Cyber-crime: Think twice before sharing that post

Do the laws of Kenya protect us from cyber-defamation, cyber-bullying and cyber-crimes?

The other day a good friend sent me an email. Another sent me a WhatsApp message. The content was the same. It was a link to an article in one of the social media sites. The story, an article posted on “Daily Post”, was, like most, scandalous, juicy and false.

Such scandalous and false stories on the Internet are a dime and dozen. There are also salacious and lascivious pictures and videos that get tongues wagging and fingers flying over touch pads or keyboards, like those that followed the Masaku 7s. Most are ignored. No one bothers to save or print and file away a copy for future legal suits; there are no hurried calls to a lawyer to issue a letter demanding the post be pulled down.

The Internet has radically changed the world. The idea of networking all the world’s computers, phones, watches and other electronic devices, including fridges and air conditioners, has gone from a research science pipe dream to a necessary condition of economic and social development.

The Internet has turned the world’s inhabitants to virtual travellers desperately searching for a signal to connect to each other. It has altered social interaction by lowering the barriers of time and shrinking the boundaries of geography. Cyber-space is now the new market, church, cinema hall, lounge, park, classroom and library. Everything and everyone is within your reach if you have a device that can connect you to the Internet.

Does the Internet require regulation? Justin Hughes likens the Internet to a new continent that has risen from the sea, and which is quickly populated. The new inhabitants require law and order so that they do not harm each other, or the inhabitants of the other established continents.

Just as it has many benefits, the Internet also poses the threat of harm. In the past week, the twitter account for the Kenya Defence Forces was hacked into twice. The hackers used those opportunities to tweet offensive messages. In the same period, a twitter account that was impersonating the Inspector General was suspended.

The Internet offers the Government a platform to communicate quickly, widely and at little cost. It ought to be the largest beneficiary of this means of communication; at the same time, it is exposed to the greatest harm. Adequate regulatory laws, policy and enforcement are long overdue. There are laws that govern cyber interactions in Kenya. The Communications Authority of Kenya is in charge of cyber-regulation.

Most regulations are found in the Kenya Information and Communications Act. The law criminalises hacking and electronic fraud. It gives legal recognition to electronic records, contracts, messages, signatures, and gazettes. It regulates service providers who offer electronic certification, and domain registration. Though there is regulation, it is far from adequate. More needs to be done to tap into the benefits of the Internet; and to counter the potential for harm. The country has no data and privacy protection laws. We do not have any law that breathes life into the freedom of information provided for under Article 35 of the Constitution. The courts have been left to interpret on a case to case basis what the right to information under Article 35 of the Constitution means, who is entitled to protection, and the extent of such protection.

The next time you are about to post or share that obscene and depraved picture, comment or video, you should stop and ask yourself whether you are about to break the law. It could cost you two years in jail or a fine of Sh200,000.