Full Text of HB2954 103rd General Assembly
HB2954enr 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | AN ACT concerning civil law.
| 2 | | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
| 3 | | represented in the General Assembly:
| 4 | | Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Civil | 5 | | Liability for Doxing Act. | 6 | | Section 5. Definitions. As used in this Act: | 7 | | "Course of conduct" means a pattern of conduct composed of | 8 | | 2 or more acts, evidencing a continuity of purpose. | 9 | | "Electronic communication" means any transfer of signs, | 10 | | signals, writing, images, sounds, data, or intelligence of any | 11 | | nature transmitted in whole or in part by a wire, radio, | 12 | | electromagnetic, photoelectronic, or photo-optical system. | 13 | | "Emotional distress" means significant mental suffering, | 14 | | anxiety, or alarm. "Emotional distress" is limited to | 15 | | emotional suffering that is protracted and not merely trivial | 16 | | or transitory. | 17 | | "Family or household member" has the meaning given to the | 18 | | term "family or household members" in Section 103 of the | 19 | | Illinois Domestic Violence Act of 1986. | 20 | | "Personally identifiable information" means any | 21 | | information that can be used to distinguish or trace a | 22 | | person's identity, such as name, prior legal name, alias, | 23 | | mother's maiden name, and date or place of birth in |
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| 1 | | combination with any other information that is linked or | 2 | | linkable to a person such as: | 3 | | (1) social security number, home address, phone | 4 | | number, email address, social media accounts, or biometric | 5 | | data; | 6 | | (2) medical, financial, education, consumer, or | 7 | | employment information, data, or records; | 8 | | (3) any other sensitive or private information that is | 9 | | linked or linkable to a specific identifiable person, such | 10 | | as gender identity, sexual orientation, or any sexually | 11 | | intimate visual depiction; or | 12 | | (4) any information that provides access to a person's | 13 | | teleconferencing, video-teleconferencing, or other | 14 | | digital meeting room. | 15 | | "Post" means to circulate, deliver, distribute, | 16 | | disseminate, transmit, or otherwise make available to 2 or | 17 | | more persons through electronic communication. | 18 | | "Publish" means to circulate, deliver, distribute, | 19 | | disseminate, post, transmit, or otherwise make available to | 20 | | another person. "Publish" does not include writing or | 21 | | electronically communicating to one other person in private | 22 | | communications for which an individual has a reasonable | 23 | | expectation of privacy. | 24 | | "Regularly resides" means residing in the household with | 25 | | some permanency or regular frequency in the person's living | 26 | | arrangement. |
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| 1 | | "Stalk" or "stalking" has the meaning provided in Section | 2 | | 12-7.3 of the Criminal Code of 2012, except that "stalking" | 3 | | does not include an activity that is part of a protest that is | 4 | | protected by the United States Constitution or the Illinois | 5 | | Constitution. | 6 | | "Substantial life disruption" means a material and | 7 | | significant alteration of an individual's livelihood. | 8 | | "Substantial life disruption" may include, but is not limited | 9 | | to, moving from an established residence, changing routes to | 10 | | and from work, changing employment or work schedule, or losing | 11 | | time at work or a job. | 12 | | Section 10. Doxing. | 13 | | (a) An individual engages in the act of doxing when that | 14 | | individual intentionally publishes another person's personally | 15 | | identifiable information without the consent of the person | 16 | | whose information is published and: | 17 | | (1) the information is published with the intent that | 18 | | it be used to harm or harass the person whose information | 19 | | is published and with knowledge or reckless disregard that | 20 | | the person whose information is published would be | 21 | | reasonably likely to suffer death, bodily injury, or | 22 | | stalking; and | 23 | | (2) the publishing of the information: | 24 | | (i) causes the person whose information is | 25 | | published to suffer significant economic injury or |
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| 1 | | emotional distress or to fear serious bodily injury or | 2 | | death of the person or a family or household member of | 3 | | the person; or | 4 | | (ii) causes the person whose information is | 5 | | published to suffer a substantial life disruption; and | 6 | | (3) the person whose information is published is | 7 | | identifiable from the published personally identifiable | 8 | | information itself. | 9 | | (b) It is not an offense under this Act for an individual | 10 | | to: | 11 | | (1) provide another person's personally identifiable | 12 | | information or sensitive personal information in | 13 | | connection with the reporting of criminal activity to an | 14 | | employee of a law enforcement agency or in connection with | 15 | | any lawfully authorized investigative, protective, or | 16 | | intelligence activity of any law enforcement agency or of | 17 | | an intelligence agency of the United States and the person | 18 | | making the report reasonably believes the alleged criminal | 19 | | activity occurred or the existing investigative, | 20 | | protective, or intelligence activity is legitimate; | 21 | | (2) disseminate the personally identifiable | 22 | | information for the purpose of, or in connection with, the | 23 | | reporting of conduct reasonably believed to be unlawful; | 24 | | or | 25 | | (3) provide a person's personally identifiable | 26 | | information in connection with activity protected under |
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| 1 | | the United States Constitution or the Illinois | 2 | | Constitution pertaining to speech, press, assembly, | 3 | | protest, and petition, as well as the provision of | 4 | | personally identifiable information to the press. | 5 | | (c) Nothing in this Act shall be construed in any manner | 6 | | to: | 7 | | (1) conflict with Section 230 of Title II of the | 8 | | Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 230); | 9 | | (2) conflict with 42 U.S.C. 1983; or | 10 | | (3) prohibit any activity protected under the | 11 | | Constitution of the United States or the Illinois | 12 | | Constitution. | 13 | | Section 15. Civil action. | 14 | | (a) A person who is aggrieved by a violation of this Act | 15 | | may bring a civil action against (i) the individual who | 16 | | committed the offense of doxing or (ii) any individual or | 17 | | entity that directs one or more persons to violate this Act and | 18 | | that knowingly benefits, financially or by receiving anything | 19 | | of value, from participation in a venture that the individual | 20 | | or entity knew involved a violation of this Act. | 21 | | (b) A person who is aggrieved by a violation of this Act | 22 | | may recover damages and any other appropriate relief, | 23 | | including reasonable attorney's fees. | 24 | | (c) An individual who is found liable under this Act shall | 25 | | be jointly and severally liable with each other individual, if |
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| 1 | | any, who is found liable under this Act for damages arising | 2 | | from the same violation of this Act. | 3 | | (d) When a judgment is entered in favor of an individual | 4 | | alleged to have committed the offense of doxing, the court may | 5 | | award reasonable costs and attorney's fees to the defendant | 6 | | for defending any claim that the court finds was brought by the | 7 | | plaintiff and that the court finds was frivolous, baseless, or | 8 | | brought in bad faith. | 9 | | Section 20. Injunctive relief. | 10 | | (a) A court in which a suit is brought under this Act, on | 11 | | the motion of a party, may issue a temporary restraining | 12 | | order, emergency order of protection, or preliminary or | 13 | | permanent injunction to restrain and prevent the disclosure or | 14 | | continued disclosure of a person's personally identifiable | 15 | | information or sensitive personal information. Upon a motion | 16 | | by a party in a civil action brought under this Act, and | 17 | | following a full evidentiary hearing, a court may issue an | 18 | | order pursuant to this Section to prevent the publishing of a | 19 | | person's personally identifiable information or sensitive | 20 | | personal information if the court finds by clear and | 21 | | convincing evidence each of the following: | 22 | | (1) the individual to be enjoined published personally | 23 | | identifiable information or sensitive personal information | 24 | | in violation of this Act; | 25 | | (2) continued or further publishing of the personally |
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| 1 | | identifiable information or sensitive personal information | 2 | | poses a present and ongoing risk of death, bodily injury, | 3 | | or stalking to another individual; and | 4 | | (3) the individual to be enjoined has no lawful or | 5 | | constitutional purpose for continued or further publishing | 6 | | of the personally identifiable information or sensitive | 7 | | personal information. | 8 | | (b) Any injunctive relief granted under this Section shall | 9 | | state the following with sufficient particularity to allow | 10 | | appellate review: | 11 | | (1) the required findings in subsection (a) of Section | 12 | | 20 and the evidentiary basis and reasoning for the | 13 | | findings; | 14 | | (2) the expiration date of the injunction, which shall | 15 | | be no more than one year from the date of its entry; | 16 | | (3) that the enjoined individual may seek relief from | 17 | | the injunction, if the court determines, after notice and | 18 | | hearing, that one or more of the required findings in | 19 | | subsection (a) of Section 20 no longer apply; and | 20 | | (4) that the person who sought the injunction may seek | 21 | | an extension of the order of no more than one year if the | 22 | | court determines, after notice and hearing, that the | 23 | | required findings in subsection (a) of Section 20 continue | 24 | | to apply. | 25 | | (c) If a person violates any order issued under this | 26 | | Section, the court, in its discretion, may grant any civil |
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| 1 | | remedy under State law. | 2 | | Section 25. Venue. A civil action may be brought in any | 3 | | county in which an element of the offense occurred, or in which | 4 | | a person resides who is the subject of personally identifiable | 5 | | information published in violation of this Act. | 6 | | Section 30. Constitutionality. The General Assembly does | 7 | | not intend this Act to allow, and this Act shall not allow, | 8 | | actions to be brought against constitutionally protected | 9 | | activity.
| 10 | | Section 97. Severability. The provisions of this Act are | 11 | | severable under Section 1.31 of the Statute on Statutes.
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