Legal concerns about blogs
Blogs are a new medium of communication that has developed a great deal of dynamics and has gained the interest of Internet users in Greece and abroad, with the result that it constitutes a particular social phenomenon. The reason for this diffusion of blogging technology is that they make it possible for users to express their opinions easily, quickly, inexpensively and in the context of a universal instrument, such as the Internet.
However, problems arise from the fact that posting and commenting on blogs anonymously or by pseudonym, though some internet users choose to write their views in a brand name. It is precisely this freedom of opinion and anonymity that signifies the negative side of blogs, which consists in the possibility of defamation and rendering of untruthful or unfounded facts under the cover of anonymity. Furthermore, the disclosure of confidential information or the violation of personal data is a significant risk, as does copyright infringement by republishing of texts without the permission of the creator or beneficiary and so on.
Blogs that make up electronic logs of their owners and which show real facts and details about their personal life are clearly personal data and are subject to Law 2472/1997. Thus, personal data protection problems may arise and penalties may be imposed on offenders in the relevant legislation ( cnil.fr ).
Copyrights may also be infringed when text, images, audio-visual material (video clips, etc.) are republished without the permission of the creators or recipients. Blog owners do not realize that they need to be licensed to republish or use licensed material such as creative commons.
It is still possible to publish personal views from employees on matters pertaining to the operation of a business as a reason to terminate the employment contract (see Mercado-Kierkegaard, CLSR , Wright ).
Finally, the most important problem is the insulting of public figures, especially people, through news stories on news blogs (see also elawyer). It should be noted that the offenses of defamation or slander will be characterized as perpetrating the press when the character of the blog is news. In the event that visitors to the blog make comments that are defamatory to third parties, the blog owner may be relieved of his responsibility, in accordance with Article 13 of the Presidential Decree. 131/2003, but it does not know the comments or does not remove them when notified.
However, problems arise from the fact that posting and commenting on blogs anonymously or by pseudonym, though some internet users choose to write their views in a brand name. It is precisely this freedom of opinion and anonymity that signifies the negative side of blogs, which consists in the possibility of defamation and rendering of untruthful or unfounded facts under the cover of anonymity. Furthermore, the disclosure of confidential information or the violation of personal data is a significant risk, as does copyright infringement by republishing of texts without the permission of the creator or beneficiary and so on.
Blogs that make up electronic logs of their owners and which show real facts and details about their personal life are clearly personal data and are subject to Law 2472/1997. Thus, personal data protection problems may arise and penalties may be imposed on offenders in the relevant legislation ( cnil.fr ).
Copyrights may also be infringed when text, images, audio-visual material (video clips, etc.) are republished without the permission of the creators or recipients. Blog owners do not realize that they need to be licensed to republish or use licensed material such as creative commons.
It is still possible to publish personal views from employees on matters pertaining to the operation of a business as a reason to terminate the employment contract (see Mercado-Kierkegaard, CLSR , Wright ).
Finally, the most important problem is the insulting of public figures, especially people, through news stories on news blogs (see also elawyer). It should be noted that the offenses of defamation or slander will be characterized as perpetrating the press when the character of the blog is news. In the event that visitors to the blog make comments that are defamatory to third parties, the blog owner may be relieved of his responsibility, in accordance with Article 13 of the Presidential Decree. 131/2003, but it does not know the comments or does not remove them when notified.
About Jhon Petter
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