Everyone has the right and free will to express their thoughts online, but despite so, does that grant us the right to say literally ANYTHING we have in mind?
Just recently, a Malaysian lawyer shared an experience involving “online comments” via his Instagram account, Lawyer Boy, where a man in his 20s reached out to him to seek advice as he was being sued all of a sudden. Little did the man know, the incident definitely did not happen all of a sudden.
Lawyer Boy asked for relevant documents to understand the case further, and here’s what happened with the 2 men who were accused in this case.
Accused 1
The first accused had used the image of a local recruiting company without their consent for an unrelated post. Keep in mind that the local recruiting company is legitimate, and its main objective is to recruit locals for foreign companies.
He then used another image related to job scam victims abroad and combined it with the image of the said company with a caption that sealed his fate.
“Malaysians betray Malaysians by selling them abroad. Beware of this company, don’t fall for it.”
As most of us are aware, job scams abroad have been the talk of the town lately, especially after it involved the deaths of many Malaysians.
Accused 2
The second accused is an online friend of the first accused, and as if the posting is not damaging enough, the second accused poured gasoline on the fire and commented on the deleted post,
“The betrayer of Malaysians, they deserve to die.”
Some of you may ask how harmful can online comments be. Aside from online arguments in the comment sections, some comments don’t usually lead to further consequences.
Little did they know, both the accused set a chain of events in motion.
The company “weighs in”
The company decided to sue both accused persons for defamation, and they demanded RM350,000 for indemnity purposes, which even Lawyer Boy himself was shocked about.
Both the accused asked him about the next step to take, and there was only one thing they could do.
“The company has brought the matter to the court, you will have to hire a lawyer to settle the matter, or represent you. It will cost you around RM15,000,” Lawyer Boy explained.
The second accused, who was equally shocked asked Lawyer Boy if they can even be guilty for a mere online post and comment.
“Guilty or not, that’s entirely the court’s decision. The company has sued both of you, and you have to defend yourself, or the company will win,” Lawyer Boy reminded them.
Be civilised, fellow netizens
Lawyer Boy told WORLD OF BUZZ that he is sharing this incident to remind fellow Malaysians to be mindful before leaving a comment online.
“Take the authenticity into account and think of the consequences before posting something.”
At the end of the post, Lawyer Boy said that although the internet is a free world, that does not mean you don’t have to be responsible for your acts.
Also read: “The parents are negligent under s.33 Child Act” – M’sian Lawyer Speaks About Sam Ke Ting’s Verdict
