Female COVID-19 Patient Bullied Online as Personal Info Leaked
• A 20-year-old confirmed COVID-19 female patient from Chengdu, is believed to have suffered cyber bullying after her personal information was leaked in the wake of the outbreak in the city.
• Local police are investigating the case. Legal experts warned that anyone who leaks personal information of others may be committing a crime and could face imprisonment.
Image: Someone exposing and blaming Miss Zhao
The woman, surnamed Zhao, a newly-confirmed patient on Tuesday, was targeted online and labeled by some netizens as the person to blame for the Chengdu outbreak because of her frequent visits to social venues, bars and clubs across the city.
The official report by the health authorities revealed that Zhao, who is unemployed, had been to various parts of the city, including a nail salon, park, restaurants and several clubs in the past 14 days.
Usually the address, and surname, age, sex, and travel history of a confirmed patient is published - so they can track close contacts and contain the outbreak, without including other detailed personal information.
However, much of Zhao's personal information was released by angry netizens and forwarded on multiple social platforms. Her name, ID number, home address, photos and other personal information are suspected of being leaked.
Image: Response of Miss Zhao saying that she wasn't aware and didn't mean to do harm @今日头条
Zhao is the granddaughter of an elderly couple who were confirmed as patients on Monday. Some netizens had criticized the woman due to her previous history of frequent, questioning why she still went to bars to have fun even after her grandparents went to hospital, while some even passed judgment on her looks.
However, some defended Zhao, saying her activities were pretty normal if she did not realize she had been infected. "If reporting whereabouts generates cyberbullying, patients will hesitate to tell epidemiological investigators about their activities, which is a bigger threat to public health," a net user said on Weibo.
As the case is linked to a major public health event, anyone who leaked her personal information may face imprisonment, said Wang Sixin, a media law professor at the Communication University of China.
"The online personal attack and hatred against the COVID-19 patient could cause damage to her life in reality. The leaking of people's personal information is against the law," Wang said. The public disclosure of basic information of confirmed patients by health authorities does not break any laws as it is linked to the health crisis and is in the public interest.
This week Ms Zhao is certianly the most famous young woman in Chengdu. Do you think people have the right to access her details? Let us know in the comments.
Source: Global Times
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