Is it illegal to go through someones cell phone without permission and make the contents public?

Question

My dad who WAS staying with my went through my boyfriends cell phone that was accidentally left at my house. He seen a video on the phone that he thought was my boyfriend assaulting me, which it was not it was quite the opposite. On the video he was filming my laughing so hard I was crying and I was asking him to stop. Anyway doesn't really matter. My family then posted a blog on a local website stating that they seen a video of him slapping me twice. I live in a small town so this of course has caused all kinds of problems for him as well as me. I need to know if there is any legal action we can take against this.

Answer 1

Nah.  

Put a passcode on it next time.  

Answer 2

That's crossing the line.He should have asked you if what he thought he saw was accurate.Doing the blog on an assumption,or for any reason,has to be illegal in some way.I'd talk to your local law enforcement and tell them what he did! Or you could try for a free consultation with an attorney to see if there's grounds for a lawsuit!

Answer 3

post the video and let people draw thier own conclusions. Dad had no right to go threw bf phone but there is no law against it. Next time be more responsible with your stuff and not leave it laying around for people to go threw

Answer 4

umm i guess? but people look at my fone and its annoyign

Answer 5

Yes, you can take legal action, for defamation of character. Its not illegal to have information, its what you do with it that makes it illegal. For instance, I can know your phone number, but, it does not give me the right to call you.

Answer 6

Are you the future of America?  Heaven help us.  

Answer 7

Yes it is.  

Answer 8

i'm pretty sure it's invasion of privacy which is a violation of the constitution, so yes.

Answer 9

Because the phone was left at your parents home, and because the video they saw was their own daughter, I doubt there is any cause for legal action against your parents. That is assuming they returned the phone to the owner, your boyfriend.

They could claim they were trying to just discover the owner of the phone.

But, they could get into trouble for their blog.  There are new federal laws concerning "harassment" on the internet.  You may want to go see a lawyer, to check this out.

HE would have to keep the video to prove that he was not slapping you, and use that in court, should he prosecute your parents, to protect his good character from defamation.

I'm assuming you are of legal age and able to support yourself, once you are put out on the street?

I would blame the boyfriend for carelessness, first in leaving his phone where it could be "spyed" upon, and secondly, for video-taping something that could be interpreted as "abuse", even if it was  not.

Answer 10

Ya your not allowed to go through other peoples stuff.  

Answer 11

That's your father, I think his intensions was to just look out for you! Talk to him and have him it take it down.

---OK............... now you add that you are a grown woman with children. Then be mature and handle it as an adult! Why get the court system involved? Carma is a (B-word)

Answer 12

Not really. Why would you take legal action against your parents? Omg!!  How old are you?

Answer 13

probably better to work it out within the family rather than dragging your family into court and making your relationship even more hard to repair.  otherwise, i would imagine it would depend on age and other factors.

Answer 14

Hmm. Not sure if going through someone's cell phone is illegal in and of itself, but libel and slander  both are. Libel is a written act of defamation, slander is an oral act of defamation. Writing a post on the internet that someone has abused someone when they have not would count as libel. It may not be worth the cost of legal action, though, because that can get pricey, and people will believe whatever they want regardless of what is decided in court.

My suggestion is to tell your parents why it was wrong to do what they did and, if they don't listen, you might want to consider severing contact. It may be hard, as they're your parents, but I don't think parents have a right to do whatever they want without recourse even if they think they're protecting you.

EDIT- I think when it comes to slander or libel you have to prove that the person made statements they knew were false, which may not be the case here. If they truly believe he was abusing you, then it probably couldn't be considered libel.

Answer 15

yes that is illegal!!!

Answer 16

i would tell ur dad that ur bf was trying to do it with u .then ur father probably wouldnt want that video to be seen everywhere.he might stop.

Answer 17

You cant prove that your dad looked at the phone withour premission..So there is nothing you can do abou it..