Public Dissemination of Knowingly False Information: Criminal and Criminological Aspects

Victoria Romanovna Nabiullina

2021

Abstract

Research in Russian criminal law and criminology focused on the public dissemination of knowingly false information has been going on for several decades. However, given the rapidly changing scale of such acts during the coronavirus pandemic (some sources say about the spread of fake information, misinformation), this problem should receive more attention. The relevance of the chosen topic is also influenced by the addition of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (hereinafter the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) with Article 207.1 “Public dissemination of knowingly false information about circumstances that pose a threat to the life and safety of citizens” and Article 207.2 "Public dissemination of knowingly false socially significant information that entailed grave consequences". In the presented article, based on the results of the analysis of a survey posted on the Internet, the author examines the awareness of university students about the existence of criminal liability for the public dissemination of knowingly false information, including about the coronavirus. The purpose of the research is to identify possible causes and conditions for the public dissemination of knowingly false information. The following can be distinguished as the research tasks: respondents familiarization with crimes under Art. 207.1, 207.2 and Part 4 Art. 128.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation; identification of the number of students who disseminated false information, including through its repost; analysis of the reasons and conditions for the false information dissemination. In conclusion, the author proposes the use of a survey of university students as a method helping to prevent the commission of crimes related to the dissemination of knowingly false information, as well as an object of scientific research. The article highlights a variety of reasons and conditions for the dissemination of knowingly false information: from the desire to increase their authority in the microsocial group to selfish motives.

Paper Citation

in Harvard Style

Nabiullina V. (2021). Public Dissemination of Knowingly False Information: Criminal and Criminological Aspects. In Proceedings of the VII International Scientific-Practical Conference “Criminal Law and Operative Search Activities: Problems of Legislation, Science and Practice” - Volume 1: CLOSA, ISBN 978-989-758-532-6, pages 70-74. DOI: 10.5220/0010629000003152

in Bibtex Style

@conference{closa21,
author={Victoria Romanovna Nabiullina},
title={Public Dissemination of Knowingly False Information: Criminal and Criminological Aspects},
booktitle={Proceedings of the VII International Scientific-Practical Conference “Criminal Law and Operative Search Activities: Problems of Legislation, Science and Practice” - Volume 1: CLOSA,},
year={2021},
pages={70-74},
publisher={SciTePress},
organization={INSTICC},
doi={10.5220/0010629000003152},
isbn={978-989-758-532-6},
}

in EndNote Style

TY - CONF

JO - Proceedings of the VII International Scientific-Practical Conference “Criminal Law and Operative Search Activities: Problems of Legislation, Science and Practice” - Volume 1: CLOSA,
TI - Public Dissemination of Knowingly False Information: Criminal and Criminological Aspects
SN - 978-989-758-532-6
AU - Nabiullina V.
PY - 2021
SP - 70
EP - 74
DO - 10.5220/0010629000003152