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On the right to privacy

שו”תCategory: moralOn the right to privacy
asked 7 years ago

Hello Rabbi,
Recently, an article was published about a woman who was photographed eating shawarma and sold it for 20,000 shekels . Do you think this ruling is correct? Apparently, I thought that anything a person does in the public domain, or in the private domain of another person, is the (moral) right of the owner of the domain (or of any person in the case of the public domain) to photograph or record with the knowledge/consent or without the knowledge/consent of the person being recorded, and to use the recorded information as he sees fit. What do you think?
Best regards,


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0 Answers
מיכי Staff answered 7 years ago

It is clear that distributing such a photograph is not a nice thing to do, as it is a bit of an invasion of a person’s privacy. It is not just a question of large distribution, but the focus on him is stronger and more focused. When he is just eating on the street and people pass by him, they do not look.
The question of compensation is a different question. Are these damages payments? In my opinion, we can only discuss here the politics of indecency, but at least in Halacha there are no indecency payments for such a situation. Indecency in matters is exempt (Shulchan 121:38). Although see Ramah there and Benuk, and a review here: http://www.eretzhemdah.org/newsletterArticle.asp?lang=he&pageid=43&cat=5&newsletter=558&article=2722

From the explanation, it seems that if she somehow ate in a Pishita restaurant, there is no shame in the matter of charging compensation.

Of course, the Rosh wrote that it is appropriate for the Jewish community in every generation to limit itself as necessary. Therefore, we have the option of determining punitive damages (fines). As for the substance of the matter, it is difficult to decide. It seems to me that what is important is to determine a binding norm, and from here on out, everyone can consider their steps. If the norm is that it is permissible to take photographs, everyone knows that if they do something, they can be photographed. And if they determine that it is not, then everyone will be able to act accordingly more freely.


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