BERLIN: Hateful comments or posts online may break the law, so if you are struggling but a harmful post has been deleted, you still have options to take legal action.
Take screenshots before the post is deleted, say German consumer advisors Stiftung Warentest. Their experts spell out what you need to bear in mind when creating legally compliant screenshots.
What needs to be visible
For screenshots to be admissible as evidence, the following information must be clearly visible:
- The allegedly criminal content
- The name or username of the person and, if possible, the user profile itself
- The platform on which the post was made
- The internet address/URL
- The context; in the case of a comment, this also includes the original post
- The current date and time
If you cannot fit all this data into one image, the information can also be divided across several screenshots, says Stiftung Warentest. Do not edit the images afterwards.
How to take screenshots with your smartphone
Often, you can make screenshots on your smartphone by pressing one of the two volume buttons and the on/off button or the home button at the same time.
On PCs and laptops running Windows, press the Windows key + Print Screen.
On macOS, the key combination Command + Shift + 3 creates an image of the entire screen.
If you want to take more than just a screenshot of a website, you can use Atomshot or the Wayback Machine.
Atomshot is an extension for the Chrome and Microsoft Edge browsers that saves the exact time of the screenshot and the URL of the page.
Meanwhile you can use the Wayback Machine to make whole copies of websites.
Bear in mind that creating, possessing, or distributing screen recordings of child and youth pornographic content is a criminal offense. If you come across such content on the internet, do not make screenshots but immediately contact the police, says Stiftung Warentest.
What happens next?
Once you have documented your case, there are several options for proceeding. You can request deletion by contacting the platform itself.
If you suspect a crime has been committed, file a report with the police, either in person at the police station or online.
And anyone affected by the content itself can also contact counselling centres, with one option including HateAid, which provide advice on hate and incitement online. – dpa
