Procedural difficulties in confronting intimidation crimes via social media

Abstract

            Social media platforms have ushered in a technological revolution that connects the East and the West. However, procedural hurdles represent a major challenge for competent authorities addressing the crime of societal intimidation via social media—particularly during the inquiry and investigation stages—as the advanced technical nature of this criminal pattern has created a procedural reality that diverges from established traditional rules of criminal procedure. The significance of this study lies in the gravity of this emerging criminal phenomenon, which exploits advanced technical capabilities to carry out acts of intimidation that are difficult to detect or trace using conventional methods, thereby posing a direct threat to social security and the safety of individuals and institutions. Addressing this topic requires a descriptive-analytical approach to Iraqi law, organized into two sections. The study yielded several findings, including that crimes of societal intimidation can involve tangible elements—such as fraud and extortion committed via social media—and that the crimes under study possess unique technical characteristics, most notably the reliance on smart systems and algorithms capable of self-analysis and autonomous decision-making, precise victim targeting, and the use of deepfake technology. Furthermore, the study concludes that, under current penal legislation, criminal liability for societal intimidation via social media remains confined to the natural person involved in designing, programming, directing, or exploiting the system to commit the criminal act, given that social media technologies lack legal personality. Moreover, the consequences that... Social media-based social intimidation crimes—particularly non-material offenses such as fraud and extortion—pose significant evidentiary challenges. The unique nature of these crimes, rooted in a rapidly changing, intangible digital environment, creates fundamental obstacles for investigative processes—specifically regarding the collection of digital evidence, the tracking of perpetrators, and the establishment of a link between the criminal act and the offender. This reality undermines the effectiveness of traditional procedural mechanisms, necessitating the development of criminal procedural rules and the fostering of greater integration between legal expertise and technical knowledge.