Eavesdropping conversations is considered a crime due to the violation of human rights in Iran and other countries, and the law has set a penalty for it. Due to the fact that today a high percentage of people around the world use new technologies for communication, the number of eavesdropping crimes has increased a lot.
Based on this, in this article, we will discuss the full description of the crime of eavesdropping and its punishment according to Iranian law. To know more information, stay with us until the end of the article.
With the advancement of technology and facilities, people’s communication around the world has improved a lot. In the past, letters were used to communicate with others; But today, equipment such as mobile phones, landlines, laptops, etc. can easily communicate between people.
This technology, despite the significant welfare it has for people; In some cases, it is associated with disadvantages and destructive effects. Eavesdropping or eavesdropping is one of the problems that have arisen due to the advancement of technology and the expansion of communication.
What is eavesdropping?
The privacy of every person is of great importance in all countries of the world. It is for this reason that the law of each country has prescribed punishments for those who invade people’s privacy. Eavesdropping or secretly listening to a person’s conversations is one of the actions that is considered a crime due to violation of human privacy.
“In the crime of eavesdropping, a person tries to secretly listen to his private conversations with others without his knowledge.”
In the past, eavesdropping was used when a person hides himself in a space and listens to the conversations of another person with others. For example, a person who listens to the conversations of the person inside the room from behind the door or window; He committed the crime of eavesdropping.
But the expansion of communication caused some people today to listen or eavesdrop on other people’s conversations due to the changes they make in a person’s mobile phone.
The crime of eavesdropping may be simple and unimportant for some people; But when a person threatens and deprives that person of peace after listening to the conversations, it can cause many problems such as disturbing the mental peace of the person, disturbing the public peace and even many frauds.
types of listening
Wiretapping, like many works in the law, is divided into two types: permitted or legal and unauthorized or illegal. According to the law of Iran, the descriptions of the types of eavesdropping crimes are as follows:
Authorized or legal wiretapping
In general, it is a crime to eavesdrop or listen to the conversations of others without the person’s knowledge and secretly; But sometimes this crime is allowed and it is not punished.
“Legal and authorized hearing is determined by the court judge. In fact, if the issue is to maintain the country’s internal security and external security, the judge will change the crime of wiretapping from an illegal state to a legal and permitted state by issuing a license.”
Unauthorized or illegal wiretapping
“If a person tries to eavesdrop on personal conversations without any permission or receiving a court order, he has committed the crime of eavesdropping and will be punished according to the law.”
considering that unauthorized or illegal eavesdropping is an absolute crime; Even if a person cannot access the conversations of the person in question, he still committed a crime.
Penalty for illegal wiretapping
In Iran’s Islamic Penal Code or Deterrent Punishment Law, those who have committed the crime of wiretapping are given monetary punishment and imprisonment.
“According to Article 582 of this law, if government officials or other people open, seize, destroy, or record and eavesdrop on the telephone conversations and correspondence of others, other than those mentioned in the law; They are sentenced to 12 to 36 months in prison and 8 to 25 million tomans in fine.”
Is it a crime to eavesdrop on your spouse’s conversations?
One of the common questions raised by different people regarding the crime of eavesdropping is whether it is considered a crime to listen to your spouse’s conversations.
Unfortunately, the continuous concealment of couples from each other has caused many of them to try to get information from each other through eavesdropping.
For example, in order to find documents to prove his wife’s infidelity, one of the couples uses wiretapping on his wife’s cell phone, desk, car, or other personal items and special places.
According to Article 25 of the Constitution, who are criminals?
- People who inspect the letters, not delivering the letter to its original owner.
- Recording and saving individual conversations
- Spying on people’s lives
- Eavesdropping on conversations
- Disclosing messages and… are criminals
All these people are criminals, unless they are authorized to do so by the law.
While this law does not apply to couples; Because in judicial procedure, the family and its stability are very important, and if one of the spouses listens to the conversations of the spouse, there will be no criminal punishment.
Is buying and selling unauthorized eavesdropping devices considered a crime?
Unfortunately, most people are not aware of the laws related to the crime of eavesdropping and do not have information about the fact that listening to conversations is considered a crime. Because of this, some people may commit this crime or even buy and sell unauthorized listening devices.
The question that may arise for some people after learning about this crime is whether the sale of equipment related to eavesdropping is considered a crime?
In response to this question, we must say that according to Article 125 of the Law on Customs Affairs, those people who sell listening devices on mobile phones or telephones in homes and offices are considered criminals; Because the sale of these products without the consent of the Ministry of Information is prohibited in Iran.
When is it not possible to file a complaint against the crime of eavesdropping?
Although the crime of eavesdropping is illegal and usually violates the rights of individuals, as mentioned in the above explanation; In some cases, eavesdropping is considered permissible and it is not possible to file a complaint against it. The reasons that allow the crime of eavesdropping; They are:
- If listening to conversations is due to maintaining the internal and external security of the country.
- In the event that secretly listening to the conversations is with the permission of the Chief Justice.
- Eavesdropping should be done with the permission of the owner.
- If the wiretapping of the conversations is due to the discovery of crimes punishable by life imprisonment, life imprisonment, amputation, and crimes of the third degree and higher; It is not possible to file a complaint in court for this crime.
If eavesdropping is not for the above reasons, a person can take action against the person who committed the crime of eavesdropping after filing a complaint. In the complaint letter that is to be delivered to the court, the person should include information with the help of legal advisors. This information includes the exact time and date of the crime as well as the place where the conversations were intercepted.
After submitting the complaint and executing the legal procedures, this case will be examined in the court and the result of the punishment according to Article 582 will be determined for the accused after the crime is proven.
Conclusion
In this article, we discussed the full description of what the crime of eavesdropping is and what punishment is associated with it. We know that eavesdropping is one of the crimes that is punishable by fine and imprisonment due to the violation of privacy. In case of repetition, it can be associated with banning the use of smart equipment to communicate.
If someone tried to eavesdrop on your conversations or eavesdrop on your conversations with others, you can file a complaint against the crime committed with the help of a criminal lawyer.
Dadista Law Firm is one of the reputable and long-standing law firms in the field of solving legal and criminal cases. This institution consists of qualified lawyers and experienced legal advisors. These consultants can guide you in the field of wiretapping crime. Also, in a short time, all the legal procedures to file a complaint and lawsuit against the person who committed the crime are done.