Don't treat crime with crime!

Ignorance of the rules does not exempt one from legal liability. Anyone who publishes surveillance footage of a person committing a wrongdoing, in order to disseminate it and publicly shame the perpetrator, is committing the worst of their actions. Addressing a crime with a crime is not sanctioned by the rules, and the perpetrator is punished for violating the Anti-Cybercrime Law and the Security Camera Use Law.

The Ministry of Interior's security spokesman, Colonel Talal Al-Shalhoub, warns against filming and publishing crimes of any kind, as this constitutes a violation of the Anti-Cybercrime Law. He cautions, "Do not solve a crime with another crime, whatever it may be. Prevention is safety. Filming and publishing a crime is a cybercrime."

Al-Shalhoub added: When witnessing a crime or a specific event and documenting it, it must be submitted to the security authorities, and the security personnel at the Security Operations Center (911) must be informed, and it must never be published, so as not to fall under the category of provoking public opinion, in addition to the fact that this is considered defamation.

He emphasized that documentation is not limited to photography alone, but also includes the publication of security camera footage in stores, markets, and elsewhere. This, too, constitutes a violation subject to penalties for violating the security camera system, as well as penalties stipulated in other regulations.

20,000 fine for publishing camera recordings

The Ministry of Interior confirmed that the security surveillance camera system's regulations penalize anyone who transmits or publishes camera recordings with a fine of 20,000 riyals. It also clarified that anyone who violates the provisions of the security surveillance camera system's regulations by transmitting or publishing recordings, or by destroying or vandalizing security surveillance camera systems and recordings, will be penalized with a fine of 20,000 riyals.

Security surveillance cameras are defined as fixed or mobile devices designed to capture moving images, in accordance with the provisions of the system. They do not include cameras installed by individuals within private residential units and complexes.

It is noteworthy that the security surveillance cameras system preserves the privacy of individuals by setting a list of prohibited locations for the installation of cameras that are characterised by individual privacy. It also stipulates that no documentation may be transferred or used except by order of the Ministry of Interior or the Presidency of State Security, or by a judicial order, as stipulated in the circumstances. It is not permissible to practice the activity of manufacturing or importing security surveillance cameras - stipulated in the system - or selling, installing, operating or maintaining them, except after obtaining the necessary approvals from the Ministry.

Locations characterized by individual privacy are exempt from the installation of surveillance cameras, such as: medical examination and hospitalization rooms, physiotherapy rooms, changing rooms, restrooms, women's salons and clubs, residential units in tourist accommodation facilities, operating rooms and private areas, and any other locations specified by the regulations in accordance with the provisions of the system.

Do not broadcast crime videos

Retired Major General Masoud Al-Adwani, a security expert, warned against publishing videos of crimes under the pretext of helping to apprehend perpetrators. He stressed that surveillance cameras were installed for security reasons and not for posting them on social media platforms to spread defamation. He stressed that publishing crimes may help perpetrators escape or disappear, and may also guide weak-willed individuals to how they are committed and thus be used in other crimes. They may also be used to defame the country by those lying in wait, calling for these video clips to be handed over to the competent authorities for verification and apprehension of their perpetrators, which is the desired role of citizens and residents without contributing to disrupting security or harming others, as defamation only occurs by an explicit judicial order.

Prison awaits defamers

The Public Prosecution affirmed that defaming and harming others via social media is a crime that warrants deterrent penalties of up to one year in prison, in addition to a fine of up to 500,000 riyals, and confiscation of the devices, programs and means used in committing the crime. It noted that defaming and harming others via social media is a cybercrime that warrants deterrent criminal penalties. It clarified that anyone who incites, assists or agrees with another to commit the stipulated crime shall be punished with a penalty not exceeding the maximum limit.

Legal: Ignorance does not exempt from liability.

Legal advisor, Attorney Majed Al-Ahmari, warned against practices that many social media and mobile phone users take lightly, including reposting on social media platforms and networks.

He emphasized that such practices could expose the perpetrator to prosecution as a criminal accomplice to the original clip's publisher. Ignorance of the penalty does not exempt one from social and legal responsibility, he asserted. He emphasized that the competent authorities are capable of apprehending anyone hiding behind a computer or phone screen, even if they commit such acts using a fake name or a pseudonym.

He said that posting on social media platforms must comply with several legal controls, most notably not violating the privacy of others by publishing personal information about their lives. Even if this information is true, the publisher is subject to accountability in accordance with the Anti-Cybercrime Law. He called on parents to educate their sons and daughters about the need to use mobile phones properly and not to use them in a way that exposes them to punishment, as photographing and publishing is a cybercrime.

Retransmission is a crime

Article 3, paragraphs 4 and 5, of the Anti-Cybercrime Law stipulate that: “Any person who commits any of the following cybercrimes shall be punished by imprisonment for a period not exceeding one year and a fine not exceeding 500,000 riyals, or by either of these two penalties: infringement of privacy by misusing mobile phones equipped with cameras, or the like, defamation of others, and causing them harm through various information technology means.

Attorney Al-Ahmari explained that publishing or reposting clips and messages places their authors under the law. Reposting for the purpose of insulting, defaming, or violating privacy does not exempt one from legal liability.

He warned of the danger of publishing video clips that show the commission of a crime or violation, urging them to be handed over to the relevant authorities and not broadcast on social media platforms, as they violate regulations. He also warned that they could be exploited by unscrupulous individuals abroad to harm the country or contribute to the escape and disappearance of perpetrators. Handing the videos over to the relevant authorities would help ensure their swift apprehension and prosecution.