Abu Dhabi Court Orders Compensation for Non-Consensual Instagram Photo Posting

Summary

In Abu Dhabi, a civil lawsuit resulted in a court ordering a woman to pay Dh50,000 in compensation for posting another woman's photograph on Instagram without consent. The plaintiff had sought Dh100,000 for material and moral damages, citing psychological distress, reputational harm, and social embarrassment. The court found the defendant had unlawfully used information technology to publish the image, causing proven moral harm. The defendant also faced a prior criminal conviction, a fine, an order to delete the images, and a three‑month ban from using online networks.