Data Message Which Incites Damage to Property or Violence

What the section does

Section 14 applies where a person uses an electronic communications service to disclose a data message to a person, group of persons or the general public with the intention of inciting damage to property or violence against a person or group.

Key points

• The communication must be disclosed through an electronic communications service.
• The provision covers communication to an individual, a group or the general public.
• The intention must be to incite damage to property or violence.
• The section concerns the communication itself and the intention behind it; it does not require Cyber Conduct to label every offensive or controversial message as a crime.

What this means in practice

A post, message or other electronic communication that deliberately calls on people to damage property or commit violence can raise issues under this provision. Context and the statutory elements matter.