The Cyber Social Phenomenon of Doxing: An Examination of Hong Kong's Anti-doxing Law

Abstract

1 Abstract Doxing is a relatively new practice and phenomenon that emerged within the cyberspace, and there have been limited studies providing insights into this practice, especially concerning the legal measures available to address this practice. Hong Kong has recently experienced a widespread doxing phenomenon in light of social unrests stemming from the 2019 protest movement, and as a response, has introduced a legislative amendment to address this issue. This research paper aims to investigate and examine doxing and its effects in Hong Kong, as well as to investigate and understand how doxing is legally addressed in Hong Kong. It specifically examines the legislative text of the 2021 Amendment as well as other governmental publications in order to answer to three research questions: 1) What are the challenges that doxing posed to law enforcement?; 2) How has doxing in Hong Kong been addressed by the 2021 Amendment?; and 3) What are law enforcement's response to doxing after legal measures were introduced to address doxing? This research study observed the challenges that law enforcement faced before the 2021 Amendment, legal measures that were introduced, and how law enforcement responded to doxing after the 2021 Amendment. These points serve as a basis for discussion on the literature on doxing and...