Dont film yourself having sex

Social media law specialists, Emma Sadleir and Tamsyn de Beer have written a book to help ordinary people navigate through social media safely. Don’t Film Yourself Having Sex and Other Legal Advice For the Age of Social Media, is the first of its kind in the country.

The 29-year-olds, Sadleir and De Beer, are residents of Parkhurst and Parktown North, respectively. They each have a Masters in Law obtained at the London School of Economics and have worked at renowned law firm, Webber Wentzel.

The book is a codification of laws which apply to anyone operating online. Among many topics dealt with in the book are defamation; privacy; intellectual property; harassment; and employees’ and employers’ responsibility in the online environment. It also deals with issues affecting children, like cyberbullying and sexting.

“Our aim is to make sure that people don’t get fired for what they say on social networks; they don’t get sued; they don’t end up in court because they’ve taken pictures of themselves doing something that they shouldn’t have; and they’re better able to look after their children [on social media],” said Sadleir.

“The most common scenario we’ve seen is that people find themselves losing their job. Someone will go online thinking that what they are saying is private, and say something that will bring name of their company into disrepute… We’ve seen many people being dismissed on that basis,” said De Beer.

The book has a lot of practical cases such as that of former journalist and Hawks spokesperson McIntosh Polela, who was fired over comments he made on Twitter. “I trust that JubJub’s supporters gave him a jar of Vaseline to take to prison,” tweeted Polela, in reference to jailed murderer Molemo “Jub Jub” Maarohanye.

In their daily work, the authors deal with victims of revenge who have been in a relationship and after the break-up, naked pictures of them surface on the internet. “What do you do, Are there any legal options available to you at that stage?” asked Sadleir.

They have a simple rule to determine if your post would be acceptable or not. Would you put that same message on a massive billboard with your face on it?

The book is available at all good stores at a price of R230.

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An extract of the golden rules for avoiding trouble online, in Don’t Film Yourself Having Sex and Other Legal Advice For the Age of Social Media by social media law specialists, Emma Sadleir and Tamsyn de Beer. Published with permission from Penguin Books SA.

• Don’t film yourself having sex.

• Digital technology and social media are inescapable facts of life. They’re not going anywhere.

• The same laws that apply to your conduct in the real world apply to your conduct in cyberspace.

• It doesn’t matter if you weren’t the one who originally wrote it; if you re-tweet, share, on-publish or like it, you step into the shoes of a publisher, and you can be held liable for the content.

• The right to freedom of expression is not an unlimited right. It must constantly be balanced against competing rights, such as the right to an unimpaired reputation and the right to dignity.

• Always think about the Five Ps. If you wouldn’t want the Police, your Parents, your Principal, a Predator or a Potential employer to see it, don’t put it online.

• You construct your own privacy in the digital age. Start to be more vigilant about what you post online.

• Just because it’s available online, doesn’t mean it’s free for the taking.

• Don’t be a mean, gross human. Online or offline.

• Be cautious when discussing court proceedings. Be careful about divulging confidential information online.

• Don’t joke about bombs.

• Criminals operate online. Don’t gift them information that will make their job easier.

• The voice on social media is loud. If you own or run a company, make sure that voice is properly managed.

• You can be fired if you breach the duty of good faith that you owe your employer, or if you bring the name of your employer into disrepute online. Similarly, you can get expelled if you bring the name of your school into disrepute online.

• Don’t tweet when you’re drunk.

• Speak to your children about social media. Make sure they understand the risks that come with powerful technology. Implement some device management.

• Don’t ever think you’re anonymous online.

• The reputational harm you will suffer by getting it wrong online is potentially far more serious than any legal or disciplinary consequences. So practise reputation management. Every couple of months, Google yourself and see if any new mentions have popped up. A helpful tool to keep a tab on your online mentions is to register a Google Alert in your name.