The Role of Law Reform in Addressing Emerging Technological Issues and Enforcing Rights

‘The role of law reform in addressing emerging technological issues and enforcing rights.’

The law is constantly changing to accommodate society.  Law reform relates to the need for the law to change in relation to the dynamic order in which society evolves, this indicates that changes in law should represent changes taking place in society. One of the three conditions that give rise to law reform is new technology as the law must remain relevant in times of technological advancement. There is criticism that the law is not keeping up with the fast paced changes in new technology as the developments in technology occur at a much faster rate than the developments in law reform. The main concern for law reform in regards to new technology is the question; how do we maintain justice in cyberspace without infringing on individual rights? Two main problems law reform agencies must consider as a part of technological advancement include cyber bulling and copyright. Cyber bullying and copyright are problems that have become so prominent in today’s society and law reform agencies must address these emerging technological issues yet enforce individual rights at the same time.

Cyber bullying is a crime that has become rather out of hand in recent years. Instead of just simple face to face teasing or bullying in the playgrounds at school individuals, especially youth and adolescents are going home and entering their world of cyberspace where they continue to be bullied by cowards hiding behind a computer or phone screen. Due to technological advancements of the recent century individuals now have laptops, phones and even iPads that can be connected to the internet 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Cyber bullying can have devastating, and in some instances fatal, consequences. There is no escaping this virtual torment for some people. Cases that accentuate the extremities of cyber bullying include the Amanda Todd case and the Charlotte Dawson case. Amanda was a fifteen year old girl who made the mistake of flashing a stranger via the internet. She did not know this man but he stalked her from the moment she sent him this image. After further contact, Amanda refused to “put on a show” for him again and he became agitated. He searched up her classmates online and began sending them the image of Amanda. They then ostracized her and began telling their own versions of her story online, twisting it around to make her look even worse. To cope with the anxiety, Amanda descended into drugs and alcohol and ill-advised flirtations and sex. She attempted suicide a few times before finally succeeding. It is stated in a New York Times article that “It is a cultural myth that methods of a harasser are fundamentally ‘legal’ and that the state is helpless to intervene in all cases like this. The systematic way the harasser allegedly followed Todd to new schools, repeatedly posting the images and threatening to do it again, makes it textbook harassment regardless of the medium.” However, once police finally realized this, it was too late, Amanda was dead and she is not the only one who has harmed themselves due to cyber bullying.

Charlotte Dawson is another victim on cyber bullying; The Herald reported her story Dawson was admitted to hospital after she was targeted by a stream of abusive death threats on Twitter, she tried to commit suicide by consuming pills. In the article it is stated that “Despite the trolling attacks, Twitter has refused to police vicious and abusive messages posted online. Twitter spokeswoman Rachel Bremer said the company did not mediate content, regardless of whether it was "potentially" offensive. ‘Twitter provides a communication service that allows controversial posts even though some may disagree with the content,’ she said yesterday. ‘We understand everyone has different levels of sensitivity towards content, and that you may feel uncomfortable with the posted content. If there is something that you don't agree with, or find insulting, it's best to block that user.’” Due to the current laws this is allowed, Twitter does not have to police abusive comments, it is not a part of the law. Why is it okay for this sort of thing to happen and when does it become too much? Why is it so hard for police to stop this from happening to people in the future. It is due to barrier between law reform in technology and validating individual rights. In an article written by the Daily Telegraph states that police are not doing enough to prevent this sort of thing from happening. They state that “time authorities, particularly the police, treated the insidious incidence of bullying via smart phones, tablets and computers as a serious crime worthy of investigation and prosecution. There’s no doubt that the online environment emboldens bullies to say things they’d never say face to face. That shield of anonymity gives trolls power without responsibility on sites like Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat and a plethora of online forums. But cyber bullies aren’t always anonymous; they can be former friends, classmates, workmates or others from a victim’s circle of acquaintances.” Some argue that online bullying is simply part and parcel of having free speech but let’s not pretend that it’s a mere triviality. For some the abuse can be deeply wounding and result in them making an awful choice that leaves their family and friends utterly devastated. The link between cyber bullying and suicide is an area worthy of much greater research and law reform is not addressing this emerging technological issue with enough care. It is understandable that there are individual privacy rights set in place which do not allow authorities to have access to everything one does using technology however, it is not an individual right for someone to be able to torment someone to the point of no return and that needs to be addressed in greater detail then what it has currently.