Research on the Application of Private Prosecution Procedure in Cyber Violence Crimes in China_Vol. 2 No. 4 (JEL 2025)_Journal of Economics and Law (ISSN: 3005-5768)

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Research on the Application of Private Prosecution Procedure in Cyber Violence Crimes in China

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DOI: https://doi.org/10.62517/jel.202514411

Author(s)

Jiawen Xu*

Affiliation(s)

Qingdao University of Science and Technology, Qingdao, Shandong, China *Corresponding Author

Abstract

With the rapid development of China's economy and internet, cybercrimes have been on the rise. Among these, online violence has garnered the most widespread public attention, primarily regulated in judicial practice through charges of defamation and slander. For years, the "private prosecution" mechanism—apart from exceptional cases—has mainly relied on private litigation procedures. This entrenched perception poses significant challenges for effectively punishing cyberbullying. As such crimes no longer align with the legislative intent behind the private prosecution system, pressing issues include high court acceptance thresholds and victims' difficulties in gathering evidence through private litigation. Drawing on international practices and China's social realities, this paper proposes three effective solutions to address the paradoxes of cyberbullying: redefining "private prosecution" as either reporting to public security authorities or directly filing lawsuits; extending police assistance obligations throughout private litigation processes to activate Article 246 of the Criminal Law; and abolishing evidentiary standards for private litigation cases, implementing only formal review procedures.

Keywords

Cyber Violence; Private Prosecution Procedure; Tell Only; Case Acceptance.

References

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