House of Representatives Committees

| Parliamentary Joint Committee on Cyber-Safety

Appendix E – Online Offences

Table Online Offences (I): Sexual offences committed online against minors

OFFENCE		JURISDICTIONS
Type	Elements	Cth^{^[1]}	ACT^{^[2]}	NSW^{^[3]}	NT^{^[4]}	Qld^{^[5]}	SA^{^[6]}	Tas^{^[7]}	Vic^{^[8]}	WA^{^[9]}
*Grooming*	Citation	s474.27	See ‘depravity’	s66EB(3)			s63B(3)	s125D
	Age limits	Victim must be under 16		Perpetrator must over 18; victim under 16			Victim must be under 16	Victim must be (or believed to be) under 17
	Definition	Uses a carriage service to transmit a communication with the intention of making it easier to procure the recipient to engage in sexual activity with the sender or another person		Any conduct (including communicating by telephone or internet) that exposes a child to indecent material with the intention of making it easier to procure the child for unlawful sexual activity			Makes a communication with a prurient purpose and with the intention of making a child amenable to a sexual activity	Makes a communication by any means with the intention of procuring a person to engage in an unlawful sexual act
	Penalty^{^[10]}	12 years		12 years (victim under 14); or 10 years			10 years (basic); 12 years (aggravated)^{^[11]}	21 years and/or fine
*Procuring*	Citation	s474.26	See ‘depravity’	s66EB(2)	s131	s218A	s63B(1)	s125C	s58	s204B
	Age limits	Victim must be (or believed to be) under 16, perpetrator over 18		Victim must be under 16, perpetrator over 18	Victim must be under 16	Victim must be (or believed to be) under 16, perpetrator over 18	Victim must be under 16	Victim must be under 17	Victim must be under 16, perpetrator over 18	Victim must be (or believed to be) under 16; perpetrator over 18
	Definition	Uses a carriage service to transmit a communication to another person; with the intention of procuring the recipient to engage in sexual activity with the sender or another person		Intentionally procures for unlawful sexual activity with that or any other person	Attempts to procure to have sexual intercourse or commit, perform or engage in any act of gross indecency	Knowingly entice or recruit for the purposes of sexual exploitation	Incites or procures the commission of an indecent act; or, acting for a prurient purpose, causes or induces to expose any part of the body	Procures to have unlawful sexual intercourse or to commit an indecent act	Solicits or procures to take part in an act of sexual penetration, or an indecent act	Uses electronic communication with intent to procure a person to engage in sexual activity
	Penalty	15 years		15 years (child under 14) or 12 years	3 years; if perpetrator is an adult 5 years	10 years (victim under 12) or 5 years	10 years (basic); 12 years (aggravated)	21 years and/or fine	10 years	10 years (child under 13) or 5 years
*Child abuse material^{^[12]}***	Citation	ss474.19 – 474.23	s64; s64A	s91H	s125B	s228C	s63; s63C	s130B	s57A	s60^{^[13]}
	Age limits	Person depicted is or appears to be under 18^{^[14]}	Person depicted under 18	Person depicted under 16	Person depicted is or appears to be under 18	Person depicted is or appears to be under 16	Person depicted is or appears to be under 16	Person depicted is or appears to be under 18	Person depicted is or appears to be under 18	Person depicted is or appears to be under 16
	Definition	Transmits or supplies child pornography or child abuse material. Must intend to commit act, but need only be reckless as to whether material constitutes abuse material or pornography	Publishes, offers or sells child pornography	Disseminates child abuse material; includes sending, exhibiting, transmitting or communicating to another person	Distributes, sells or offers or advertises for distribution or sale child abuse material	Distributes child exploitation material; includes communicating, exhibiting, sending, supplying or transmiting to someone, whether to a particular person or not	Disseminates, or takes any steps in disseminating, child pornography knowing of its pornographic nature	Distributes, or does anything to facilitate the distribution of, child exploitation material; and knows, or ought to have known, that the material is child exploitation material	Knowingly uses an on-line information service to publish or transmit, or make available for transmission, objectionable material	Sells or supplies, or offers to sell or supply, or displays, exhibits or demonstrates, child pornography
	Penalty	15 years, 25 years if conduct repeated on 3 occasions and commission involves multiple offenders^{^[15]}	1200 penalty units and/or 12 years	10 years	10 years	10 years	10 years basic, 12 years aggravated	21 years and/or fine	10 years	5 years for displaying/ exhibiting; 7 years for selling/ supplying; and/or fine of any amount
*Indecency*	Citation	474.27A	S66		S132	S218A		S125D(3)	S58^{^[16]}	S204B
	Age limits	Recipient must be (or believed to be) under 16; perpetrator must be over 18	Recipient must be under 16		Recipient must be under 16	Recipient must be (or believed to be) under 16		Recipient must be (or believed to be) under 17	Recipient must be under 18	Recipient must be (or believed to be) under 16, perpetrator over 18
	Definition	Uses a carriage service to transmit a communication that includes material that is indecent according to the standards of ordinary people	Using electronic means, sends or makes available pornographic material; or suggests that the young person commit or take part in an act of a sexual nature		Without legitimate reason, intentionally exposes a child to an indecent object, film, video tape, audio tape, photograph or book	Without legitimate reason, intentionally exposes a child to any indecent matter.		Without legitimate reason, makes a communication by any means with the intention of exposing a child to any indecent material	Uses an on-line information service to publish or transmit, or make available for transmission, to a minor material unsuitable for minors of any age	Uses electronic communication with intent to expose person to indecent material
	Penalty	7 years	5 years/ 100 penalty units		14 years (child under 10) or10 years.	2 years; 5 years (child under 16); 10 years (under 12)		21 years and/or fine	2 years/ 240 penalty units if material objectionable; or 6 months/ 60 units	5 years, if child under 13 10 years
Engaging or causing a child to engage in sexual activity with another	Citation	474.25A
	Age limits	Recipient must be (or believed to be) under 16; perpetrator must be over 18
	Definition	Engages a child or causes a child to be engaged in sexual activity with the perpetrator or another person using a carriage service
	Penalty	15 years

Table Online Offences (II): Offences against the person committed online where age is not an element of the offence

NB These offences may be committed by an adult or a minor against any person, including another minor)

OFFENCE		JURISDICTIONS
Type	Elements	Cth^{^[17]}	ACT^{^[18]}	NSW^{^[19]}	NT^{^[20]}	Qld^{^[21]}	SA^{^[22]}	Tas^{^[23]}	Vic^{^[24]}	WA^{^[25]}
*Stalking*	Citation		s35	s13^{^[26]}	s189	Ch33A	s19AA		s21A	s338E(1)
	Definition		Specified conduct repeated on at least two occasions, which can include sending electronic messages to or about the stalked person. Must be intent to cause apprehension; or to harm/ harass	Stalks or intimidates another person with the intention of causing the other person to fear physical or mental harm	Specified conduct repeated on at least two occasions which can include telephoning, sending electronic messages to or otherwise contacting the stalked person. Must intend to cause physical or mental harm; or arouse fear or apprehension	One ‘protracted’ incident or multiple instances of specified conduct intentionally directed at a person; which can include any form of contact that would cause apprehension or fear, or detriment (reasonably arising in all the circumstances)	Specified conduct repeated on at least two occasions, which can include publishing or transmitting offensive material to the person by electronic means; or communicating with or about the other person by way of the internet in a manner that could reasonably be expected to arouse apprehension or fear. Must intend to cause serious physical or mental harm; or serious apprehension or fear	A course of conduct made up of one or more specified actions, which can include contacting the person by any means; publishing or transmitting offensive material by electronic means; or using the internet or any other form of electronic communication in a way that could reasonably be expected to cause apprehension or fear. Must intend to cause physical or mental harm; or arouse apprehension or fear	A course of conduct which can include contacting the victim by post, telephone, fax, text message, e-mail or other electronic communication; publishing on the Internet material relating to or purporting to originate from the victim; and tracing the victim's use of the Internet. Must intend to cause physical or mental harm; or arouse apprehension or fear	Pursues another person with intent to intimidate.^{^[27]} Repeated communication can constitute pursuit
	Penalty		2 years (5 years if contravene injunction)	5 years and/ or fifty penalty units	2 years (5 years if involves weapon or contravening injunction)	5 years (7 years if contravene injunction)	3 years (basic), 5 years (aggravated)	21 years and/or fine	10 years	3 years (basic), 8 years (aggravated)
*Bullying*	Citation			S60E
	Definition			Assaults, stalks, harasses or intimidates a school student or member of staff while victim is attending a school
	Penalty			5 years
*Assault/ threats*	Citation	s474.15	s26	s61	s188	s335	s20	Words alone cannot constitute an assault (s182)	s31	s338A
	Definition	Uses a carriage service to make a threat to kill or cause serious harm to the second person or a third person, intending the second person to fear that the threat will be carried out	(Common law)	(Common law)	(Common law)	(Common law)	Threatens to apply force to the victim; and there are reasonable grounds for the victim to believe that the person is in a position to carry out the threat and intends to do so; or there is a real possibility that the person will carry out the threat		Threatens direct or indirect application of force to the victim with intent to commit assault	Makes a threat to cause detriment of any kind to any person, with intent to cause a detriment^{^[28]}
	Penalty	10 years for threat to kill, 7 years for threat to cause serious harm	2 years	2 years	1 year, 5 years if male to female or adult to person under 16	3 years	2 years		5 years	7 years (10 years if threaten to kill)
*Harass-ment*^{^[29]}	Citation	s474.17	*Harassment in certain circumstances is unlawful, but not a criminal offence, under the Discrimination Act 1991 (ACT)* (see s71)**	*Sexual harassment in certain circumstances is unlawful, but not an offence, under the Anti-Discrimination Act 1977* (NSW) (s22B)**	Harassment in certain circumstances is prohibited, but not a criminal offence, under the Anti-Discrimination Act (NT) s22	Sexual harassment in certain circumstances contravenes but does not give rise to criminal sanctions under the Anti-Discrimination Act 1991 (Qld)	*Sexual harassment in certain circumstances contravenes but does not give rise to criminal sanctions under the Equal Opportunity Act 1984 (SA)* (see s99)**	Harassment in certain circumstances is prohibited, but not a criminal offence, under the Anti-Discrimination Act 1998 (Tas)	*Sexual harassment in certain circumstances contravenes but does not give rise to criminal sanctions under the Equal Opportunity Act 1995 (Vic)* (see s209)**	*Sexual and racial harassment in certain circumstances contravenes but does not give rise to criminal sanctions under the Equal Opportunity Act 1984 (WA)* (see s154)**
	Definition	Uses a carriage service in a way (whether by the method of use or the content of a communication) that reasonable persons would regard as being menacing, harassing or offensive
	Penalty	3 years
*Vilifi-cation*	Citation	The Racial Discrimination Act (Cth) makes certain conduct unlawful; but excludes criminal liability for unlawful conduct under the statute (with limited exceptions unrelated to online conduct) (see s26)	s67^{^[30]}	s20D; s38T; s49ZTA; s49ZXC^{^[31]}		s131A^{^[32]}	s4^{^[33]}	*Inciting hatred by a public act against specific groups is prohibited, but does not attract criminal sanctions, under the Anti-Discrimination Act 1998 (Tas)* (s 19)**	s24; s25^{^[34]}	s77; s78^{^[35]}
	Definition		By a public act incite hatred, serious contempt or severe ridicule on the ground of race, sexuality, gender identity, or HIV/AIDS status	By a public act incite hatred, serious contempt or severe ridicule on the ground of race, transgender identity, HIV/AIDs status, or homosexuality		By a public act, knowingly or recklessly incite hatred, serious contempt or severe ridicule on the ground of the race, religion, sexuality or gender identity in a way that includes threatening or inciting physical harm	By a public act incite hatred, serious contempt or severe ridicule on the ground of race		Intentionally engage in conduct on the grounds of race (including use of the internet or email) that the offender knows is likely to incite hatred, serious contempt or revulsion; or threaten, or incite others to threaten, physical harm	Engages in any conduct, otherwise than in private, by which the person intends to create, promote or increase animosity towards, or harassment of, a racial group; or that is likely to have such an effect
	Penalty		50 penalty units	6 months and/ or 50 penalty units		70 penalty units or 6 months	$5000 and/ or 3 years		6 months/ 60 penalty units	14 years if intention established, 5 years for lesser offence
*Misuse of carriage service*	Citation	s474.14
	Definition	Connecting to or using a telecommunications network with intention to commit or facilitate the commission of a serious offence (carrying penalty of five years or more)
	Penalty	As for the serious offence
*Suicide-related material*	Citation	474.29A
	Definition	Using a carriage service to transmit, make available, publish or otherwise distribute material that directly or indirectly counsels or incites suicide, intending the material to incite suicide or be used by another to incite suicide; or material that promotes or provides instruction on a particular method of committing suicide
	Penalty	1000 penalty units

Navigation: Previous Page | Contents

Senate

House of Representatives

Get informed

Bills

Committees

Committees

Get involved

Visit Parliament

Website features

Parliamentary Departments