Proposed Amendments to the Protection of Privacy Law (1981)

Amendments to the Protection of Privacy Law (1981) have been proposed in the Knesset.

The new amendments will provide that:

• acts done by parents or guardians that would otherwise be a breach of the privacy of a child will not be considered a breach if done for the benefit of the child;
• "child" shall be defined as one up to and including 13 years of age;
• someone who purposely breaches the privacy of a minor can be punished by up to 7 years in jail;
• a person requesting information  from a child for inclusion in a database must first receive the consent of the child's parent or guardian;
• direct mail may not be sent to a child without prior permission from a parent or guardian;
• requesting information from a child or sending him direct mail without prior consent from a parent or guardian is punishable by up to 3 years in jail.

And an amendment to the Consumer Protection Law (1981) would prevent anyone from exploiting the age of a counterparty to a transaction.

I must say, I think the proposed jail terms seem a bit excessive especially when according to the notes to the proposed amendment convictions under the law do not require a showing of intent or negligence.


It is interesting that "child" is defined as up to and including 13 years old. First, that is the age of adulthood for boys in Jewish law. Second, Facebook does not allow anyone under the age of 13 to create an account but 13-year-olds are permitted. So under this law, Israeli teens will have a one year waiting period until they are Facebook legal.