Dear Atty. Angela,

I was in an intimate relationship with my ex-boyfriend. When he became jealous of other guys, I gave him the password to my Facebook account to appease him. However, he threatened to upload our sex video and my naked photos online. When I tried to break up with him, he showed me our sex video and some of my naked pictures. My ex-boyfriend initially agreed to delete the files, but later demanded P100,000 from me. When I refused to pay, he hacked my Facebook page and changed my username and password to prevent me from accessing the account. A few days later, my sister saw half-naked photos of me on my Facebook page. The photo was a screenshot of the sex video my ex showed me. I am so scared that he will post and share these videos and photos to my family and friends. What should I do and how can I make him legally liable?

Barbs

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Dear Barbs,

You should immediately report the matter to the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) Anti-Cybercrime Group so the CIDG may conduct an entrapment operation.

The Supreme Court has recently ruled in Tria v. People, G.R. 255583 (2 August 2023) that there is a crime of robbery in this case. The elements of robbery under Article 249(5) of the Revised Penal Code (RPC) are: (a) there is personal property belonging to another; (b) there is unlawful taking of that property; (c) the taking is with intent to gain; and (d) there is violence or intimidation.

In this case, you were clearly forced to part with your money in exchange for the deletion of your nude photos posted on your Facebook page which constitutes robbery.

In the SC case, the taking was deemed complete the moment the perpetrator gained possession of her money. Meanwhile, the intent to gain is presumed. “Her compromising photos damaged and continued to damage her family life, reputation, and online business; thus, she felt she had no choice but to accede to Tria’s demands,” said the Court.

As the crime was committed with the use of communication technologies, the imposable penalty under the RPC is raised by one degree higher in accordance with Section 6 of Republic Act 10175, or the Cybercrime Prevention Act.

Atty. Angela Antonio