Disclosure of Secrets: Digital Privacy and the Workplace
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listIn this article
lightbulbKey Takeaways
- check_circleLooking at someone else's phone is an offence (1-4 years)
- check_circleForwarding intimate videos (sexting)
- check_circleTheft of a client list
- check_circleDoxing and privacy
Quick answer
Discovery and disclosure of secrets is punished under Arts. 197 et seq. CP. Accessing another person's phone, email or messages without permission in order to discover their secrets is an offence under Art. 197.1 CP (1 to 4 years in prison), even if nothing is circulated. Circulating intimate images obtained with consent (sexting) without authorisation is an offence under Art. 197.7 CP, and since the 2022 reform it also reaches anyone who forwards them. Seizing or disclosing trade secrets is punished under Art. 278 CP.
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Privacy is the most threatened legal interest of the 21st century. The Criminal Code protects this "sacred space" through the offences of discovery and disclosure of secrets (Arts. 197 et seq. CP). What we commonly call "spying" or "snooping" has devastating criminal consequences, often greater than those of a robbery with force. Faced with any accusation or suspicion, the involvement of criminal lawyers experienced in the offence of disclosure of secrets is crucial to map out a solid defence strategy and protect your digital rights.
Domestic "Hacking": Accessing Devices
Taking your partner's phone, unlocking it and reading their WhatsApp messages without their permission is an offence. Art. 197.1 punishes the mere seizure or interception of messages or files in order to discover secrets, with penalties of 1 to 4 years in prison. You do not need to circulate anything; merely looking is enough. It is an offence completed at an early stage.
Monitoring Spyware
Installing parental-control or geolocation apps on the phone of an adult (a spouse, an employee) without their informed consent is an aggravated form of this offence.
'Sexting' and Non-Consensual Circulation (Art. 197.7)
A well-known Spanish case prompted a legal reform. Today, circulating intimate images or recordings obtained with the victim's consent (e.g. sent voluntarily by sexting) but shared without their permission is an offence (3 months to 1 year in prison).
Important! The 2022 reform also punishes anyone who receives those images and forwards them to third parties, not only the person who starts the chain. The "pass it on" of a sexual video in a WhatsApp group can turn every member into an offender.
Trade Secrets and Corporate Espionage
Article 278 punishes the discovery and disclosure of trade secrets. This is vital for executives and employees:
- The employee who leaves for a competitor: if you take the client database, formulas or strategic plans on a USB stick, or forward them to your personal email before leaving, you commit an offence.
- Penalties: 2 to 4 years in prison. If they are circulated or handed to a competitor, the penalty rises.
The defence here usually turns on the definition of a "secret". Is a client list that is public on LinkedIn secret? Were there confidentiality clauses and security measures (passwords) that evidenced the company's intention to keep it hidden? Without protective measures, there is sometimes no criminally relevant "secret".
The "Hacker Hunt" and Doxing
Publishing a person's personal data on forums (doxing) to incite their harassment also falls into this category. Freedom of information does not cover the disclosure of private data (medical history, criminal record, home address) that affects the hard core of privacy.
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