Media and Internet Criminal Law

Media and internet criminal law covers all criminal offences committed in the context of using media or the Internet. While some specific factual situations are explicitly codified in the German Criminal Code (StGB), e.g. computer fraud according to Section 262a StGB or the data alteration according to Section 303a StGB, the major part of the criminal acts relates to offences simply committed by means of media or the Internet. Defamatory offences in social media are just one example. As a consequence, the classical offences are shifted to the Internet or media. This also includes the online search performed by the law enforcement authorities which, for example serves to seize email messages. Especially in this area, reviewing the measures taken for lawfulness can be of utmost importance for the outcome of criminal proceedings.