With the sanction of Law 14,811/2024 by President Lula, the Brazilian Penal Code now includes the crimes of bullying and cyberbullying, in addition to imposing stricter punishments for several crimes against minors, which are now considered heinous. This legal change increases the responsibility of influencers and content creators on social media.
Maria Eduarda Amaral , a lawyer specializing in Digital Law, has stood out in providing legal advice to influencers, influencer marketing agencies and content creators, bringing her expertise in Law, Intellectual Property and Personal Data Protection to guide her clients in this new context Cool. Check out the interview with clarifications regarding the new law.
How does the new law directly impact online behavior, especially on social networks and digital platforms frequented by young people?
It still doesn’t have any impact, because young people don’t try to find out about it and there are few professionals who talk about it on the internet. So, we have a lack of legal knowledge and a lack of seriousness on their part, who make fun of the law precisely because they know that it does not fit into a real case.
What are the main challenges, both legal and practical, for the effective implementation of Law 14,811/2024 in the digital environment?
The law represents a major advance in Brazilian legislation, but one of its main challenges is that young people see social networks and online games as a way of escaping from reality. The anonymity of the digital environment has enabled “security” in recent years that everything that is done on the internet, stays on the internet and would not be discovered.
With the advent of new technologies, it is now possible to identify the author behind an anonymous user, but the vagueness of the law creates a greater vacuum than it fills. The law establishes a concept of what bullying is, but does not inform how real cases of cyberbullying will be identified and delimited. The often ambiguous nature of online interactions, such as a teenager swearing at a friend while playing a game, raises questions about what constitutes a violation of the law.
Another concern is the preparation of government institutions, schools and families to deal with these issues. We do not know the capacity of the Public Power to investigate and manage real cases, there is no awareness and involvement of parents in monitoring their children’s online activities, there are many open questions that should have been thought about instead of “throwing” a law and think the problem is resolved.
How does legislation relate to the protection of personal data and the online privacy of minors?
Law 14,811/2024 and the LGPD complement each other in protecting minors in the digital environment. One of the biggest challenges in this case is ensuring that digital platforms, which often collect and process large volumes of personal data, comply with our law.
These measures must consider the age of the minors involved and their broad access to the internet with the adoption of clear privacy policies, consent mechanisms suitable for minors and information security measures. Furthermore, authorities must be prepared to apply these laws, ensuring that the rights of minors are protected both from the point of view of their integrity and their privacy and personal data, considering that the LGPD provides for specific measures in these cases.
What are the specific changes related to the legal treatment of bullying and cyberbullying cases with the sanction of Law 14,811/2024?
As of this Law, both bullying and cyberbullying become typified in our Penal Code. This classification is one of the requirements of the Federal Constitution so that certain acts can be punished.
In the case of bullying committed by minors, the penalty is a financial fine, which will be paid by the parents, unless a more serious crime is committed, such as racism and homophobia. In the case of cyberbullying, as it is a repeated and more serious practice, due to the reach of social networks, the penalty is imprisonment for 2 to 4 years AND a fine, if a more serious crime is not committed.
How can digital influencers and content creators prepare to comply with new legal requirements and promote a safer online environment?
What we see today in the influence market is that no one is prepared for so much responsibility. When the era of influencers and creators began, it was just young people who shared their lives and opinions on the internet, today it is considered a profession, it is a market that generates billions and these young people are not yet prepared for this responsibility. Everyone wants the bonus of visibility and fame, but they don’t want the burden of responsibility.
Therefore, an awareness movement by and for these influencers will be necessary, so that they understand the legal implications of their work, our current laws and regulations and the extent of the responsibility they have towards these children and adolescents who are their audience. Without this knowledge within the market itself, we will see many of them increasingly involved in loud controversies.
In your view, how can cooperation between digital platforms, authorities and experts in Digital Law be improved to face challenges related to online bullying?
The number of Digital Law specialists on the market is still extremely low for the quantity and level of complexity of the legal demands we have to face and this is a problem. We have excellent lawyers in the area, although few, but we have to face an unprepared Judiciary, old laws and the refusal of platforms to provide judicial and extrajudicial cooperation. In addition to these issues, technology companies neglect their obligations and hide behind the terms of use and guidelines of their own platforms.
It would be necessary to establish clear cooperation guidelines with the companies responsible for the platforms, which are not so dependent on the judiciary, and develop more efficient communication channels, hold regular discussion forums, and establish partnerships for research and development of new tools awareness and combating online bullying.
What are the critical points that parents and guardians should be aware of in relation to protecting their children in the digital environment, considering the changes brought about by the new legislation? Furthermore, how should we teach our children to deal with these cases, especially in the school environment, where they end up becoming more physically vulnerable?
The law classifies certain crimes against minors as heinous and updated the ECA to increase the protection of children and adolescents. From this perspective, it is crucial that parents teach their children about the risks of the digital environment, education about online safety, respect and the importance of reporting any form of abuse or harassment.
In schools, there must be awareness programs and protocols to deal with cases of violence, promoting a culture of respect and safety. It is essential that parents and guardians are aware of these changes and actively involve themselves in educating and protecting their children regarding digital issues.
How does Law 14,811/2024 seek to balance the repression of crimes, such as bullying, with the preservation of freedom of expression online?
Freedom of expression is our right to freely express opinions and ideas. This freedom ends when others feel disrespected. Freedom of expression is not an absolute right: a demonstration can be considered a crime.
In practice, how will cases of bullying and cyberbullying be identified and treated in accordance with the provisions of the new law?
That’s a question we don’t know either. The biggest criticism of the law by legal practitioners is the vague way in which it was written and it is still too early to analyze what the delimitations that will be brought by concrete cases will be, despite the concept, it is still very subjective.
What is the role of influencer marketing agencies in promoting positive online behaviors and preventing bullying among followers of digital influencers?
The role of the agencies will be to educate and raise awareness among influencers regarding their role and attitude on the internet, suppressing incentives for attacks between them and hate attacks against their followers, evaluating the content posted and what is said by them, managing controversial posts and evaluating harm reduction actions, if it happens to an influencer within your base.