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ISSUE:
With regard to Section 3 of Article III of the Constitution, the issue is whether or not
Section 12 of the Cybercrime law on the real-time collection of traffic data infringes on the right
to privacy of a person.
HELD:
Yes. The right granted to law enforcement agencies of the power to collect or record
traffic data in real time would tend to curtail civil liberties and may provide opportunities for
official abuse. Section 12 requires disclosure of matters normally considered private. In
asserting regulations affecting privacy rights, the Courts should balance between legitimate
concerns of the State vis--vis the Constitutionally guaranteed rights of the citizens. In the case,
the Court held that while there is a compelling state interest in enacting the law, the evidence
of traffic data is not adequate to fight cybercrimes.
The clause with due cause is not defined by the legislature and thus, the authority given
to law enforcement agencies is too sweeping and lacks restraint. The Court opined that while
it says that traffic data collection should not disclose certain content, there is nothing that can
prevent law enforcement agencies to look into the identities of the sender or receiver of the
data.
Furthermore, the Court said that it must ensure that laws seeking to take advantage of
technologies must be written with specificity and definiteness to ensure respect for the
constitutionally guaranteed rights of the people.