Hong Kong Case Law: Decisions & Judgments | LexChat

Hong Kong Case Law

Doxxing

  • 30 Oct 2025

    HKSAR v. IP, ANTHONY CHUN HIN

    Citation
    [2025] HKCFI 5043
    Court
    Court of First Instance
    Case number
    HCMA198/2023

    The court held the magistrate lawfully amended the charges and, on rehearing, the evidence established the appellant disclosed personal data with requisite intention and caused specified harm; further the magistrate erred in construing s64(6)(c) to require two layers of harm — s64(6)(c) requires only that the disclosure caused the data subject reasonably to be concerned for safety or well‑being — and accordingly the appellant is to be convicted on Charge 1 under s64(3C) PDPO (not the lesser s64(3A)) and the convictions are affirmed and remitted to the magistrate for conviction entry and sente…

  • 30 Oct 2025

    SECRETARY FOR JUSTICE v. IP, ANTHONY CHUN HIN

    Citation
    [2025] HKCFI 5043
    Court
    Court of First Instance
    Case number
    HCMA51/2024

    The court held that s64(6)(c) PDPO is properly construed to require only that the material disclosure caused the data subject reasonably to be concerned for his or her safety or well‑being (a single‑layer requirement), not the two‑layer interpretation imposed by the Magistrate; on rehearing the published posts together with contemporaneous hostile calls and conduct provided sufficient evidence that the appellant intended and caused the specified harms, so the appellant's challenge to the convictions failed and the prosecution's case stated appeal succeeded to substitute conviction on Charge 1…

  • 19 Sept 2023

    LEUNG KAM CHUNG KENNETH v. COMMISSIONER OF POLICE

    Citation
    [2023] HKCFI 2377
    Court
    Court of First Instance
    Case number
    HCA1936/2021

    The defendant failed to discharge the burden of showing necessity for anonymity or for a gagging order because only general or remote risks of doxxing were demonstrated, none of the Concerned Officers had been shown to have been doxxed, statutory and injunctive protections exist (PDPO s64 and the Doxxing Injunction), and the officers' identities are directly relevant to testing credibility and the issues in the case; accordingly the anonymity and gagging orders were refused, the Replacement Summons dismissed as dependent on anonymity, and the defendant was ordered to file unredacted witness s…

  • 23 Aug 2023

    SECRETARY FOR JUSTICE v. TSANG CHI SING

    Citation
    [2023] HKCFI 2159
    Court
    Court of First Instance
    Case number
    HCMP586/2022

    The defendant deliberately breached both the Police Doxxing Injunction and the Anonymity Order by publishing extensive personal data including information about the officer's daughters; however, substantial mitigation (early admission and cooperation, remorse, deletion of account, limited following, absence of record, and delay before committal application) justified reducing the custodial sentence to 21 days imprisonment suspended for 12 months and ordering a contribution to costs of HK$8,000.

  • 18 Aug 2023

    SECRETARY FOR JUSTICE v. YEUNG HIN WUN

    Citation
    [2023] HKCFI 1029
    Court
    Court of First Instance
    Case number
    HCMP674/2022

    Balancing the need to enforce the injunction and deter breaches against the Defendant's remorse, cooperation, youth, good character and the inordinate delay in bringing proceedings, the appropriate, proportionate sanction was two months' imprisonment suspended for 12 months together with a contribution of HK$80,000 towards the SJ's costs; the breach was aggravated by misuse of access as a service provider and the substantial immediate harm caused to the victims.

  • 8 Aug 2023

    SECRETARY FOR JUSTICE v. WONG KWOK LEUNG

    Citation
    [2023] HKCFI 2026
    Court
    Court of First Instance
    Case number
    HCMP664/2022

    The defendant was in contempt for reposting prohibited personal data in breach of the Police Doxxing Injunction and Anonymity Order; having weighed aggravating features (publication of personal data including a child, less than frank account to police) against mitigation (one‑off conduct, limited reach, deletion before arrest, good character, family and financial hardship, and delay in proceedings), the appropriate and proportionate sentence was 28 days imprisonment suspended for 12 months and an order that the defendant contribute HK$25,000 towards the Secretary for Justice's costs.

  • 31 Jul 2023

    SECRETARY FOR JUSTICE v. LEE PAK NAP

    Citation
    [2023] HKCFI 1972
    Court
    Court of First Instance
    Case number
    HCMP587/2022

    Defendant committed a deliberate breach of both the Police Doxxing Injunction and the Anonymity Order but the overall gravity was relatively low given limited dissemination and defendant's cooperation, prompt admission at interview, purging of the post and good character; significant prosecutorial delay (22 months) warranted mitigation; balancing aggravating and mitigating factors, the appropriate penalty was 21 days immediate imprisonment suspended for 12 months together with a contribution to costs of HK$50,000.

  • 25 May 2023

    SECRETARY FOR JUSTICE v. WONG CHI FUNG

    Citation
    [2023] HKCFI 1023
    Court
    Court of First Instance
    Case number
    HCMP585/2022

    The Defendant committed contumacious contempt by publishing protected personal data in breach of the Police Doxxing Injunction and the Anonymity Order; given his influence, the public and permanent nature of dissemination and serious harm to the victims the appropriate sentence was immediate custody, reduced to three months after credit for mitigation including early admission, deletion of the post, genuine remorse, personal letters, time spent in custody and the prosecution delay; costs ordered as a contribution of HK$50,000 rather than full indemnity.

  • 14 Apr 2023

    SECRETARY FOR JUSTICE v. YIP SIN MAN

    Citation
    [2023] HKCFI 983
    Court
    Court of First Instance
    Case number
    HCMP539/2022

    The defendant committed contempt by publishing personal data in breach of the Police Doxxing Injunction and by encouraging dissemination; however, balancing aggravating and mitigating factors (brief duration of the post and removal, youth, low culpability relative to most serious cases, financial hardship and delay in prosecution) warranted a custodial sentence of 21 days which should be suspended for 12 months, together with an order to pay a contribution to the SJ's costs of HK$30,000.

  • 24 Nov 2022

    SECRETARY FOR JUSTICE v. LEE PAK NAP

    Citation
    [2022] HKCFI 3522
    Court
    Court of First Instance
    Case number
    HCMP587/2022

    Despite significant and largely unexplained delay, leave to apply for committal was granted because on the material before the court there was a prima facie case that could not be said to have no prospect of success, the delay did not demonstrably cause such prejudice as to require refusal of leave, and the proper impact of delay was more appropriately addressed at the substantive hearing rather than by refusing leave at the ex parte stage.