“Implementation of internet technologies should be made an aggravating circumstance if they have been used at commitment of crime” – believes Elena Mizulina, the member of the Russian council of federation. But how to prove that the person has used internet, so to say, has implemented internet technologies, is still not clear.
As reported RBC, at the VII international forum on safe internet Elena Mizulina has taken her word. “It is time to raise a question to make implementation of internet technologies during crime commitment an aggravating circumstance and include it in article 64 of Russian criminal code. Each time when a crime is committed by means of internet, or committed with help of internet, or organised with help of internet, it should be taken into account in sentencing. We will develop relevant draft law in council of federation of course”, – she said.
Mizulina states that currently the internet as constituent element of a crime is qualified only in cases of child pornography and extremism. “But in many other cases of crime this element is not taken into account, like in case of incitement to suicide,” – she said. Internet users can “see, how it happens”, what is “very dangerously” for children and youth. Therefore, in order to protect them from bad things, it is necessary to systemize criminal law in relevant part, particularly in relation to protection of children.
But it is not enough. The owners, and it seems operators too, have to share responsibility for committed crime with offender if their web-site or internet resource contains or contained inappropriate or harmful information used to commit the crime. It could be not only Russian Facebook, but any other foreign website or platform with user generated content. But there is one little thing – how she intends to prove that the internet has been used or internet-technologies have been implemented when the crime was committed? First of all it is necessary to define what internet technologies are for the purposes of criminal law. It is not so easy to do.