individual against the harmful effect of using computer or any electronic medium.
It was the first law that was passed concerning issues that can be committed online.
Among the punishable acts are the offenses against confidentiality, integrity and availability of computer data and system. It prohibits the illegal access, illegal interference, data reference and any intentional or reckless alteration of the data without authority to do so.
It also prohibits the misuse of the devices which include the use, production, sale, procurement, distribution of a device, including the use of a computer program designed to commit an offense.
The law also reaffirms existing laws against child pornography, an offense under Republic Act No. 9779 (the Anti-Child Pornography Act of 2009), and libel, an offense under Section 377 of the Revised Penal Code of the Philippines, also criminalizing them when committed using a computer system.
Cyber squatting is also one of the punishable acts. It is an acquisition in bad faith intended to profit, mislead or destroy reputation of the person with similar name of the person or the registrant.
Cyber squatting is also one of the punishable acts. It is an acquisition in bad faith intended to profit, mislead or destroy reputation of the person with similar name of the person or the registrant.
The other punishable acts are computer related fraud, forgery, libel.
The National Bureau of Investigation and the Philippine National Police is the one responsible for the efficient and effective implementation of this act. They organize a unit manned by specialized investigators who has expertise in the computer. The Department of Justice (DOJ) shall be responsible for assisting in investigations or proceedings concerning criminal offenses related to computer system or data, in collection of electronic evidence of criminal offense and in ensuring the provisions of the law are complied with.
The Regional Trial Court shall have jurisdiction over any violation of this act. Jurisdiction lie if any of the element of the crime is committed in the Philippines. There shall be a cybercrime court who will be manmed by judges who are trained in the cybercrime cases.
The punishment is fine or imprisonment and it will depend on what act is being violated.
WHAT IS SB 3327 or the Magna Carta for Philippine Internet Freedom?
It is an act establishing a Magna Carta for Philippine Internet Freedom, Cybercrime Prevention and Law Enforcement, Cyber defense and National Cyber security.
What is Magna Carta? Is a Latin word for “great charter” It is a document or piece of legislation that serves as a guarantee of basic rights.
The bill aims to protect the rights of an individual in the network or internet while acting on the cybercrimes.
It does not only protect the rights of an individual personal data in the cyber world but it also aims to use as cyber defense against cyber terrorism.
Senate Bill 3327 reaffirms states recognition of communication and information as a vital role in nation building. It guaranteed rights under the 1987 constitution and the privileges provided by the treaties and convention which the Philippines is a signatory.
The bill also aims to enable individuals, communities and people to achieve their potential in promoting their sustainable development and improving their quality of their lives. It guarantees full respect to human, civil and political aspects in crafting laws for the use of internet and information and communication technology.
The bill provides amendments to the AFP Modernization Act to ensure the country has weapons and defenses against cyber attacks by terrorists, violent non-state actors, and savage or enemy nation-states.
It mandates the Philippine National Police and the National Bureau of Investigation to combat cyber terrorism.
The bill also provides that if an act was performed through the use of device or equipment connected to the internet in violation of the Data Privacy Act, the Intellectual Property Code, Special protection of Children against Abuse, exploitation and determination, it will arise to a liability and the tortfeasor is liable.
The provision on libel in the Magna Carta was suggested to be a civil action and is punishable by a fine without imprisonment. The libel provision also provides for an exception. The following acts shall not constitute libel if it is an expression of protest against the government or dissatisfaction, an expression which is fair, true and done with good faith and the likes.
The one who is task to prosecute the prohibited acts is the Department of Justice. Within the Department of Justice, there will be an office created for treating cybercrimes, which shall be designated as the central authority in the enforcement of the act. The cyber court will have the exclusive and original jurisdiction of the case.
The bill also sets different jurisdiction. When one who commits the crime is outside the jurisdiction of the Philippines and involves a foreign state, group or individual, it will conform to the provision of an existing treaty or convention where the Philippines is a signatory.
IS THERE REALLY A NEED TO REPEAL OR TO AMEND REPUBLIC ACT 10175(the CYBERCRIME LAW of 2012)?
YES, there is really a need to repeal the Cybercrime Law of 2012 because of many reasons.
One of the reasons maybe is that RA10175 is very vague and over breadth and is lacking in some point.
As explained in the introductory note of Senator Miriam Santiago
“Although Philippine learned to harness ICT and the internet for good, the dark side of ICT and internet use has not been a stranger to our shore . . . . Over the years legislators have crafted measures to ensure the protection of the public such as the data privacy act, electronic commerce act. Unfortunately there remains legislation to but those acts must be updated to deal with the 21st century issues."
Senator Santiago is correct that although there are lots of laws that protect the rights of an individual in the cyber world, there are still crimes that can be committed that are not included in the laws enumerated above.
It is true that there are a lot of crimes that can be committed through the use of internet and maybe Senate Bill 3327 satisfies what is lacking with RA 10175.
The second reason maybe is because it modernizes the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
I like how SB 3327 wants to modernize the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP). The AFP as the one who is leading or the first line on the external defense of the country needs to adopt to a more techie world.
The bill aims to gear the AFP with a tough team that has expertise in a cyber world. It also aims to develop among the AFP its cyber intelligence and cyber defense capabilities to enable them or detect when an individual, group or the state intercept or attempted, penetrate or cyber attack the Philippine Government.
Nowadays internet can be used as a tool to protest or used to threat the country. One of the recent examples is when some of the sites of the Philippine government, department or agencies are being hacked by Chinese to communicate their grievance regarding their claim on Scarborough shoal.
With this kind of situation SB 3327 provides an adequate step to defend our country. The bill aims to strenghten the power and scope of AFP as the leading defendor of the country against anyone who might attempt to destroy peace and harmony in the country.
The picture above is one of the examples why RA 10175 is to be repealed because it doesn't contain any provision on how the government can solve this kind of problem.
The bill adheres to the state policies that renounces war as an instrument of national policy and adheres to the principle of peace, equality, justice, freedom, cooperation, and amity with all nations. The bill will strengthen the defense of the AFP against cyber terrorism or which is defined in the bill as Cyber defense. Only cyber defense and not cyber attack!
The third reason may be, why RA 10175 should be repeal is because of the libel provision.
Unlike RA 10175, the new bill specifically upholds the freedom of expression.
It allows netizens to express their thoughts and views on the internet provided that it does not disclose the name of a person he is referring. The cybercrime law specifically prohibits cyber libel unlike in the new bill it provides for an exception.
Internet libel is a public and malicious expression tending to cause dishonor, discredit, or contempt of a natural or juridical person, or to be blacken the memory of one who is dead, made on the Internet or network.
The libel provision of SB 3327 must be intentional to injure or there is malice for a libel to be punished. Libel shall not lie if it does not disclose the person he is referring except when the expressions is a protest against the government, or against foreign government, expression is fair and true and made in good faith.
The libel provision in the cybercrime law was a total prohibition of the right of the people to freedom of expression. Taking away the right to express their thoughts and views is like a total deprivation like what happened before during Martial Law.
How sad it can be if our right to freedom of expression is taken away. It is like a child who is deprived of candy and nothing to do but to cry. It is also like a mute and deaf that wants to speak but they can’t. All our lives we are allowed to free speech and I don’t know what it feels like to be taken away.
The libel provision on RA 10175 is punishable under the revised penal code while the libel provision provided in the Magna Carta for Philippine Internet Freedom will be punishable by a fine and it will be treated as a civil action.
Thus, another reason why RA 10175 should be repeal is because it contains provisions that are punishable by the revised penal code.
The electronic evidence rule (am no. 01-7-01-SC) applies only to civil action and proceedings, and to quasi-judicial and administrative cases. If this is the case, punishable act committed on libel under RA 10175 should not be patterned with the penalties prescribed in the Revised Penal Code for it to be admitted in court.
The RPC was made during the time when there was no internet or even computer. Therefore, for the evidence on libel to be admitted in the court it should be treated as civil action and eventually the electronic evidence rule will apply.
REFERRENCE:
Black's law dictionary
http://www.chanrobles.com/rulesonelectronicevidence.htm
http://www.lawphil.net/statutes/repacts/ra2000/ra_8792_2000.html
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