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German Court Orders Man To Destroy Naked Images of Ex-Partner (bbc.com)

AmiMoJo sends this report from the BBC: Germany's highest court has ordered a man to destroy intimate photos and videos of his ex-partner because they violate her right to privacy. The Federal Court said the man, a photographer, should no longer possess naked photos and sex tapes, even if he had no intention of sharing them. The woman had originally agreed to the images but this consent stopped when the relationship ended, the court said. Germany has some of the strictest privacy laws in Europe.

263 comments

  1. IQ baseline by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    From now on, one's IQ should be based on whether or not an individual takes nude picks or videos of themselves for intimate sexual non-artistic reasons. Meaning, if it's an act purely out of lust or vanity. My advice: DON'T DO IT!!!

    Clearly their bone-headed decisions also reflect the character of the partners they choose as well.

    1. Re:IQ baseline by PopeRatzo · · Score: 1

      Meaning, if it's an act purely out of lust or vanity. My advice: DON'T DO IT!!!

      Son, you spend too much time with computers.

      --
      You are welcome on my lawn.
    2. Re:IQ baseline by smallfries · · Score: 3, Funny

      To be fair to him: this is largely a theoretical issue.

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    3. Re:IQ baseline by smallfries · · Score: 1

      ... For the slashdot audience.

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  2. Are they all gone? Check the backups!! by tonyyeb · · Score: 5, Insightful

    How would the court ever know if he has fully complied with the order?!

    1. Re:Are they all gone? Check the backups!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      How would the court ever know if he has fully complied with the order?!

      Once the court case is over, clearly the relationship between this man and the court has ended, and the court ruled nothing agreed to during the relationship applies afterward.

      I'm sure the court would agree with their own ruling that it would be a violation of this mans privacy to make sure he did something he agreed to prior to the relationship with the court ending :P

    2. Re:Are they all gone? Check the backups!! by bjhonermann · · Score: 5, Interesting

      To some extent, it doesn't exactly matter whether he fully complies. Yes, destroying the files and getting it out of his hands is part of the purpose but there's a secondary purpose likely as well. It also establishes that should the images or video subsequently get released somewhere, that he's been in violation of the court order and would be liable not just for privacy issues (which can be hard to establish) but also for contempt of court.

      Basically, raises the bar to disincentivize the behaviour.

    3. Re:Are they all gone? Check the backups!! by omnichad · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Only if it could be proven that they weren't stolen beforehand. Or if he deleted the files in good faith but there was an unintended backup copy compromised. Incremental backups are hard to remove individual files from - and you could argue that destroying entire file backups is an unreasonable demand.

    4. Re:Are they all gone? Check the backups!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I don't think this is an order than anyway would really comply with. I would "comply" and keep some copies around. I've done it before (although not court sanctioned.) Basically, the owner of the pictures can't flaunt or blackmail the other with them. Or spread them around on the internet, without legal repercussion anymore.

      I personally think it's a fair ruling, and anywhere technology can mimic real life, court should try to uphold nature and the laws thereof. So in this case, it's only natural when you stop "being with them" consensually, then you can no longer see them naked unless you stalk or rape them. Two activities that court would also not look fond upon.

      It's also my opinion that Germany is repeatedly one of the few countries with their shit together. Wish I lived there. Although America is a close second.

    5. Re:Are they all gone? Check the backups!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Or the partner frames the expartner, even easier if the wifi password wasn't changed.

    6. Re:Are they all gone? Check the backups!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Looking at an image or video of a past event is more akin to remebering.

      It'd be completely asinine for the court to suggest he couldn't remeber their time together. It's similarly redicilous to insist he hand poses the images or videos IMO.

    7. Re:Are they all gone? Check the backups!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      I assume they meant the original images. Good thing he saved a copy!

    8. Re:Are they all gone? Check the backups!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      In this particular case, the guy had allegedly already send some juicy pictures to somebody at the woman's workplace.

    9. Re:Are they all gone? Check the backups!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Print the pictures, then shred them and present the evidence.

      That is what a shrinter is for:
      https://www.thinkgeek.com/stuff/looflirpa/shrinter.shtml

    10. Re:Are they all gone? Check the backups!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Basically, raises the bar to disincentivize the behaviour.

      And increases incentive to "pre-leak" to protect oneself from risk of being held in contempt of some hypothetical future court order.

      Yes, there's a presumption of assholery(1) in my argument, but that's the very premise of the whole case: people are assuming he's going to do the worst. So let's really assume that, and see where it's headed. (And if that seems absurd, then maybe the case was already absurd!)

      Like many other supposedly pro-privacy actions (e.g. outlaw government intercepts so that people won't feel they need to encrypt) it may have anti-privacy consequences.

      (1) And is it really assholery? I think it is, but you can make a good argument that for all the damage you might do to a former lover's dignity (hey, that's bad!) it's even worse for some government asshole to be pointing a gun at your face. I sure as fuck don't want The Internet looking at my wang, but I also don't go around siccing government on innocent people (or parts of those people, such as their computer agents). Which is really the worse crime?

      When you bring in The Law you're opting out of civility.

    11. Re:Are they all gone? Check the backups!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      AC's wang.

      8===>

    12. Re:Are they all gone? Check the backups!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Why make up such elaborate problems...there's a simpler issue...what if SHE releases the photos herself & then claims he did it...you know as 'revenge' for something because we know that could NEVER happen.

      This ruling is absolutely ridiculous and dare I say it...fascist. So it is now entire verboten in Germany to possess photographic images of anyone. Think about it, if this guy can't possess images of someone he knew & who consented to the images simply because she now says she 'removes consent' (ooo, where have we seen that canard before)...then surely it can't be legal to possess images of anyone who has not consented. This has nothing to do with whether or not they are 'naked' photos either since really she's just claiming she's 'embarrassed' by them (why would she otherwise not want them released). As such ANY photo someone doesn't like or doesn't want someone else to possess is under threat simply but noting you'll be embarrassed by it should it appear in public.

      I guess Germany really does have 'strict privacy laws' though very lax laws on freedom...

    13. Re:Are they all gone? Check the backups!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      This is germany we're talking about.
      They are sending 90 year old people to prison for following orders during WW2.

    14. Re:Are they all gone? Check the backups!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Assuming he had intercourse with his ex partner he should withdraw the consent for that and ask the court to charge her with rape.

    15. Re:Are they all gone? Check the backups!! by techno-vampire · · Score: 1

      OK, how about this: first, he deletes all of the (now) objectionable files; second, he makes a new, full backup that doesn't contain the deleted images/videos and third, he destroys his old backups. Frankly, I think that the court in question is suffering from a severe case of cranial-rectal insertion, but it's hard to see how they could possibly find this unacceptable.

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    16. Re: Are they all gone? Check the backups!! by omnichad · · Score: 1

      Deleting backups containing all previous versions of files of reasonable? That's potentially a lot of history to throw away.

    17. Re: Are they all gone? Check the backups!! by techno-vampire · · Score: 1

      It's not exactly an optimal solution, but it should be heavy-handed enough to get past this fsck-wit of a judge.

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      Good, inexpensive web hosting
    18. Re:Are they all gone? Check the backups!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Delete ze nude pictures, old man!

    19. Re: Are they all gone? Check the backups!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Do you think you just made a sympathetic point?

    20. Re: Are they all gone? Check the backups!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Quiet, we're busy catastrophizing

  3. Seems pretty reasonable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    Unless the photographer has an actual proof of commercial compensation for the work, it's a law I think other countries should adopt as well.

    Not sure why it would take a court ruling for him to do so, in any case - I cannot think of a reason somebody with a shred of common decency and manners would fail to comply with such a request from an ex...

    (Bonus points for the captcha - "Consent")

    1. Re: Seems pretty reasonable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      oh come on, why should i give up the images of my ex, that i occasionally need for a notalgia-wank? sounds only reasonable from her point of view.

    2. Re: Seems pretty reasonable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Insightful

      Exactly which rights of the holder of the material are being violated?

      Are these rights "more equal" than the rights of the subject to have control over intimate depiction of her body and/or engagement in sexual acts?

      Again, unless the photographer has an actual proof such material was created under commercial contract, in my opinion they have absolutely zero "rights" to any such images/movies against the will of the person being depicted in them.

      Feel free to explain your vehement objection to my opinion with less fervor and more factual content, please.

    3. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by TWX · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Why does a photographer need proof of commercial compensation in order for a work to have aesthetic value?

      If a work has aesthetic value and all participants at the time it was created agreed to its creation (arguably a form of verbal contract) then what gives any party, other than the photographer as the creator of the content, any special rights over the content? The subject might have rights to the content if used for public exhibition or commercial purposes, but I don't see any reason why the subject, if of legal age and in a position to consent to having an image taken, should have the right to revoke that consent at a later time such that it compels the artist in question to destroy their work.

      I will say this much, lots of people are bloody stupid and don't understand that they absolutely should not consent to having photos taken of them in the nude or in sexual congress unless they've fully considered both the ramifications of how they feel about those pictures potentially being seen by absolutely everyone and how this could impact their lives down the road, but that's the choice of the subject that willfully puts themselves into that position.

      --
      Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
    4. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I would argue that the nature of the work itself raises the bar for clear definition of consent before they are considered artistic work.

      Just as you quite correctly describe the flippant way creation of such images is considered nowadays for certain age groups, the other side of it is as pertinent. Namely, the fact that too many people assume that somebody sharing their intimate life with them at one point gives them the full rights to disseminate such personal information at will, without any further say-so from the other person.

      I would rather live in a society that puts some additional burden on artists creating certain type of works to ensure that there is full consent for their creation between the author and the subject depicted than live in a society where people lose the right to control their very private and intimate lives, no matter what form they take.

      I did mis-phrase my original post - where I wrote "commercial compensation" I should have used "commercial contract." The aesthetic value of such a material (whether image or movie) is not something I intend to argue - it is the applicability of the creator's right to retain it after the subject withdraws their consent that I question. Hence my insistence on a proof of a "commercial" contract in existence - because consent aimed at creation of artistic work is completely different matter than consent between two individuals to create tantalizing material for their own personal use.

      Hope this at least clarifies my position a bit :)

    5. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by nbauman · · Score: 1

      Law 101: Some agreements can be made orally. Other agreements are only valid if they're made in writing. (An agreement in this context is the same as a contract.)

      I know a lot of professional photographers, and I'm pretty sure that in the US they need a written, signed model release in order to use a person's recognizable likeness for commercial purposes.

      They have more freedom to use photos for artistic purposes. For example, a photographer took photos of pedestrians on the street, and exhibited them in an art gallery. One of his recognizable subjects sued the photographer. The photographer won.

      Another photographer used a photo of a black man walking through a train station to illustrate a New York Times magazine story, "The Black Middle Class." The subject sued the New York Times, arguing that it caused him ridicule. The subject won.

      But if the photograph is newsworthy or serves a public purpose, you don't need permssion of the subject. If you take a video of the cops beating up a suspect, as they often do, the cops can't use privacy laws to stop you from showing it.

      There are so many combinations of circumstances under which you can take and use pictures that the law gets very complicated. At the very least you'd have to look at the cases, and if it was important to know for sure, you'd have to ask a lawyer who specializes in these things.

    6. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by Mr.+Slippery · · Score: 2

      (Bonus points for the captcha - "Consent")

      But that's the point. Consent was granted. You can't retroactively revoke it. It's polite to do so, yes, but a stunning overreach of state power to make this a law. You consent to me taking your photo, that photo is mine, and that state will have to pry it from my cold dead hand. Zero tolerance for government censorship.

      --
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    7. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by TWX · · Score: 2

      My argument is that consent for a photograph to be taken cannot be revoked. That's why one needs to exercise good judgement when giving such consent in the first place. The existence of the photograph does not dictate the use of the photograph. The subject might legitimately be able to influence the use of the photograph or to penalize the photographer for misuse of the image and the subject, but if the subject was legally able to consent to the picture being taken and did so, the subject should not have the right to demand the destruction of the work.

      --
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    8. Re: Seems pretty reasonable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Exactly which rights of the holder of the material are being violated?

      His right to own private property is being infringed. He's being forced to destroy objects he created that are in his possession.

    9. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by TWX · · Score: 1

      If I understand correctly, candids without context, assuming that there's not some other condition that makes them illegal, are legal so far as the photographer or publisher does not add extra content to create interpretation, ie, the difference between people on the street and editorializing the man in the train station. I wonder if the nature of the model release when applied for commercial purposes is in-part due to the same editorialization, the subject is portrayed as endorsing something in commercial photography when their likeness is used in advertising.

      --
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    10. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I would rather live in a society that puts some additional burden on artists creating certain type of works to ensure that there is full consent for their creation between the author and the subject depicted than live in a society where people lose the right to control their very private and intimate lives, no matter what form they take.

      I would rather live in a society where we didn't have to maintain a shroud of willful ignorance about topics like sex, and the reaction to finding a sex tape were about the same as to finding that person's baby pictures.

    11. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by TWX · · Score: 1

      ...and the reaction to finding a sex tape were about the same as to finding that person's baby pictures.

      This statement could be badly misinterpreted...

      --
      Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
    12. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      if the subject was legally able to consent to the picture being taken and did so, the subject should not have the right to demand the destruction of the work.

      Why not, especially given the nature of the work itself?

      The consent expressed may very well be considered as phrased within the context of an existing intimate relationship, and ending with it. It's certainly far more likely than them being a result of "modelling" work.

      And any gray area between the two cases should be clarified by the law. Until such time, the person creating such works should simply ensure they have a record of the subject voiding their privacy rights in their entirety for the purpose of that specific work.

    13. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by stephanruby · · Score: 1

      Unless the photographer has an actual proof of commercial compensation for the work, it's a law I think other countries should adopt as well.

      This law already exists to some degree in most countries.

      You can not publish the naked pictures of someone without a signed release form.

      Not sure why it would take a court ruling for him to do so, in any case -

      I wouldn't be surprised if the ex threatened via email/SMS to release those pictures in the first place.

      The problem comes however in the amount of proof required to punish such an act. It is so easy to release a naked picture out on the internet anonymously. Anyone can do it, even the supposed victim.

    14. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      But that's the point. Consent was granted. You can't retroactively revoke it.

      Why exactly not? It's a social construct. If it does not fit our needs as a society, it should be adjusted.

      Given the existence of "revenge porn" sites, the proliferation of intimate images shared between people within a relationship suddenly coming up elsewhere, and the fact that the younger generations seem to have a somewhat different moral value assignment to sexuality, I don't see an issue with the law being modified to allow withdrawal of consent for things that somebody finds acceptable during a relationship, but not outside of it.

    15. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by TWX · · Score: 2

      What gray area? I don't know about you, but going through pictures and family photo albums as a child with my family, seeing pictures of things that happened long before I was born and even of people long-dead, kind of established to me that a photograph has the potential to be there forever. Seeing my mother's mild embarrassment over some of her fashion choices in the seventies also reaffirmed that despite some negative perceptions in the photo it may still persist.

      --
      Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
    16. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by argumentsockpuppet · · Score: 1

      Really? I'm aware that California and a few other places have laws restricting commercial use of photography, but I don't believe those laws are common elsewhere. I believe that you can take a picture of a person on the street and put up a billboard saying "Bob needed a V8" without breaking any laws, even if Bob was completely unaware of the picture being taken. Even if Bob has an allergy to V8. Even if Bob's name is Cindy.

      There are a lot of people who think the law prohibits photography when it doesn't. Essentially, you can figure out what the law actually says by asking whether a tabloid would ever run such a picture. If they can take it and publish it, you can too.

      About the only US wide restrictions on photography and use of likeness are for "expectation of privacy," "under clothes," and for people who have an established commercial interest in their image.

      (Not to be confused with copyright laws, which are a different beast.)

      I'd be quite interested to learn that I'm wrong, so feel free to reference any laws that contradict that.

    17. Re: Seems pretty reasonable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Exactly which rights of the holder of the material are being violated?

      His right to own private property is being infringed. He's being forced to destroy objects he created that are in his possession.

      So you think the "private property" concept is more important than right to privacy. Even if the "private property" is something as intimate as recording of a sexual act.

      I disagree. Vehemently. As apparently does the German judge.

    18. Re: Seems pretty reasonable by Coren22 · · Score: 3, Informative

      She waived her right to privacy when she agreed to the production of the pictures/videos. He however would be out of line and infringing on her privacy were he to share the media outside the two of them, which he apparently did.

      --
      APK likes to ask for responses to the same things over and over. Maybe he just likes the responses?
    19. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by Coren22 · · Score: 2

      Could this very same ruling allow for an actress that was in porn, but then became famous to retract consent for the porn? This is the same thing you are suggesting, so think carefully about the answer.

      --
      APK likes to ask for responses to the same things over and over. Maybe he just likes the responses?
    20. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by clodney · · Score: 1

      But that's the point. Consent was granted. You can't retroactively revoke it. It's polite to do so, yes, but a stunning overreach of state power to make this a law. You consent to me taking your photo, that photo is mine, and that state will have to pry it from my cold dead hand. Zero tolerance for government censorship.

      I think that willfully ignores the reality of couples in a relationship. During the relationship, the consent is clearly understood that the pictures are private between the couple. So long as the couple remains together, there is likely no disagreement about the bounds of that consent.

      Treating the consent as blanket after the relationship has ended is silly, and asshattery of the highest order.

    21. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      where do you stop? what if it's an oil painting? how about non-sexual photos, are artists, or even everyday people now required to scrub their possessions of all traces of their exes?

      if it's a work that's already been sold, what then? does this privacy extend to the downstream buyer? will the state compensate the buyer for their loss of property?

      allowing people to revoke consent, saying "consent was for the duration of the relationship" muddies the waters and opens a can of worms that the legal system, and our moral systems aren't equipped to handle.

    22. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by wisnoskij · · Score: 1

      I will say this much, lots of people are bloody stupid and don't understand that they absolutely should not consent to having photos taken of them in the nude or in sexual congress unless they've fully considered both the ramifications of how they feel about those pictures potentially being seen by absolutely everyone and how this could impact their lives down the road, but that's the choice of the subject that willfully puts themselves into that position.

      I don't understand why everyone says this. People have made their fame and fortune because of sextapes. What is the worse that has ever happened because of one? I would not consider a sex tape to be a highly suspect decision that should basically never happen, and a risque photo is nothing that has ever caused anyone any trouble. Most people get nude photos taken of them, hell I don't think any amount of money would get miley cyrus to put some cloths on.

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    23. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by gnasher719 · · Score: 2

      But that's the point. Consent was granted. You can't retroactively revoke it. It's polite to do so, yes, but a stunning overreach of state power to make this a law. You consent to me taking your photo, that photo is mine, and that state will have to pry it from my cold dead hand. Zero tolerance for government censorship.

      Consent was granted to take the picture. Fine. Consent was granted to own the picture up to some point in time. Fine. Consent was _not_ granted by a woman for someone to posess nude pictures of her after that date. Obviously the German court values the privacy of a woman higher than her ex-boyfriends right to a piece of paper and to being a wanker.

    24. Re: Seems pretty reasonable by gnasher719 · · Score: 5, Interesting

      She waived her right to privacy when she agreed to the production of the pictures/videos. He however would be out of line and infringing on her privacy were he to share the media outside the two of them, which he apparently did.

      Some rights cannot be waived. And it should be obvious that the only permission that is given in that situation is for the private use as long as both sides agree.

      It would be different if she had given permission to a random person, but it's obvious that permission was given based on having a relationship to the photographer, and once that relationship is gone, the permission is gone.

      Just yesterday I gave permission to my garage to drive my car (to find some problem with the car). It's obvious that this permission is time limited for as long as it takes them to find the fault. And not longer.

    25. Re: Seems pretty reasonable by Rakarra · · Score: 1

      So you think the "private property" concept is more important than right to privacy.

      Yes. Yes. A thousand times yes.

      Even if the "private property" is something as intimate as recording of a sexual act.

      Never record a sexual act unless you're fine with the other person having the recording forever.

      I disagree. Vehemently. As apparently does the German judge.

      Well thank God there are different countries with different laws.

    26. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      If a work has aesthetic value and all participants at the time it was created agreed to its creation (arguably a form of verbal contract) then what gives any party, other than the photographer as the creator of the content, any special rights over the content?

      The right to privacy. Which is - as all rights - not given to a person. And the right to privacy as a basic human right clearly trumps the right of the photographer to aesthetically express himself and / or to profit from his work.

      The subject might have rights to the content if used for public exhibition or commercial purposes, but I don't see any reason why the subject, if of legal age and in a position to consent to having an image taken, should have the right to revoke that consent at a later time such that it compels the artist in question to destroy their work.

      Because the foundation of any contrace, mutual trust, is not given any more. Consent was given under the implicit assumption that the pictures were to be publicised with consideration, or not at all.

      (...)but that's the choice of the subject that willfully puts themselves into that position.

      You can not willfully forfeit or otherwise lose your rights.

      Of course, all that with the caveat "as long as the rule of law" remains. Whose importance to german culture may be inferred from the fact that it's the second word in the national anthem.

    27. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by greenfruitsalad · · Score: 1

      i feel very conflicted about this. it's one of those things where the law going in either direction will just create problems.
      * on the one hand, a person should not live in fear that another person can choose to blackmail them with intimate pictures they took during intimate moments when they were both in love and thought they'd be together forever.
      * on the other hand, where do you draw the line? how low a neckline in a photo means you have the right to force me to delete it?

      this is one of those things where instead of courts and legislation, emphasis should be put on society to teach people mutual respect instead of allowing glorification of crime in every effing movie there is. when i broke up with my girlfriend of 7 years, i deleted all her (even slightly) sensitive pictures and made sure she knew about it. i didn't want her to live in uncertainty and simply did what i considered decent. it's the old "do unto others..."

    28. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by Zelucifer · · Score: 1

      Ah yes, the old argument that consent can be revoked after the fact, for any reason. Welcome to the new world of being an adult, where you no longer have to live with your bad decisions.

      --
      The corner of a round room
    29. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      This is NOT a question of 'public display', this is a question of POSSESSION. If the court had issued a 'restraining order' making it clear that the photographer could not in any way allow his copies to be disseminated THAN there might be room for logical agreement but that's not the case. The 'photographer' in question (btw, what does it matter that he is a 'photographer'? What makes him that?) owns the photographs as a result of her consent, why should he be forced to destroy his property? What if he was/is an 'artist' & simply draws an incredibly detailed & accurate sketch of her? Can he be forced to destroy said sketch?

    30. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      How far are you willing to take this theory? Can someone be stopped from sharing the intimate details (positive or negative) of a relationship with others? In other words if I find out an ex is 'bad mouthing me' simply by telling people about some 'bad habits' I may have or habits that in the wrong light would be considered 'gross', disturbing, embarrassing or otherwise negative but otherwise totally true can I stop her from telling people about them?

      Note that I doubt anyone has a problem with the theory of 'privacy within a relationship' extending beyond that relationship...in other words if I have naked photographs of an ex that I wouldn't have shared when with her I have no right to share them if we are no longer together but I also have the right to keep them along with the stories & memories of her that I may have. I would expect to keep the photos/videos/stories/memories private & I'd expect she would too.

      Consent to performing an action & than actually performing the action IS 'blanket/absolute' it is NOT silly or 'asshattery' regardless of your opinion on the matter. There is no logical theory that allows someone to rewrite history & 'remove consent' after the fact you can NOT go back in time & erase that which has occurred (at least not yet).

    31. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by thsths · · Score: 1

      You seem to assume that consent was given to keep the pictures beyond an end of the relationship, but there is no evidence for that. The interpretation is that implicit consent was given to use the pictures within the relationship only. Once the relationship is over, keeping the pictures would violate that consent.

    32. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by TWX · · Score: 1

      You can not willfully forfeit or otherwise lose your rights.

      Yes you can. In the United States every time a person is arrested they are advised of their rights. Among those rights is the right to remain silent. When individuals speak with the police they are waiving that right, and what they say is used against them in court proceedings.

      Allowing a permanent record of a private moment made in-consent is arguably an even stronger waiving of the right to privacy than speaking to police is a waiving of the right to silence to avoid self-incrimination.

      --
      Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
    33. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by TWX · · Score: 1

      Read up on Elizabeth Deans. She was a prolific pornographic performer and actress starting at the tail-end of the 1990s, and essentially found only limited career opportunities after leaving pornography. When she did find work the workplace would become disrupted when her pornographic history was discovered and she either would be terminated or quit. Since having previously been a pornographic performer is not a protected class, she doesn't have a lot of grounds to challenge.

      There are other examples of people whose previous pornographic working history have caught up to cause problems. I knew a woman that was a teacher until her previous college appearance in Playboy ultimately cost her that job.

      The only people whose celebrity status increased after a sex tape were arguably already celebrities, or at least enjoyed a degree of public notoriety, before the sex tape. Pamela Anderson was known. Paris Hilton was known. Kim Kardashian's family was known, and she wasn't completely obscure. All three of these examples have subsequently made their careers out of being in the public eye as well, as opposed to the norm.

      --
      Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
    34. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by wisnoskij · · Score: 1

      Being a porn actor is not really comparable to making a private sex tape / taking risque photos, which is what everyone has been talking about until now,

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      Troll is not a replacement for I disagree.
    35. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      There isn't evidence that consent wasn't given to keep the pictures beyond an end of the relationship either.

      Let's set aside the sexual content for a moment. Does a person have a reasonable expectation to be able to demand that any personal photo containing them be destroyed at any time? I would say it isn't.

      Does the content of the photo matter? Maybe it does. But what criteria do we use to make that distinction? Using the term "sexual" has a lot of gray area. What about photos with kissing? Using language like "intimate" has even more wiggle room. Some might consider wedding photos or family portraits to be intimate. Does it only apply to people in sexual relationships? What if there was no sexual contact, only photos? What if a third party, who wasn't part of the relationship took the pictures?

      Even better, what if they had the photos printed on something like a coffee mug with consent, before the relationship ended? Could the court compel them to destroy personal property?

    36. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by dbIII · · Score: 1

      and a risque photo is nothing that has ever caused anyone any trouble

      I'm not sure how you managed to miss using such a thing as blackmail material as the staple of crime shows and movies for years even if you managed to miss some examples from reality.

    37. Re: Seems pretty reasonable by misexistentialist · · Score: 1

      situation is for the private use as long as both sides agree

      If the court was really neutral it should also order her to destroy any of his work. And there might be some compensation owed, just like you can't get your car back without paying.

    38. Re: Seems pretty reasonable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Anyone who needs pictures in order to masturbate should consult their doctor about this sexual dysfunction.

    39. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by Pseudonym · · Score: 1

      No, it couldn't. As has been noted several times in this thread, in the case of a porn actress, there is (one may safely presume) a written contract, probably in the form of a model release. Any case where the former actress tried to "retract consent" would be resolved with respect to the text of the contract, or whether or not the contract was legal in the first place. (Even if all those Traci Lords movies hadn't been illegal on other grounds, she may have had a case to have them withdrawn on the basis that, being underage, any contract she signed was void.)

      That is not even remotely the situation here. We're talking about what consent is implied by virtue of being in an intimate relationship. There is no paperwork to consult to sort the case out.

      --
      sub f{($f)=@_;print"$f(q{$f});";}f(q{sub f{($f)=@_;print"$f(q{$f});";}f});
    40. Re: Seems pretty reasonable by emj · · Score: 1

      And there might be some compensation owed

      I can only speak for copyright cases where compensations for withdrawn consent is usually based on how much it costs to destroy PUBLISHED copies and produce new ones. In this case nothing has been published, and there wasn't consent to publish anyway. But copyright and privacy are not very similar.

    41. Re: Seems pretty reasonable by uninformedLuddite · · Score: 1

      Some rights cannot be waived.

      That statement is my xmas present right?

      --
      The new right fascists are bilingual. They speak English and Bullshit.
    42. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by uninformedLuddite · · Score: 1

      I do not for the life of me see how people don't get this.

      --
      The new right fascists are bilingual. They speak English and Bullshit.
    43. Re: Seems pretty reasonable by onthemightofprinces · · Score: 1

      Why are so many people assuming that US law should be universal? It is literally the court of a sovereign country who decided that something should be legally enforced, therefore it is the law of the land. You can argue ethics, but you can't argue legality, because that's up to Germany to decide from themselves. Maybe to them a woman's right to privacy is considered more important than the man's desire to possess her.

    44. Re:Seems pretty reasonable by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Law 101: Some agreements can be made orally. Other agreements are only valid if they're made in writing.

      It's the question of proof, reporting to the authorities and regulations, not validity. Oral agreement with witnesses is as valid a written one, assuming the same constraints as with a written contract.

  4. Jurisprudence by sosume · · Score: 4, Interesting

    This is insane! Besides an enforcement issue (Will the government check this man's belongings to make sure there are no backups?) The photos are his property as he is the photographer. This is a disturbing ruling. Now the subject gets to decide on how the artist portrays it. I modeled nude for a painting class a decade ago, can I have all these paintings destroyed?

    1. Re:Jurisprudence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I don't think the enforcement issue holds water. The police do not confirm that no one ever runs a red light, or prohibit all speeding, or prevent you from being punched while walking down the street. However, there is still use in a law existing outlawing these things.

    2. Re:Jurisprudence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Last I checked, all of those other laws you mentioned are a public safety hazard and are frequently enforced (even if many people get away with violating them).

    3. Re:Jurisprudence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It could come down to the context of the written (or implied) agreement. There is a bit of a difference between an artist inviting a model to pose nude, and being an artist and taking a nude image of your girlfriend. While I don't necessarily agree with the ruling, I can see how a court might differentiate between these two scenarios. It still confounds me that people would allow someone to take provocative images of someone, and not expect something like this to happen. If you wouldn't want this person to have the photos when you break up, then don't let them have the photos in the first place.

    4. Re:Jurisprudence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Perhaps the German court weighted copyright and right of ownership against the right to privacy, and the right to privacy won. Onwards to apply this ruling to marketers who clearly violate our privacy with their data collection!

    5. Re:Jurisprudence by Vokkyt · · Score: 5, Informative

      Your issue with enforcement is ridiculous - the government is also incapable of stopping every murder and ensuring that no one at this very minute is committing murder, but it's still illegal to murder people and you will get in trouble if you get caught.

      Your statement about the photos being his property is the very thing the court is weighing in on, and as far as the German court is concerned, you're absolutely wrong. Though the auto-translation of german is pretty broken, it's clear enough that the court(s) have decided that, at least in Germany, a person has control over their image and privacy, and this right supersedes the property ownership a photographer may claim unless some sort of legal waiver/contract was made. This isn't a blanket card for someone to withdraw consent as within your example of consenting to a nude painting class; presumably in your instance you signed a waiver to your rights, and the court order does not apply in that situation. (Again, as best can be determined from what translate.google offers)

      The court is specifically ruling on arrangements between two people in a relationship who share intimate photos without any formal contract between them, and the ruling is simply that each person has a right to control of their image and privacy. This is a good thing and likely is to directly combat the idea of revenge porn and to provide some legal recourse should such an event occur. The ruling is open to anyone who has shared an intimate picture.

    6. Re:Jurisprudence by ChrisMaple · · Score: 1

      Part of the issue is "Where's the dividing line?" In the US in the days of film cameras, in the absence of other agreements the owner of the film owned the images. How intrusive and intimate do the images have to be before the subject can demand possession or destruction of the images? If there's more than one subject, does each subject have veto power over preservation of the images? Were the images taken indoors? In a public place? Video of sex acts is far more intrusive than nude stills, should they be treated differently under the law? If there's a video or a series of images of a striptease, at what point does the subject gain control?

      In my opinion, in this case if the law rules that the subject controls the content forever, then the subject demanding destruction should pay the photographer a reasonable fee (determined by the court) for the loss of personal (not commercial) value to the photographer, not to exceed the cost of materials and labor involved in creating the images.

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    7. Re:Jurisprudence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Now the subject gets to decide on how the artist portrays it

      It you are subject you agreed and signed a contract granting a limited list of rights. In the case there was no written contract, so a judge was asked to settle its terms retroactively. He chose to interpret that the lady granted a license for use of her naked material for the sole duration of their romantic relationship (she is not a professional model

    8. Re:Jurisprudence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Your issue with enforcement is ridiculous - the government is also incapable of stopping every murder and ensuring that no one at this very minute is committing murder, but it's still illegal to murder people and you will get in trouble if you get caught.

      Having naked pictures isn't murder. I'm fine with the flaws when it comes to serious crimes but not what amounts to a social issue between two adults.

    9. Re:Jurisprudence by Bearhouse · · Score: 1

      Not a valid comparison, methinks.
      You (hopefully) decided to model nude of your own free will, also presumably with full knowledge that people would then paint pictures of you in the buff.
      All power to you - I'm guessing you're both confident in yourself and perhaps reasonably good looking. Many nude models also get paid...
      Anyway, paid or not, you know full well that the resulting works were likely to be displayed in public.

      This case is an entirely different matter - as part of their private relationship, the lady allowed herself to be photographed in her birthday suit.
      Having split with her former partner, and in this era of "revenge porn" et al., she seems to have desired not to risk having her privates plastered all over the web.

      Seems reasonable to me.

    10. Re:Jurisprudence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Government: you are hereby ordered to stop having fantasies about your ex-girlfriend of a sexual nature.

      Sane Guy: What? You can't possibly enforce that.

      You: Turr hurr, you idiot. I mean the government can't stop you from killing someone or blowing up the moon, but does that mean they don't have laws against it?

      Sane Guy: Guuuuuuuh?

    11. Re:Jurisprudence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That's why we have juries, so we can draw the line according to the specifics of each case. What? You think that the line is drawable in one place for all time and every situation? NO, this is not possible, but that doesn't mean we don't have a line.

    12. Re:Jurisprudence by wisnoskij · · Score: 1

      it's still illegal to murder people

      This same German court decided that it's not if you are Jewish. I have as much respect for this ruling as for that one.

      This isn't a blanket card for someone to withdraw consent as within your example of consenting to a nude painting class; presumably in your instance you signed a waiver to your rights, and the court order does not apply in that situation.

      That is exactly what it is, just because there is one restriction on its application, does not change that. And there would of been little reason for anyone to get that waiver, as previously not getting one still entitled the photographer to total and complete ownership of their pictures.

      --
      Troll is not a replacement for I disagree.
    13. Re:Jurisprudence by Rhywden · · Score: 1

      it's still illegal to murder people

      This same German court decided that it's not if you are Jewish. I have as much respect for this ruling as for that one.

      "Same"? Did they put some Nazi judges into cryostasis back then, thawed them up again and nobody batted an eye?

      Because that's what "same" means. And even if it didn't, your argument would still be retarded.

    14. Re:Jurisprudence by wisnoskij · · Score: 1

      Its the same court, not the same individual judges and lawyers.

      --
      Troll is not a replacement for I disagree.
    15. Re:Jurisprudence by Rhywden · · Score: 1

      No, it isn't the same court, you idiot. Unless we had a change of government since 1945.

    16. Re:Jurisprudence by mopower70 · · Score: 1

      The court is specifically ruling on arrangements between two people in a relationship who share intimate photos without any formal contract between them, and the ruling is simply that each person has a right to control of their image and privacy. This is a good thing and likely is to directly combat the idea of revenge porn and to provide some legal recourse should such an event occur. The ruling is open to anyone who has shared an intimate picture.

      Actually, no. The ruling is open to anyone who has shared any kind of picture at all as long as the "victim" deems them intimate. (Frankly, with the ludicrously broad "before, during, or after sexual intercourse" stipulation, that encompasses any picture ever taken during the entire duration of the relationship.) That would include photos taken while vacationing on a beach in Jamaica. This has nothing to do with revenge porn. It's punishing thought crime.

    17. Re:Jurisprudence by gnasher719 · · Score: 1

      This same German court decided that it's not if you are Jewish. I have as much respect for this ruling as for that one.

      Fuck you, bastard. I invite you to come to Germany and tell people to their faces.

    18. Re:Jurisprudence by wisnoskij · · Score: 1

      In Germany it is actually illegal to deny the holocaust, so any German is legally bound to say the same thing. If I came to Germany, I would be legally bound to as well.

      --
      Troll is not a replacement for I disagree.
    19. Re:Jurisprudence by Rakarra · · Score: 1

      Its the same court, not the same individual judges and lawyers.

      A court is not some static object independent of the people who make up the staff. If it's not the same judges, prosecutors, or defendants, it's not the same court.

    20. Re:Jurisprudence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      (Frankly, with the ludicrously broad "before, during, or after sexual intercourse" stipulation, that encompasses any picture ever taken during the entire duration of the relationship.)

      No it doesn't.

      Only a complete idiot would think that "before" and "after" encompass the whole time from the big bang to the heat death of the universe, and no matter what you believe, courts are not run by complete idiots.

    21. Re:Jurisprudence by Phoenix+Rising · · Score: 1

      In the US, there is essentially no right to personality except in defamation suits. Copyright law would govern, and since there's a person's likeness involved and no formal consent form signed, a lawsuit *could* prevent the photographer from publishing or selling the photos, subject to normal copyright fines. Since some of the images have been found on the Internet, she could also go after him in a private civil lawsuit. But AFAIK there's nothing in US law that says that one person has a right to destroy another person's possessions just because their relationship has ended.

      --
      Let us live so that when we come to die, even the undertaker will be sorry -- Mark Twain
    22. Re:Jurisprudence by Phoenix+Rising · · Score: 1

      Wouldn't this be settled as part of a divorce decree in the US?

      Or did the problem arise after the divorce, when pictures started appearing on the Web?

      --
      Let us live so that when we come to die, even the undertaker will be sorry -- Mark Twain
    23. Re:Jurisprudence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      ... photos are his property ...

      Rick Salomon agrees with you. That's why revenge porn web-sites should be legal. It's also why governments make laws on what one can do with personal property.

      ... This is a disturbing ruling.

      This ruling is a form of 'right to be forgotten'. She does not lose the right to privacy because the data is not on a computer, or because the relationship ended.

    24. Re:Jurisprudence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You're analogy between criminalizing a 'non-action' (NOT destroying the pictures) and an 'action' (actually murdering someone) is insane! Simply put you can NOT prove a 'negative'...go ahead prove 'beyond a shadow of a doubt' that he did NOT destroy the pictures/videos? If they somehow get released this does not in any way prove HE released them and thus did not destroy them...there is 0 way to prove beyond a 'shadow of a doubt' or even 'beyond a reasonable doubt' that he did NOT destroy the pictures...you can however prove someone did perform a particular action & thus criminalizing it is understood to be reasonable by all people who believe a given positive action SHOULD be illegal...

      If the court had issued a restraining order against the guy to stop him from sharing the photos/videos THAN that could reasonably be seen as applying 'privacy rights' over the images/videos and it would be criminalizing a 'positive action' (e.g. the sharing of the photos/videos)...the justice system would at least have a reasonable shot at proving he released them if that happens. In the current ruling the burden of proof that HE did not release them and thus did not destroy the photos/videos is on him and there is 0 way for him to prove he did NOT do something.

      If you want to criminalize 'revenge porn' than go right ahead and pass a law that any reasonable person can understand & adhere to AND that given proper chain of evidence can actually be proven...that won't stop it from happening just as laws on murder don't stop it from happening but at least the justice system has a shot at prosecuting the crime when it occurs.

    25. Re:Jurisprudence by dbIII · · Score: 1

      So you'll go to the same US court that dealt with runaway slaves instead?
      Oh that's right, it doesn't exist either except for in name because the world has moved on.

      WTF is it with people pretending to be too stupid to be able to breath in order to make some sort of tortured and convoluted point that spits in the face of reality?

    26. Re:Jurisprudence by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      We can make the question a more general one regardless if the pictures are nude or not: Should anyone be able to demand that their pictures are deleted if taken without their explicit consent but legally at the time they are taken?

    27. Re:Jurisprudence by uninformedLuddite · · Score: 1

      it's still illegal to murder people

      This same German court decided that it's not if you are Jewish.

      Citation please

      --
      The new right fascists are bilingual. They speak English and Bullshit.
    28. Re:Jurisprudence by tanner_andrews · · Score: 1

      the government is also incapable of stopping every murder and ensuring that no one at this very minute

      Right you are. But at the same time, the govt is not specifically barring you from committing murder. Instead, murder is a crime with well understood elements. It's forbidden to me, to you, and to the fellow with the pictures stored on his devices.

      The bar in this case is against one person, applies to an ill-defined set of images, and penalizes what would otherwise be legitimate, to wit, possession of his electronic devices and the content of their storage.

      It is worse because of the fuzzy lines: what images should she control, and what may be ``sufficiently innocent'' that she should not. And what if he was running MS Windows, so the images have already leaked out beyond his control? Can the court compel the impossible, the re-taking of data which are ``in the wild'' already?

      This is limited to intent. When some worm finds the supplosedly removed files in some sort of ``recycle'' storage, how shall we deal with it? Is it contempt because he foolishly believed the forbidden data were gone?

      --
      Tilt at windmills. Occasionally one will fall over out of sheer surprise.
  5. Re:Thats a ruling to keep the lawyers happy... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Yep. Consent this; intimate that... this ruling is going to come back to bite a lot of people in the ass. And just wait until they try figuring out what the burden of proof is for "destroy."

  6. consent to support her? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Does his consent to support her stop when the relationship ends? No fucking way. He has to work two jobs now to keep her "in the lifestyle she is accustomed to" until she dies, even though the relationship has ended and he doesn't even get to keep even a few mementos from it.

    1. Re: consent to support her? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Hard luck old bean, that is just the way goes.

    2. Re: consent to support her? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      So that's it? Injustice is just accepted as "that is the way it goes"?

      This system of having to keep somebody in the lifestyle they became accustomed to while they were a contributing partner in a relationship even when they stop contributing is just bullshit.

      What about the lifestyle I became accustomed to in the relationship? How come she doesn't have to keep that up?

      I was contributing the financial support to the relationship and she was contributing the domestic upkeep and so forth. Why do I have to continue to contribute my financial support when the domestic upkeep contribution disappears from my life?

    3. Re: consent to support her? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      for you yes, because you're an idiot. First girlfriends don't get alimony, second, they don't get it for life necessarily, you could challenge it later if she makes her own money, or if she gets remarried (since she would have to be your wife in the first place)

      I have a feeling you're getting exactly what you deserve and i hope you get more of it.

    4. Re: consent to support her? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Actually, sir, it would seem that it's you that are the idiot.

      Where in the article are you reading either the word girlfriend or wife? I just saw "partner" which could be either.

      And actually, divorced people continue to get alimony even if they do earn their own money, so that is the second count on which are are the idiot. The partner paying maintenance tends to have to contribute an amount that would enhance the other's earning to that lifestyle they were accustomed to. But that paying partner continues to receive absolutely nothing of the lifestyle they were accustomed to.

      And the third thing that makes you an idiot about is that I am not getting anything of the sort that you imply that I am. I am happily married and paying nobody any maintenance. That doesn't mean I still cannot think that the system that does inflict this injustice on divorced people (very typically men) isn't stupid and broken.

      And since you wished I get more of whatever injustice you think I was getting, you can just fuck off and die, ok?

    5. Re: consent to support her? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So that's it? Injustice is just accepted as "that is the way it goes"?

      Yes, it is. I strongly advise you to accept it as well. You cannot fight it and speaking against it in public would prove to be a life-altering mistake. I'd keep my mouth shut in private as well. Who knows who might be listening.

    6. Re: consent to support her? by omnichad · · Score: 1

      The relationship is either over or it's not. You can't have it both ways.

    7. Re: consent to support her? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Exactly. If it's over, it's over. All contributions from either party to the other should stop. One party should not be required to contribute to the other, particularly when it's a one-way contribution stream.

      You want maintenance? I want my domestic upkeep.

    8. Re: consent to support her? by ChrisMaple · · Score: 1

      If, after a year, a live-in girlfriend is considered a common-law wife, she can get alimony. Consider the Lee Marvin case.

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    9. Re: consent to support her? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      And what, precisely, does that mean in the context of the OP?

      Try to present some idea of reasonable accommodation instead of whining about "domestic upkeep."

      By the way, you do know about palimony, yes? Those are becoming increasingly common. Would you adopt your same arguments on her behalf instead of the male counterpart?

    10. Re: consent to support her? by Rakarra · · Score: 1

      If, after a year, a live-in girlfriend is considered a common-law wife, she can get alimony. Consider the Lee Marvin case.

      The Lee Marvin judgement was always BS, which is why it was overturned in 1981.

  7. Damn by Virtucon · · Score: 4, Funny

    Now there's only 20 billion naked chick pics left on the Internet. We need more Porn now!

    --
    Harrison's Postulate - "For every action there is an equal and opposite criticism"
    1. Re:Damn by Thanshin · · Score: 0

      You seem to be linking the need for porn to the availability of porn, which makes no sense whatsoever. You also seem to mistakenly attach a temporal limitation to need of porn.

      Never forget that "We need more porn" implies the omitted "always and however much porn there already is".

  8. Angel is a centerfold. by CaptnCrud · · Score: 5, Funny

    So if they did the photo's for art, wouldn't both of them have intellectual property rights?

    Yea, im bored stuck at work...

    1. Re:Angel is a centerfold. by TWX · · Score: 1

      As I understand it, the subject of a photograph does not have any rights to the content of the photograph, only the photographer is recognized as the artist. The subject may have rights to their own likeness such that an entity wishing to create artificial representation of the subject has to obtain rights from the subject to do so (ie, a movie studio wishing to produce toys in the likeness of a star of a movie has to obtain rights from the actor) but for the image itself, without any other agreement in-place the photographer holds the rights, not the subject.

      --
      Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
    2. Re:Angel is a centerfold. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Personality rights are superior to intellectual property.

      In France for example, unless you are a public figure in a public context, or there is a genuine public interest, you are supposed to be able to control how your image is being used. Like intellectual property, you can technically even retract any authorization you may have given for the use of your image. Of course, you have to compensate the licensee fairly, so depending on the case, it may not be possible.

      If the person on the photo is not the photographer, the photographer does keep intellectual property on the photo, so the person on the photo cannot received it without the authorization of the photographer. The result thus is the destruction/removal of the photo.

    3. Re:Angel is a centerfold. by Jason+Levine · · Score: 2

      The subject of a photograph doesn't have rights to the content of a photograph, but can determine how it's used. If I take a photo of you walking down the street, you can't demand ownership of said photo or order that it be destroyed. However, you can refuse to allow me to sell it for commercial use (e.g. to an ad agency to sell a product) and if I do so without your signed consent you can sue me.

      --
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    4. Re:Angel is a centerfold. by TWX · · Score: 1

      Yes, but the photographer can sell prints of the photograph so long as it's not represented as anything more than the picture at face-value that it is, and the subject does not have any special rights in that circumstance, because the subject is not being portrayed as endorsing anything.

      --
      Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
    5. Re:Angel is a centerfold. by argumentsockpuppet · · Score: 1

      I can sue you because I think you're a martian. You can sue anybody for anything but that doesn't mean there is any merit or even that you can get a judge to hear the case.

      Can you point to someone who wasn't already an actor or model winning such a court case? (For my purposes I'm only interested in cases in the US under current law, but outside of CA because their laws are "special.")

    6. Re:Angel is a centerfold. by Rhywden · · Score: 2

      There are quite a number of cases in Germany where someone got money for something like that. Here are some examples:

      http://www.jusmeum.de/urteile?tag=recht+am+eigenen+bild

    7. Re:Angel is a centerfold. by Solandri · · Score: 1

      The photographer has rights to the photo, but the model has rights to how the his/her likeness is used. In most countries this only covers commercial use, but this court decision establishes that in Germany the model has controlling rights for private use.

      For profession photo shoots, the model typically gives up his/her rights to control how the photo is used by signing a photo release in exchange for compensation. This is why you often see faces of people in the background blurred out in photos or videos. It's not because they're trying to protect the person's identity, it's because they weren't able to get a photo release from the person, and don't want said person suing them for illegally using their likeness without their consent.

      There's nothing really wrong with the German court's decision. It's just different (and more complicated) from how it's done in the rest of the world. The main complication I can see is you taking pictures while on vacation in Germany and someone who thinks they were in the background of your photo demanding that you delete the photos. This decision would mean that they have that right, but in some locations it is virtually impossible to take a casual vacation photo without getting some extraneous people in the background.

    8. Re:Angel is a centerfold. by argumentsockpuppet · · Score: 1

      The reason I specified that I was only interested in cases in the US was because I figured there might be just such a thing. I can't read German so I can't tell if that is a list like you say or not. I'll assume it is, but being in German and from your comment I will assume it doesn't apply directly to me.

      Thanks nonetheless for the confirmation of my suspicion that Germany was different.

    9. Re:Angel is a centerfold. by Phoenix+Rising · · Score: 1

      If the photograph was originally taken in a private location, then the person retains more rights to their likeness than they would if it were taken in a public place. In a public place, the person can only restrict sale of an image for commercial (i.e. advertising and advocacy) purposes. In a private place, however, a person must generally give consent to publish regardless of the purpose of publication. Again - in the US.

      --
      Let us live so that when we come to die, even the undertaker will be sorry -- Mark Twain
  9. Re:I despise the so-called inclusive terms by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Yea! Because: length("girlfriend, boyfriend, husband or wife") length("partner").... or not.

  10. Re:Thats a ruling to keep the lawyers happy... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I can already see them lining up for the next lawsuits: since the court did not define "intimate" some of those weasels will argument that nearly everything might be considered intimate.

    I can already see you don't understand how Civil law systems work.

  11. Re:I despise the so-called inclusive terms by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You, sir, are a retard.

    Of course the point is not that we'd replace every stupid use of "partner" with "girlfriend, boyfriend, husband or wife", but rather would choose the one of those that fit.

    Are you really that stupid?

  12. Irony by MikeRT · · Score: 1, Insightful

    In order to ensure compliance, they'd have to effectively set his privacy rights aside altogether.

    This is why I get so sick and tired of the people who come rushing to the defense of women who take naked selfies, do sex tapes, etc. You want to see privilege and entitlement? You take a bunch of pictures and videos and send them to someone and then sick the government on them, forcing them to effectively upend their own privacy rights over mere continued possession.

    Check your privilege, honey.

    1. Re:Irony by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It should be illegal to publish a naked photo of someone else without their written consent. Want to make porn? Fine, sign a consent form for the publication of your own naked pictures, and get paid for it. Publish a naked photo of your ex and can't produce the consent form? Go to jail, and get added to the sex offenders registry. Watching non-consensual porn? You get to pay a big fine too.

      News media? You can publish a description of the content of a sex tape, can show it any person who shows up at your offices in person to verify it, and must produce a copy for the people who are allegedly in the sex tape.

    2. Re:Irony by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Why do people obsess over enforcement in this case?

      The court orders the offending material destroyed, and that is the end of it.

      If the other party wishes to argue that the destruction did not occur, the burden of proof lies on their side.

    3. Re:Irony by Dr.+Evil · · Score: 1

      These photos were taken with consent, and the parent poster's example was about selfies.

      Confusion about consent has nothing to do with this. Written consent wouldn't make this different at all.

    4. Re:Irony by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      The number of times I've been asked by men on dating sites to send them sexy pictures of me is off the dial. I'm a transgender woman and make no secret of this. On one level it's very flattering that men find me attractive to want pictures of me wearing sexy underwear or naked but really? I'm of the mind that this kind of thing is something I would only share with a man if I'm in a relationship with him. I'm still not convinced and if a relationship went bad how do I know he wouldn't post them online if he was drunk and angry after a break up? It really has crossed my mind this kind of thing needs a contract similar to the arrangement with professional photographers and models. It's the right of a woman to retain personal and artistic control of her image.

      If men can't accept this perhaps they would think twice if their dick pics (which many send without asking first) were posted online. Some dicks (and I have seen a lot of dick pics) are downright ugly. Men don't even take extra care to photograph a dick selfie.They're badly lit or sticking out a pair of cheap jeans like you're not worth five minutes of their time to get it right. Greek gods men are not!

      What would a man's boss think if they saw a video taken on a smartphone by one of their employees wanking off in the company lavatories when they became so aroused and horny when message chatting with you while at their work desk they couldn't hold back having a wank?

      What about when they were making deliveries and grew an instant rock hard throbbing and tingling bulge and had to pull off the road and take a photo of their cock before wanking themselves hard because they couldn't drive in a straight line after they received a horny picture?

      Does the whole world really need to know one of the single guys at a family wedding was aching hard for you during the wedding reception and sending you pics of the women in their family because he fancied you wearing a dress like theirs?

      A lot of men who sent me their pics weren't old sad men but young and fit and many are still at university. I'm old enough to be their mother!

      I really wouldn't want to comment on their looks or their dicks. They are people and deserve respect and I wouldn't dare of posting their pics online without their consent. Arguably they are leverage if a man became abusive but honestly? It's beyond me how anyone could find a breach like revenge porn and the like acceptable. I don't how I could live with myself if I did breach consent.

    5. Re:Irony by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Watching non-consensual porn? You get to pay a big fine too.

      Rickroll jail time. What a wonderful idea.

    6. Re:Irony by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You take a bunch of pictures and videos and send them to someone and then sick the government on them, forcing them to effectively upend their own privacy rights ...

      Let's change a couple of words:

        • You take a bunch of bank statements and credit-card statements and send them to someone and then sick the government on them, forcing them to effectively upend their own privacy rights over mere continued possession.

      If you don't mind people having "continued possession", please reply with a copy of your bank statements and credit-card statements.

    7. Re:Irony by AmiMoJo · · Score: 1

      There is no enforcement action, only an order. If evidence emerges that he didn't delete the photos they will act, but they won't go looking for it. The idea is to encourage behaviour by making failure to follow the order a more serious offence (contempt of court).

      What privilege should she check?

      --
      const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
      SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
  13. Re:I despise the so-called inclusive terms by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Inclusivity isn't PC; it's generic. Or rather, it's not needlessly over-specific. If some fuckwit (e.g. you) were to write that he has to delete pictures of his ex-girlfriend, then some other fuckwit might then ask, "But this doesn't apply to ex-wives, right, since that was a different type of agreement?" or "This doesn't apply to ex-boyfriends, since dudes have different nudity standards," or other irrelevant bullshit.

    By being inclusive, you say the most. It's high-performance use of language. And if you're against performance, then you're not merely "anti-PC" but you're anti-nerd. You're a "linguistic luddite."

    The trick is inclusivity without loss of correctness. (e.g. "Person," though more inclusive than "partner," would be wrong.) This ties in with how you should write a scientific hypothesis. (Again, for maximum performance, rather than PCness.) You should make your falsifiable hypothesis as broad as you can, while still maintaining falsifiability (correctness). That way, as you test it, you get the most knowledge.

    If you don't understand this, then not only will you not make it as a judge/lawyer or a social commentator, but you won't make it as a scientist either. So you probably ought to drop the PC chip on your shoulder and start learning to become a less stupid person, and get over your fears that speaking non-stupidly will cause the other Idiocracy characters to say you "talk like a fag." Those idiots are missing 99% of the discussion, so it's not really surprising that their noise-polluted inferences go off in all sorts of weird random directions.

  14. Re:I despise the so-called inclusive terms by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Quite frankly the use of 'partner' made me think this guy was gay.

  15. Re:I despise the so-called inclusive terms by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Maybe the reporter forgot to ask whether they were married, and was unable to choose the one that fits.

  16. How will they check? by necro81 · · Score: 1

    Will the enforcement/compliance be something along the lines of "pics or it didn't happen"?

  17. Re:I despise the so-called inclusive terms by Grishnakh · · Score: 1, Insightful

    Hear, hear. Mod up. I'm really sick of the Luddites and technophobes on this site; I thought this was supposed to be a site for smart, nerdy people, not a bunch of angry old men in their rocking chairs complaining about how they had to walk uphill 40 miles both ways to school every day.

  18. One Might Guess? by JimSadler · · Score: 1

    And just why might German law have more privacy support than any other European nation? Trying to cover up some wrongs that are still going on, just might be the reason. A few billion dollars might be turned up, that need to be restored to those whose wealth was stolen, would be a great reason for strict privacy laws.

    1. Re:One Might Guess? by gnasher719 · · Score: 1

      And just why might German law have more privacy support than any other European nation? Trying to cover up some wrongs that are still going on, just might be the reason. A few billion dollars might be turned up, that need to be restored to those whose wealth was stolen, would be a great reason for strict privacy laws.

      Every year thousands of children are born with bad birth defects in Vietnam because American bastards sprayed the country with chemicals that cause damages forty years later. A few billion dollars in damages would be just be a start. And now imagine all these Native Americans wanted the land back that was stolen from them.

  19. Deleting intimacy by Crowd+Computing · · Score: 1

    German court cases have no virtually effect on the English speaking countries. So unless you're a data center or married to a Valkyrie, this case has more of an academic than practical interest.

    However, the BBC article and apparently even the German ruling itself, which is linked in the BBC article, refer to "intimate" rather than simply naked photos. Quoting from the first paragraph, and hoping I don't run afoul of German copyright law:

    "Fertigt im Rahmen einer intimen Beziehung ein Partner vom anderen intime Bild- oder Filmaufnahmen, kann dem Abgebildeten gegen den anderen nach dem Ende der Beziehung ein Löschanspruch wegen Verletzung seines Persönlichkeitsrechts zustehen, wenn er seine Einwilligung in die Anfertigung und Verwendung der Aufnahmen auf die Dauer der Beziehung - konkludent - beschränkt hat."

    Even without the usual Google translate copy pasta, we can see the German word for intimate used twice in the phrases "intimen Bezeihung", intimate relationships, and "intime Bild- oder Filmaufnahmen", intimate photos and videos. I'm not patient enough to process the PDF file but I did stumble upon the German phrases for "wearing only underwear", so I can conclude that the ruling isn't limited to naked photos but extends to embarrassing photos, perhaps even something as innocent as a kiss.

  20. Re: Thats a ruling to keep the lawyers happy... by shitzu · · Score: 1

    You are confusing the german law system that is based on actual laws and the US/British precedent based "law system".

  21. Good news for lawyers! by Alain+Williams · · Score: 1

    This opens up a the whole idea of what was agreed to during the relationship as being void afterwards:

    • * I gave you a car/fur-coat/... - give them back
    • * I gave you addresses of my friends - you must now delete from your address book
    • * I was in some pictures with our kids - delete these pics of your kids
    • * I told you our secret family recipe for apple pie - tear up your cook book

    Oh, the lawyers are going to be able to buy lots of goodies with the money that they will make over this!

    1. Re:Good news for lawyers! by argumentsockpuppet · · Score: 1

      Does it really work like that? I understand that the obvious extension of this ruling is to apply it to other cases, but will it be? This was a case of "person is jerk, court takes steps to limit jerk." Does common sense and decency actually fail in practice as a standard for court cases?

  22. Re:I despise the so-called inclusive terms by Thanshin · · Score: 1

    The one good (AC -1) post in several thousands that makes me still read everything (when I'm bored).

  23. Re:I despise the so-called inclusive terms by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    This. If I hear the word "partner" I think homosexual. I never refer to my wife as anything other than wife or by her given Christian name when referring to her with other people.

    I once had a homosexual woman take offence to my using the term "my wife". She said I should use the term "significant other". I told her that I'll use the term that best describes what she is, namely, my wife. I refuse to bow to the PC nonsense. I refuse to use "inclusive" terms to please a tiny minority of people. PC is just what it is. The minority should never dictate to the majority. Most people are scared to death to offend the homosexuals. I always tell them "Merry Christmas", use the terms "wife" and "husband", and say "God bless you" when they sneeze. HR can say nothing about this.

  24. Thanks for making my point, AC by MikeRT · · Score: 1

    It should be illegal to publish a naked photo of someone else without their written consent. Want to make porn? Fine, sign a consent form for the publication of your own naked pictures, and get paid for it. Publish a naked photo of your ex and can't produce the consent form? Go to jail, and get added to the sex offenders registry. Watching non-consensual porn? You get to pay a big fine too.

    They already made a porn, and she consented to being part of it. Softcore or hardcore, doesn't matter. What she did was consent to the production (especially if she took the shots herself) and distributed to them. At this point, the only thing legally relevant is copyright claims in the film. However, the unholy alliance of feminists and white knights sees yon damsel in distress and must sally forth to do battle with the dragon which is an ex-boyfriend who might distribute it at some point in the future.

    How about this? You don't want to star in a porno, don't bloody make a porno of any sort, and send it to someone else. I swear, people today are absolutely barking mad in their demand for privilege and naivete about the nature of the Internet and humanity. Up next: don't want to be convicted of conspiracy to commit a crime when your ex gets pangs of conscience? Don't commit one.

    1. Re:Thanks for making my point, AC by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      At this point, the only thing legally relevant is copyright claims in the film

      Well, no. The German legal system has decided that this is not true in Germany. No matter what arguments you will come with.

  25. Re: Thats a ruling to keep the lawyers happy... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    They still apparently have a law that fails to define those terms and now anyone reading this article knows it.

  26. Germany by zmooc · · Score: 1

    Let's not forget Germany already has the oddest photography laws of all western countries. It is the only country that effectively makes the art of street photograph illegal: you should have consent of all people in your picture, even in public places. All pictures of the Berlin Wall being taken down would be illegal if taken today. There's a reason Germany doesn't have Google Streetview.

    In most countries, photographs are the property of the photographer and he can do with them whatever he wants (if it is not obviously damaging to the subjects). In Germany, that's not the case; photographers need consent not only to use pictures but even to take them. In that regard, Germany is unique and against that background, this ruling is no surprise. In fact it is completely consistent with the way Germany deals with photography in general.

    --
    0x or or snor perron?!
    1. Re: Germany by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Well, it's only logical. You don't want to see pictures of SS rounding up those jews, do you?

    2. Re:Germany by climb_no_fear · · Score: 1

      There's a reason Germany doesn't have Google Streetview.

      Bull.... Here is a streetview that I just randomly selected in Berlin: https://www.google.com/maps/@5...

    3. Re:Germany by ThePhilips · · Score: 2

      Let's not forget Germany already has the oddest photography laws of all western countries. It is the only country that effectively makes the art of street photograph illegal: you should have consent of all people in your picture, even in public places. All pictures of the Berlin Wall being taken down would be illegal if taken today. There's a reason Germany doesn't have Google Streetview.

      That's just nonsense.

      The "you should have consent of all people in your picture" is a new prevailing legal paradigm how to deal with paparazzi and such. Otherwise, the person in a photograph simply has no rights whatsoever: authorship belongs to the photog, the copyright to the organizer/etc, while bystanders have no place in the copyright scheme whatsoever.

      Germany and most Europe has extended it to public places mostly because the most visited public places - the sightseeing hotspots in the Europe - are also the places where local people live and work. And they lived and worked there long before the shitty tourist epidemic.

      In most countries, photographs are the property of the photographer and he can do with them whatever he wants (if it is not obviously damaging to the subjects). In Germany, that's not the case; photographers need consent not only to use pictures but even to take them. In that regard, Germany is unique and against that background, this ruling is no surprise. In fact it is completely consistent with the way Germany deals with photography in general.

      First. It's not only the Germany. Lots of countries - and some states in the USA - have similar laws.

      Second, the need for consent in Germany has nothing to do with the law. It is just the local tradition to ask permission if person(s) feature in your photograph prominently. It was like that even before the laws made it official.

      Otherwise, in a public place one generally does not need a consent. But if somebody sees that you making pictures of them, with the help of the law, they have legal standing to request the deletion of the unwanted images. And that's normal: people on the street are not pro models, why should you be able to profit of their images, if they do not want it?

      --
      All hope abandon ye who enter here.
    4. Re:Germany by Dixie_Flatline · · Score: 1

      No, that's not true. Several jurisdictions have prohibitions against photographs where someone is identifiable without their consent, even in public, except if the photograph is for the news. Quebec is the one that springs most immediately to mind (since I live here). You're entitled to your privacy, *even in public*, because there's the notion that even if you're out and about, you may still be doing things that are private and intimate in a way that you don't want captured forever in a photograph. (For instance, if you're kissing your partner in public, you're okay with that moment happening with people around you, but you don't necessarily want it to be captured on film forever.)

      The key is whether someone is identifiable in the photograph. If it's just the backs of everyone's head or you can't make out any faces, you get a pass.

    5. Re:Germany by cfalcon · · Score: 1

      Your comment is the best one in the thread, and should probably be in the summary. It's interesting to talk about the odd ramifications of their laws, but so many are unique that it's not fair to make the obvious comparison of "could that happen here" (for most western values of "here"). The other question- how could this be enforced- is also somewhat interesting, but will be more interesting if they actually make some Orwellian action about his data, which has yet to occur.

    6. Re:Germany by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Let's not forget Germany already has the oddest photography laws of all western countries. It is the only country that effectively makes the art of street photograph illegal: you should have consent of all people in your picture, even in public places.

      That's France, not Germany. It was a law passed because photographers became too pushy and downright harassed famous people. Also Princess Diana's fatal accident in Paris while being chased by photographers might have something to do with it.

      German TV records random people in public all the time so I assume that's legal and I have never heard of such laws in Germany, not even while staying there. Sure there are a bunch of strict laws in Germany, but it's not a country where everything is illegal. In fact overall it's fairly normal when comparing law strictness with other countries.

    7. Re:Germany by nnull · · Score: 1

      Look at the date and look at the blurred building. It's old. You'll find many streetview maps of Germany like this. But you want to know the funny part is from your link? Move up forward a bit and you see a bunch of students with a professional camera taking video or pictures of the very building that's blurred out. Ah the hypocrisy.

    8. Re:Germany by climb_no_fear · · Score: 1

      I live in Germany. If the original poster had said, Steetview sucks in Germany or the pics are old, I would be the first to agree. But he said no Streetview which really is wrong.

      And I totally agree with the hypocrisy that you point out.

      The funniest thing you notice here. Tough German data protection, and hypocrisy, you say?

      Custom license plates are limited to two letters and 4 numbers after the countyor city abbreviation. So what do most custom plates say? The driver's intials and birth year.

      Then they drive around advertising their birth year and initials.That is schizophrenic.

  27. Interesting implication by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    What I find interesting about this case isn't the result, but what probably led up to it. For this court case to happen, first the woman would need to ask her partner to delete nude photos/videos of her, he would need to refuse, she'd contact a lawyer, he still refused, they went to court, he refused to settle. This case had to be brewing for weeks or months before we got to this verdict, which would indicate this guy really really didn't want to delete those files.

    How messed up does a person need to be to let things get to the point where a judge needs to order them to delete pictures of their ex off their computer? Let go, dude!

    1. Re:Interesting implication by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      or he could just be someone who is like, super against draconian laws and governmental overreach.

      some people do actually take stands for their beliefs.

    2. Re:Interesting implication by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The ruling says that he forwarded intimate eMails to her husband which indicates that he can not be trusted to keep the photos to himself.

  28. Still completely contradictory by s.petry · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Basically the German court came to a completely contradictory ruling. The man obtained the photo's legally and with consent. The person changing their mind well after the fact is like a person claiming "I was raped for the full duration of our relationship because I no longer consent.". Go read the definition of consent. You don't have to like the logical equivalency I just gave, but revoked consent for past actions is exactly why the court told this man to destroy his property.

    As the AC above states, this means that the court order itself is useless after the case is over. During the case the guy consented to the courts request to destroy stuff. After the case he can revoke his consent, and the courts already ruled that it was fine to do so.

    I'll give you that there should be a buffer zone for consent, especially to something like photos (sexually graphic or not). I'll further give you that consent does not count at all if a person is drugged or drunk. Those things are not what happened. Actors deal with this kind of thing all the time in their contracts. Once you consent the holding company must abide by their end of the deal , but can do with what you consented to as seen fit in agreement with consent. If the images get used in a way that was not agreed to the actor goes to court against the holding company. If there is only consent then there are NO restrictions. In the case that the holding company never does anything with the material, there would not be a court case (at least that would not be called frivolous).

    So in a sense the courts ruled that this guy was guilty of a crime he never committed, in addition to ruling that consent has no meaning because you can revoke consent on past completed actions. In case I'm still too vague, that last part makes their ruling contradictory.

    --

    -The wise argue that there are few absolutes, the fool argues that there are no probabilities.

    1. Re:Still completely contradictory by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      he man obtained the photo's legally and with consent. The person changing their mind well after the fact is like a person claiming "I was raped for the full duration of our relationship because I no longer consent."

      Except the man isn't punished, nor is a crime claimed. The court only decided that he has to destroy images he at this time has no right to own. There is no claim that he made these with dubious consent or that he was not allowed to posses them in the past. Its more like getting kicked out of your apartment after stopping to pay rent, sure you had the right to live there in the past and you even had keys to it - in the present neither of these apply and the apartment owner has the right to get his keys back.

    2. Re:Still completely contradictory by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      The apartment owner has the right to get his keys back, but he doesn't have the right to force you to destroy photos you took of the apartment.

    3. Re:Still completely contradictory by shmlco · · Score: 1

      The photographer has all rights to his photos, unless rights are reassigned.

      --
      Any sect, cult, or religion will legislate its creed into law if it acquires the political power to do so.
    4. Re:Still completely contradictory by DougOtto · · Score: 1

      See what happens when you try to apply US copyright law in Germany?

      --
      Solving Unix problems since 1989...
    5. Re:Still completely contradictory by s.petry · · Score: 1

      This is not about US Copyright Law, it's about common law which evolved for a couple thousand years from Ancient Greek law. Believe it or not, images are not some new revelation. Paintings were the thing before the Camera, so we have this concept in common law for well over a couple thousand years.

      --

      -The wise argue that there are few absolutes, the fool argues that there are no probabilities.

    6. Re:Still completely contradictory by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      During the case the guy consented to the courts request to destroy stuff. After the case he can revoke his consent, and the courts already ruled that it was fine to do so.

      Um, no... they ordered him to destroy his stuff: his consent was not needed.

    7. Re:Still completely contradictory by Kjella · · Score: 3, Interesting

      There's a reason most contracts and licenses use the word "irrevocable", because by default I can change my mind. The court found that even though he took the pictures with her permission, she retains personal integrity rights governing possession and use of the pictures that shows intimate areas and sexual activity. Like you could show ordinary photos of your ex-gf to your friends without consent, but not the sex photos. And hypothetically that would be an ongoing consent that could be given or revoked at any time. The German court found those rights extend to possession, if you possess intimate material of someone you must delete them on request, unless you have an explicit agreement to the contrary.

      It should be noted that some of these sex photos had found their way to the woman's husband through unknown third parties and the court goes far to hint that if he were to retain possession it is not certain the remaining material would be treated with the appropriate care to protect against unauthorized viewing. In short, they can't prove he maliciously send or spread those pictures but they're going to take away his means to do it again. Then again if you suspect they might be spread illegally well you should also suspect a copy will be kept illegally, but it adds legal ammo. Honestly I think it's a very reasonable and narrow ruling, it only applies if the following three conditions are met:

      1) They are made informally, no written terms
      2) They're intimate in nature
      3) The subject has requested it

      --
      Live today, because you never know what tomorrow brings
    8. Re:Still completely contradictory by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

      Before declaring a ruling contradictory, you should first read it; you can find it here. I recommend you read it in full.

      In particular, the court didn't judge that the taking of the pictures itself was illegal in any way, after all she did consent to the pictures being taken within the context of their relationship. However, she did not consent to the pictures being taken for any other purpose, in particular, the pictures weren't meant for publication. Since she still holds personality rights over the pictures, consent can potentially be withdrawn. (This is where pictures differ from your sex analogy: after sex is over, it's done, but after pictures are taken you still hold certain personality rights over the pictures, at least in Germany.) The court concedes that it isn't always entirely clear where to draw the line, but because the photographer had publicised pictures without consent before, and because there is reasonable doubt that the photographer would take proper care to shield the pictures from third parties, and because some of the pictures were nude and/or sex pictures, and because intimate pictures can be used to hold some measure of control over someone, and because the consent was given in the context of a relationship which since has ended, in this case consent could be withdrawn, albeit just for the nude and/or sex pictures, not for the regular clothed ones. Therefore the court ordered the pictures to be destroyed.

      The ruling doesn't say that taking these pictures is retroactively illegal (such a concept doesn't really exist in German law) nor that keeping the pictures until now was unlawful (although publicising them may/would have been) but not obeying the order to destroy them would be (it would be contempt of court). Of course, the court cannot easily check if its order has been executed completely, but that isn't unique to this situation. Should the photographer later leak pictures that were supposed to be destroyed, he could be charged not just with unjust publication but also for disobeying a direct order from a federal court.

      This post is of course a rough summary, for the details you'll have to read the judgement yourself. As a final note, it's important to consider the societal backdrop against which this all happens. People are nowadays less hesitant to share nudes with their partners, mainly because they share pictures of anything and everything, but also revenge porn is on the rise, and the potential for blackmail and psychological manipulation is tremendous. The law will have to adapt to this new reality and clinging to the simplistic view that pictures are just property aren't likely to do society any good.

    9. Re:Still completely contradictory by tsm_sf · · Score: 0

      Oh yeah I totally remember this precedent being set in Titian V. Three Fat Chicks.

      Idiot.

      --
      Literalism isn't a form of humor, it's you being irritating.
    10. Re:Still completely contradictory by Rakarra · · Score: 2

      The man obtained the photo's legally and with consent. The person changing their mind well after the fact is like a person claiming "I was raped for the full duration of our relationship because I no longer consent."

      I think that analogy falls down flat. Past actions are not being criminalized, just future actions that were once legal. Your rape example is an ex post facto issue, but previous possession is not being criminalized. Further possession is, however.

      The man obtained them with consent at the time, therefore, his having the pictures all this time is not a crime.
      There is no consent for the future, so he may not have the photos in the future. Still pretty troubling.

    11. Re:Still completely contradictory by s.petry · · Score: 2

      "irrevocable" only covers ongoing actions and agreements If they had an agreement that he could continue to take photos at his leisure, that could be revoked and disputed. That said, there is nobody here saying he should be able to do what ever he wants with her and a camera forever. So you are arguing ad absurdum.

      Socratic method time. Lets reduce and look at similar law. For example, one can not revoke a work that was already completed by Common Law (no contract required). For example: You can't come back and destroy my bathroom if you did the work because you no longer consent to me having your work in my house. Your opinion of the value of the work is not considered, nor is the method of payment I gave for the work (if any), nor is the amount of time it took you to do the work. We don't even measure the morality of the work and say "it was a shower installed for sexual pleasure" or anything else. The work was completed and the contract closed. That is supposed to be the end of the story.

      This rule of law applies to just about everything, except in Germany. Well in fairness I argue similarly against some US and UK laws, so it's not just Germany. It's a "thought police" thing that people everywhere should be damn scared of.

      --

      -The wise argue that there are few absolutes, the fool argues that there are no probabilities.

    12. Re:Still completely contradictory by s.petry · · Score: 0

      Was the guy guilty of publishing the photos? NO! Since there was no crime, or even misdeeds, this is a premature conviction of slander and libel based on it being possible for him to do so. The fact that you are defending this is bothersome, and I'm guessing that most Germans don't know this happened or been given the opportunity to consider the ramifications.

      As a final note for you, I agree that it's important to consider the societal backdrop against which this happens. Germany in particular used to be painfully aware of this, but I can see that all is now forgotten. FWIW, I am an avid student of history but schools don't really teach much any longer. There is no magic wand that removed human nature and the ability of people to behave tyrannically, and the digital age made it much easier to do. Germany, and the rest of the West is just at the end of that peaceful cycle.

      --

      -The wise argue that there are few absolutes, the fool argues that there are no probabilities.

    13. Re:Still completely contradictory by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      NO, NO, NO & NO...it is NOT 'narrow' at all, in fact the judge explicitly indicates that 'intimate' is left undefined or at least not to be 'narrowly construed'...so please feel free to define 'intimate' for me? Furthermore we now have a situation where UNSTATED terms & conditions not even rising to the level of a 'verbal agreement' trumps actually possession & property rights.

      Here's an idea...think of the potential ramifications BEFORE consenting to ANY photograph of any kind whatsoever!

      Here's another little thought experiment for you. Let's suppose this guy was not just a photographer but an incredibly good/detailed artist. Let's say he sketches her naked from memory & circulates that sketch...is this a violation of her privacy? I'm going to argue that in Germany that this judge would say 'yes' & YOU'D find that reasonable! Or better yet, let's say he doesn't circulate the sketch but somehow she finds out he has it & sues to have him destroy it...again you & this judge would rule for her...we are now just 1 step away from requiring people to 'forget' what they have seen, that is what you get when you have a 'right to be forgotten' on line or attempt to extend some idea of 'privacy' in this case in a twisted & illogical way..

      Not surprising though, this is Germany where fascism is a sport...

    14. Re:Still completely contradictory by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      What if he's an incredibly good artist...is he expected to be constrained to NEVER sketch her naked from memory? What if he does?

    15. Re:Still completely contradictory by Kjella · · Score: 2

      "irrevocable" only covers ongoing actions and agreements If they had an agreement that he could continue to take photos at his leisure, that could be revoked and disputed. That said, there is nobody here saying he should be able to do what ever he wants with her and a camera forever. So you are arguing ad absurdum.

      Please, don't use big words if you don't understand what they mean. He has some rights as photographer, she has some rights as the depicted. It is the same in the US, that is why model releases exist. Those rights exist as long as the photo exists and has nothing to do with any photos taken before or since.

      Socratic method time. Lets reduce and look at similar law.

      Like, totally different law? Work for hire is a simple swap, you get paid and I get the result. If you think allowing your significant other to take a picture for the family album is a remotely analogous to the commercial act of hiring a model, I feel sorry for your family. This is more like me giving you a key to water my plants, but refusing to give it back. And you accept that I've withdrawn the consent to enter my house, but you want to keep the key anyway for sentimental value - or just to rob me blind. You refuse to acknowledge that giving you the key was a temporary act in the context of watering my plants, so I go to court to get the key destroyed. And the court agrees.

      --
      Live today, because you never know what tomorrow brings
    16. Re:Still completely contradictory by s.petry · · Score: 1, Insightful

      I am smelling a troll. You start with an ad hominem and then ignore my example. The example I provided was for contracts under common law. You claim that your (this) case is special and your contract is not a contract. I guess by way of fairy farts and unicorns this contract can be declared something else in your world. (a verbal agreement is a contract)

      Your example of the modeling contract exception proves my point, though you probably don't get (or if you are trolling don't care). If there is no contract specifying limitation there is no limitation. A closed contract is closed, the end. There could be damages if the pictures were misused, but they were not misused. Even if the guy said in anger to her that he could publish the pictures later, until he does so there is no crime.

      No wrong doing, and no criminal case against this person makes it very obvious that he was sued for the _potential_ to do harm. The court deemed him capable of a future crime. I think you are capable of future crime too, so you should be jailed for what ever the State decides you might do in the future. Justice must be equally applied or it's not justice.

      --

      -The wise argue that there are few absolutes, the fool argues that there are no probabilities.

    17. Re:Still completely contradictory by CanEHdian · · Score: 1

      The man obtained the photo's legally and with consent. The person changing their mind well after the fact is like a person claiming "I was raped for the full duration of our relationship because I no longer consent."

      Isn't that more or less what they were pulling on Julian Assange? Somebody changed their mind "after" (i.e. when the other girlfriend became known to her) making it "rape" in Sweden?

      --
      When the copyright term is "forever minus a day", live every day like it's the last.
    18. Re:Still completely contradictory by bwcbwc · · Score: 1

      Except that she's not WITHDRAWING her consent, she's claiming that her consent was only given for the duration of the relationship. Basically what the court said (in line with her arguments) is that he has the burden of proof in showing that her consent to keep nude photos of her was intended to continue after the end of their relationship.

      My guess is that pre-nups are going to become increasingly popular in Germany.

      --
      We are the 198 proof..
    19. Re:Still completely contradictory by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Actually it's more like me giving you a framed photo of my plants as a gift, then after we're no longer friends(which wouldn't take long, judging from your lack of reasoning ability) I manage to convince a court to order you destroy those photographs.

    20. Re:Still completely contradictory by AmiMoJo · · Score: 2

      It's actually really simple. Before the relationship ended he removed his penis from her vagina, and she removed consent for him to reinsert it. She couldn't claim all the sex they had was rape because at the time it was consensual.

      Similarly, he took some intimate photos and looked at them. The relationship ended and she removed consent for him to possess them. She couldn't claim that the photos were sexual assault because they were consensual at the time, but now consent is removed for possession he can't review them either.

      Having sex once does not grant perpetual consent, and neither does taking sexuality explicit photos.

      --
      const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
      SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
    21. Re:Still completely contradictory by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Was the guy guilty of publishing the photos? NO! Since there was no crime, or even misdeeds, this is a premature conviction of slander and libel based on it being possible for him to do so.

      Stating that something could occur is not slander or libel, it is describing a perceived risk. Given that a non-zero number of persons have done just such a thing, it is not even an unwarranted concern to express.

      Certainly, you could be offended at the suggestion. That would make you an asshole who can't even hear what somebody else has to say without taking some grievous offense. It's easy to take offense when somebody is worried about something.

      But it's worth considering what's the value of keeping these photos to the photographer? Probably close to nil. And standing on principle? Nope, doesn't quite make things out to be what you want.

      The fact that you are defending this is bothersome, and I'm guessing that most Germans don't know this happened or been given the opportunity to consider the ramifications.

      I don't think you've considered the ramifications of what you're suggesting, and it is bothersome that you're suggesting that slander or libel applies.

      As a final note for you, I agree that it's important to consider the societal backdrop against which this happens. Germany in particular used to be painfully aware of this, but I can see that all is now forgotten. FWIW, I am an avid student of history but schools don't really teach much any longer. There is no magic wand that removed human nature and the ability of people to behave tyrannically, and the digital age made it much easier to do. Germany, and the rest of the West is just at the end of that peaceful cycle.

      You may not be aware of it, but Germany is quite aware of the potential misdeeds for what can occur, it was a standard practice of the Nazi party to discredit those they disfavored by such means as these kinds of photos. In fact, authoritarians everywhere tend to do that, and they get offended at the suggestion of you being deprived of the power to harm others, as if they would do anything wrong.

      Maybe you're the one defending a tyrant in the making.

      PS, in another post you said...

      it's about common law which evolved for a couple thousand years from Ancient Greek law

      Uh no, try Middle Ages England.

      Ancient Greek Law? No, don't go citing the code of Draco, thanks.

    22. Re:Still completely contradictory by dbIII · · Score: 1

      Your analogy is almost as offensive as your suggestion that the US government murdered all those plane passengers on 9/11.

    23. Re:Still completely contradictory by dbIII · · Score: 1

      It wasn't even that. The woman got angry and wanted to see if there was a way to get the legal system to force him to get tested for an STD. Then a political activist got involved as prosecutor and it all went on from there.

    24. Re:Still completely contradictory by goose-incarnated · · Score: 1

      It should be noted that some of these sex photos had found their way to the woman's husband through unknown third parties [...] In short, they can't prove he maliciously send or spread those pictures but they're going to take away his means to do it again.

      So copies of the pictures are already with some unknown third party, but he should destroy his copies? What happens if the unknown third-party you refer to simply publish those pictures? Does he get punished again?

      There is no easy way out of this - this case established that some unknown third-party has the pictures. If he actually does go ahead and *anonymously* release those pictures there's absolutely nothing anyone can do to him - after all they've already established that someone else also has those pictures. The woman involved must have been seriously whacked with the stupid-stick to allow this sort of situation to occur.

      --
      I'm a minority race. Save your vitriol for white people.
    25. Re:Still completely contradictory by goose-incarnated · · Score: 1

      but now consent is removed for possession he can't review them either.

      Having sex once does not grant perpetual consent, and neither does taking sexuality explicit photos.

      It only works that way if she own's the photos in question. You are assuming that she does.

      --
      I'm a minority race. Save your vitriol for white people.
    26. Re:Still completely contradictory by Pseudonym · · Score: 1

      I made my piece of gauze sign a pre-nup.

      --
      sub f{($f)=@_;print"$f(q{$f});";}f(q{sub f{($f)=@_;print"$f(q{$f});";}f});
    27. Re:Still completely contradictory by AmiMoJo · · Score: 1

      Quite clearly it does work that way, hence the ruling. I know reading TFA is unfashionable, but jeez...

      --
      const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
      SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
    28. Re:Still completely contradictory by onthemightofprinces · · Score: 1

      I'm surprised that he even needed to go to court for this. If an ex- asks you to delete photos and videos, you delete them.

    29. Re:Still completely contradictory by onthemightofprinces · · Score: 1

      Exactly. It's like claiming that a business has no right to demand your access card and equipment back if they decide to let you go. Whether you retain 'naked rights' in photo or video after the relationship ends is entirely up to the person in them. You've been granted no right to perpetual possession. It's an informal agreement based on context and can quite rightly be revoked at any time. I'm amazed he dragged his heels for so long. Probably has major issues with control and couldn't handle being told what to go by a woman and decided to try to embarrass her.

    30. Re:Still completely contradictory by onthemightofprinces · · Score: 1

      Neither of the women have said that Assange raped them. They had a grievance with him allegedly deceiving them and his sexual health and wanted a court-ordered test performed on him. The prosecutors then leapt on the issue, bumped it up to rape, hoping that he could then be passed on to their friends in the US.

  29. Ok fine by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I deleted them

  30. Geils v. Angel by mekkab · · Score: 1

    even though it might make your blood run cold, as per the ruling in that case, "I guess you gotta buy it."

    --
    In the future, I would want to not be isolated from my friends in the Space Station.
  31. Re: I despise the so-called inclusive terms by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    And I'll respond by wishing you a Happy Hanukkah. I hope you won't get your feelings hurt.

  32. some states/countries passed revenge porn laws by peter303 · · Score: 1

    Fines or jail if caught. Germany is one. Kind of after the fact.

  33. easy fix by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    What he needs to do is tattoo the pic onto his body and tell them over my dead ass you getting it.

  34. consent to viewing & possession of private ph by raymorris · · Score: 1, Interesting

    What you say makes sense for TAKING the photos, doing the actual photography.

    One could argue that during the relationship she consented to him having those photos and viewing photos of her private parts, and she no longer consents to him jerking to her private parts today. If I were the judge, I probably wouldn't make that ruling, but it's logically consistent. If I were the judge, I'd probably tell him "don't be a dick" and try to find a way to encourage him to grow up, without setting precedent. For example if they are also fighting over some physical property, I might suggest to his attorney that being a dickhead doesn't endear him to the court on the issue of the television set or whatever else they are arguing about.

  35. Re:I despise the so-called inclusive terms by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You sound like a millenial wanker to me, but I have to say it's pretty funny that the guy up above also made a point to say Merry Christmas and you guys missed it. Now, I'm all for Merry Christmas, or more accurately don't give a fuck, but I think he was trying to prove what a non-PC rebel he is by saying it instead of "Happy Holidays" as he imagines the "warriors against Christmas" would want him to say.

    i.e. he thinks he stuck it to the PC police.

  36. Re:I despise the so-called inclusive terms by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Not sure why the dude below is fawning over your comment. I agree the guy above is probably a tard; as I mention below, he tries to show how much of a non-conformist he imagines himself to be by ending with Merry Christmas, probably thinking he's making people mad.

    However - you are missing context. The subject of the title doesn't refer to some general legal ruling about partners or spouses. It refers to a specific man and woman. So as you say, it's non-specific. Clearer language would be "..man to destroy images of ex-[girlfriend|wife]".

    We are losing information. Actually I do slightly agree with douche above that it annoys me in _specific instances_ when people use partner. It makes me idly wonder if they are gay (and no, I don't give a shit about that either, just out of curiosity and due to use of language).

    So to summarize, had the title been "German court rules that the partner in a relationship has the right to privacy and to..." then that would be perfect. That isn't the title, title is lame.

  37. Re:Thats a ruling to keep the lawyers happy... by penguinoid · · Score: 1, Interesting

    Next up, a pornstar decides she changed her mind and all those pictures must be destroyed...

    --
    Don't waste your vote! Vote for whoever you want, unless you live in a swing state it won't matter anyways
  38. Re:consent to viewing & possession of private by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

    and she no longer consents to him jerking to her private parts today.

    What about his memories? Is he no longer allowed to think about her?

  39. Did it happen? by whoever57 · · Score: 2

    Pics, or it didn't happen!

    --
    The real "Libtards" are the Libertarians!
  40. What? by s.petry · · Score: 0

    Being forced to destroy your property is not a punishment? I'm not sure what planet you come from, but imagine the outrage on Earth f China made people destroy images.. Oh wait.. that happened already.. In fact this was one of the things we despised about the old USSR and hard line Communists. Along with propaganda, which the West now fully employs against it's own populaces.

    --

    -The wise argue that there are few absolutes, the fool argues that there are no probabilities.

    1. Re:What? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      oh, don't get so breathy. this is just germany, not even the entirety of europe.

    2. Re:What? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      oh, don't get so breathy. this is just germany, not even the entirety of europe.

      Given the current bond situation in the EU, pretty soon Germany is going to own the rest of Europe... Just wait...

    3. Re:What? by KGIII · · Score: 1

      Well, I don't want to Godwin the thread but you know what happened the last time we let Germany get a bit zealous, right?

      --
      "So long and thanks for all the fish."
  41. Re:I despise the so-called inclusive terms by HornWumpus · · Score: 1

    And happy giftmas to you. Christians are minority that wants to dictate.

    --
    John McAfee 'It was like that time I hired that Bangkok prostitute; to do my taxes, while I fucked my accountant'
  42. Re:consent to viewing & possession of private by mopower70 · · Score: 1, Troll

    What you say makes sense for TAKING the photos, doing the actual photography.

    One could argue that during the relationship she consented to him having those photos and viewing photos of her private parts, and she no longer consents to him jerking to her private parts today.

    I'm gonna guess you write EULAs for a living.

  43. Re:consent to viewing & possession of private by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    One could argue that during the relationship she consented to him having those photos and viewing photos of her private parts, and she no longer consents to him jerking to her private parts today.

    The problem with that argument is that there's no basis in law for it. He doesn't need her consent to use a photograph he owns as erotica. If she didn't give her consent in the first place, that would be an invasion of privacy matter. If her consent were found to be invalid (because it was coerced, or because she was underage, etc.) then the court could correctly deprive him of ownership of it (even without getting into the criminal implications of such a scenario). If he were infringing on her rights of publicity (by using her image in an ad, let's say), then he might owe her damages but would still in theory own the photograph. If she was actually the one who took the photograph, then she could probably assert copyright. But wanking to something you legally own doesn't require anybody else's approval.

    Disclaimer: IANAL, and I certainly haven't studied German law

  44. Re: Thats a ruling to keep the lawyers happy... by shitzu · · Score: 1

    You mean that this one-paragraph exerpt from BBC news that reports something that happened in Germany now let the cat out of the bag and gives a legal loophole to sue everyone for anything?

  45. Re:Thats a ruling to keep the lawyers happy... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    They didn't have to define "intimate". The actual ruling lists (in paragraph 4) the type of pictures that must be deleted (naked/partially naked with breast or reproductive organs visible/dressed only in underwear/pictures where it is obvious that they have been taken directly before, during, or after intercourse).

  46. Re:Thats a ruling to keep the lawyers happy... by Citizen+of+Earth · · Score: 1

    ...Or any actor retroactively decides they want more money.

  47. Re:Thats a ruling to keep the lawyers happy... by Frigga's+Ring · · Score: 1

    The difference here would be a contract. The film makers can prove they own the works of art. My guess is that the gentleman in the featured article could not.

  48. Re:I despise the so-called inclusive terms by dgatwood · · Score: 1

    Inclusivity isn't PC; it's generic. Or rather, it's not needlessly over-specific. If some fuckwit (e.g. you) were to write that he has to delete pictures of his ex-girlfriend, then some other fuckwit might then ask, "But this doesn't apply to ex-wives, right, since that was a different type of agreement?" or "This doesn't apply to ex-boyfriends, since dudes have different nudity standards," or other irrelevant bullshit.

    Except that the distinction between a legal marriage and a mere relationship potentially does make a difference. If they had been married, in most countries, the wife would probably have be entitled to the rights to half of the photos as part of the divorce settlement, and could potentially have traded the other half for something else of comparable value (in either direction). So the generic "partner" actually loses important precision. That's why most people who are even remotely analytical find the term so incredibly annoying.

    --

    Check out my sci-fi/humor trilogy at PatriotsBooks.

  49. Re:I despise the so-called inclusive terms by vel-ex-tech · · Score: 1

    Happy solstice!

    The roommate and I celebrated yesterday by watching science documentaries and drinking b33r. (Perhaps it technically should have been on the 21st iirc, but close enough.)

    I'm confused. Why you think anyone wants to keep you from saying, "merry Christmas?" I wished a co-worker a merry Christmas a little bit ago when she wished me one. I didn't experience agony. It's not like saying Ni!

  50. Re: Thats a ruling to keep the lawyers happy... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    It is called a Marriage contract and it is signed.

  51. Deadman's switch! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    If he doesn't check in, a server somewhere releases the files.

  52. commentsubjectsaredumb by Falos · · Score: 1

    And what about everywhere else they exist?

    There's no such thing as Destroying The Negatives, never really was. Any "control" over Imaginary Property that's been released in the wild is voluntary at best.

    If a quarantine was maintained (knowledge is a contagion) and the photos were distributed under agreed conditions (eg nondisclosure) then they can be considered isolated and treated as property, ie your ex must forfeit them, is accountable for disclosure.

    Unconditional distribution is a global release. No court, no dictator can take the piss out of the pool if you already told someone your secret recipe for mango-celery salsa.

  53. This is why... by fafalone · · Score: 1

    "Of course I deleted those photos."

    But I'm not enough of a jerk to actually post them online. Telling me I can't have something you gave me anymore just pisses me off, and it's flat out wrong it shouldn't make a difference what it is. Publicizing is different tho. People need to get over their hangups about sex and nudity anyway... it's ridiculous that society is this advanced but a naked picture can ruin your life.

  54. Re:I despise the so-called inclusive terms by vel-ex-tech · · Score: 1

    I too wish they had used a more specific label.

    Happy solstice and merry Christmas!

  55. Re:consent to viewing & possession of private by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    'One can argue' ANYTHING you want, that doesn't mean any given argument is 'logically consistent'. To 'argue' what you have (or what she did) she'd have to demonstrate that the photos/videos were only consented to 'while in a relationship'. Without evidence demonstrating this is true it is an ASSUMPTION that it is. The judge is effectively reversing the burden of proof...

    That's not surprising to me though since while reading the article I saw this other story about Hermion in some new Harry Potter movie being cast as a black woman & black women are 'rejoicing' that they see themselves in the character more...AND that this is somehow demonstration that in today's world 'race doesn't matter'....???? WHATTT? My point is that it has finally & definitively happened...black is now white, white is black, up is down, down is up, the earth is square not round...etc. EVERYTHING that I knew to be 100% positively factual is today WRONG...

    So...today I declare myself a person of color, in fact I'm black & proud of it! Power to the black people!

  56. Re:I despise the so-called inclusive terms by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You can have "smart" people and you can have "nerdy" people, but not both. Nerds are actually quite stupid and, to be brutally honest, an embarrassment to anyone who is unlucky enough to end up within hearing distance from them.

  57. How is this different than other nudie photos? by Maxo-Texas · · Score: 1

    It sounds what is lacking is legal documentation of her permanent consent and that the judge is saying default consent within a relationship is within the relationship.

    This sounds related to "prenuptial" agreements to me.

    If he had gotten her to sign a model's consent form and specified how she was being compensated for the images and videos, then his rights would be permanent.

    But what of any 3rd party they may have had sex with? What if they also have photos given with consent during a three way? There is no relationship to end there. Is the judge saying the photos and videos were only good during the evening and ended with the evening? What of the persons right to record their own life?

    And what of public nudity and photos taken of people naked out in public? Is there some kind of implicit permission or does a person have a right to their "likeness" even then? ( and is that right for everyone or only for celebrities?)

    --
    She was like chocolate when she drank... semi-sweet at first and then increasingly bitter.
  58. Disturbing, removing consent years later. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I think it it absolutely bizarre a women can "revoke consent" months or years later for something so permanent as a photo or video. Men have no rights anymore. This opens up abuse holes, such as if the guy had shared it online and the women is bitter in the break up, she could claims revoked consent..
    By the way, what about non nude photos? These photos are used for memories too.
    Does she get to revoke consent for normal photos too? After we prefect brain memory changes, a la Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, can she revoke consent for his memories too?

      "he woman had originally agreed to the images but this consent stopped when the relationship ended, the court said"

    1. Re:Disturbing, removing consent years later. by vel-ex-tech · · Score: 1

      Eh, just wait until gynoids are perfected. It'll be interesting to see what happens to this faux idea of "consent" when men no longer need to take legal risks to fill the natural need for sex.

      Well, never mind. What will probably happen is more crap like an article from a while back where some woman was blaming all men for her poor dating skills and managed to get media attention for this.

      I mean, I understand the concern was that he was going to use them for revenge porn. Don't we generally wait until after the crime before the courts get involved unless there's a clear and imminent danger to life, limb, or property? I'm no expert on German law, but if they have actionable precrime there, I may reconsider whether I want to take up their offer of free tuition for anyone in the world who wants it.

      I don't know. Things like this make me thankful I'm not attracted to women.

      Hope you had a happy solstice!

  59. Re: Thats a ruling to keep the lawyers happy... by Frigga's+Ring · · Score: 1
    Sure. Except in this case they weren't married.

    From the featured article:

    If someone maintains that their ex-partner was willing for the photos to be used after the end of the relationship, that consent would still have to be proven, according to the new ruling, Ms Weber argued.

  60. I hate to say it... by kaatochacha · · Score: 1

    But in this case it really does apply: Hitler.
    This is nonsense.
    His probable reaction should be to photoshop all of the photos to put her in sweatpants and sweatshirts, add about 100 pounds to her weight, then release them as proof he's destroyed the original.

  61. Consent by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Where ever you see the doublespeak term "consent" being bandied about, it's a good indicator someone is getting fucked over by petty-tyrannical laws. This applies equally to non-sexual contexts.

  62. Re:consent to viewing & possession of private by slew · · Score: 1

    and she no longer consents to him jerking to her private parts today.

    What about his memories? Is he no longer allowed to think about her?

    Apparently there is an experimental way to erase memories with a laser. Hopefully something like that will never become a court-ordered procedure.

    When it comes to your political stance of privacy issues, be very careful what wish for...

  63. Brain surgey by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Coming up next, Germans force man to undergo brain surgery to remove the mental images

  64. Re:Thats a ruling to keep the lawyers happy... by bwcbwc · · Score: 0

    And I can't wait until this ruling intersects with copyright law. There have always been model consent forms in the commercial side of the "intimate" photo industry, but I sure hope the German government is ready for the influx of paparazzi and other cases where an image is taken of a public figure without that person's explicit consent.

    --
    We are the 198 proof..
  65. not a German lawyer. Ownership & privacy right by raymorris · · Score: 1

    I'm not a German lawyer either, though I was once an American student of the law.

    Not being any kind of expert in German law, I don't know that under German law the photos ARE his property. They may be community property. German law might provide her with applicable privacy rights. The "right to be forgotten " reminds us that not every country has the same laws as the US.

  66. good or bad implementation, still a good attempt by fikx · · Score: 1

    This idea actually seems to be a good one. Not sure if the law is worded well enough to stand up to abuse but it actually puts legal definitions around what should be known already: when you end a relationship, it changes how you relate to the things shared with that person.
    I'm kinda surprised so many are considering this a "change in consent" or "going back and changing your mind after the fact". It's not. When a relationship changes, the way you relate to that person changes. Another way to think of it is: the consent for sharing intimate things changed when you are no longer intimate with that person....so no "changing your mind" but it's recognizing what already happened.
    As far as comments of "if you don't want pictures shared, then don't let them be taken". So, because something might be abused later, don't partake in it? What a sad way to live. Safe yes, but so is never drinking, never leaving the house, etc. Pick your risky behavior and insert here.
    Being in a relationship is by definition trusting that person more than others, otherwise it's just, at best, friends with benefits. Ending the relationship is backing down on how much you share with the other person, so of course trusting them with pictures like that has changed.

    --
    AB HOC POSSUM VIDERE DOMUM TUUM
  67. Re:I despise the so-called inclusive terms by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You won't make it as a scientist using words like "fuckwit" or "linguistic luddite" in your arguments either.

    You come off as an acerbic person with a flair for the sanctimonious, most of your reply consisted of simple insults instead of any sort of logic or reasoning.

    There is no equivalence between a court ruling, which can be intentionally vague as to leave applications open, and a scientific hypothesis which must be precise.

    "You should make your falsifiable hypothesis as broad as you can, while still maintaining falsifiability (correctness)." - This statement in particular is an especially sloppy use of language bordering on the nonsensical. Falsifiable simply means it is possible to conceive of an observation or an argument which negates the statement in question. There's little connection between falsifiability and breadth except that it opens more avenues to find a counter example. I could claim a certain species of mouse navigates mazes using only their olfactory senses, it would obviously be falsifiable. I could broaden that hypothesis to include all mammals. Still easily falsifiable, though it becomes difficult to prove in the affirmative now. However, having that hypothesis doesn't mean you learn more. In fact, the hypothesis should be narrowed instead of broadened to learn more about the mouse, perhaps in the future it could be abstracted to other species or we could use the findings to determine why certain species are different, but at this early point it would be more useful to think about why and under which circumstances the mouse might navigate using these olfactory senses.

  68. burden of proof is for facts, not law by raymorris · · Score: 2

    > The judge is effectively reversing the burden of proof..

    The burden of proof relates to proving facts, not matters of law.
    The fact is that she does not consent to his possession of these private pictures of her. The interesting question is a question of LAW: under the applicable law, does it matter whether or not she consents? A question of law such as this is decided by a judge reading the text of the law and considering the reasoning used in prior cases. There is no fact to prove, so burden of proof isn't relevant. The judge is deciding whether German law allows him to keep "her" private photos without her consent. The facts (which can be proven or disproven) are not in dispute.

  69. oops by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Opps, I backed it up on my Chinese Cloud Service and now the world has it. Sorry Bitch.

  70. Re:not a German lawyer. Ownership & privacy ri by rtb61 · · Score: 1

    There is a distinct probability that the German court would be infringing copyright treaties that the German government has agreed to. The photographer owns those all copyrights to those photos, as they were taken with consent, published or unpublished.

    --
    Chaos - everything, everywhere, everywhen
  71. Re:Thats a ruling to keep the lawyers happy... by dbIII · · Score: 2

    And then the Judge looks at the contracts, slowly shaking their head, and points towards the door.


    See what happens when you finish a thought instead of an almost mindless knee-jerk action?

  72. Re: Thats a ruling to keep the lawyers happy... by KGIII · · Score: 1

    Well, the German legal system isn't exactly German really. They had some help writing it and were kind of forced into it because they'd shown that they couldn't be trusted to do so on their own. It's hardly fair to say that it's not based on the US/British legal systems when it has some similarities and was, shall we say, "heavily influenced" by those other countries.

    --
    "So long and thanks for all the fish."
  73. Not like that, and that wouldn't work either by dbIII · · Score: 1

    You take a bunch of pictures and videos and send them to someone and then sick the government on them, forcing them to effectively upend their own privacy rights over mere continued possession.

    Not what happened, and if it does happen that way it's going to have to involve sending a lot of money in the direction of lawyers to get them interested.

    I don't know if you are mixing up criminal law (governments pay) and civil law (litigants pay) but it looks like it. Utter bastards trying to turn civil issues such as copyright into criminal issues are of course confusing the issue, but even with that sting you suggest it is not something the police are going to care about so the stinger is going to have to "lawyer up".

    So sorry to say but it doesn't even hold up as a soap opera plot.

  74. Re: Thats a ruling to keep the lawyers happy... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    After WWII, germany was separated into states, every state basically independent. There was no federal republic. The actual federal republic that came later was still under the control of the allies, but the constitution was written by germans. The constitution has been constructed with the goal in mind to never again allow a "democratic takeover" like that of adolf hitler and the nazis. But the basic law system, where the court decides based on laws not on precedents, still stayed. The new constitution even moved away from allied systems. The weimar republic for example had a president with strong rigts, like the american president. But the person who had that position, hindenburg, was a very anti-democratic person, and even though he didnt like hitler, made him chancellor.
    The new federal republic still had a president, but it was more like the queen, he doesn't have any real power anymore.

    The law system kept the same, too, and many of the old laws were reinstated. After all, until the nazis tool over, germany _was_ a state of law. The only court whosr precedents really count is the constitutional court in karlsruhe, it has to ensure that every law passed, and every other thing the german state does, has to respect the first ten paragraphs of the constitution, the "grundrechte". They describe things like freedom of speech (which does exist in germany, just other grundrechte are higher, like the personal rights for dignity), or the fact that all people are equal before the law. This court is then also given the mission to " evolve" these grundrechte, where the court can establish new such principles. This has been used only once afaik, where the court esablished the right to own your personal data.

    Thats the only court whose precedents really count in the law system. The other court's descisions count too, but only to that regard to which law rule a court deemed more important (güterabwÃgung). No court establishes new laws or rights except the one.in karlsruhe.

  75. Re: Thats a ruling to keep the lawyers happy... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I don't think you quite understand how a Marriage contract works. Because by your logic, a person can never be raped by their spouse.

  76. Re: Thats a ruling to keep the lawyers happy... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Well, the German legal system isn't exactly German really. They had some help writing it and were kind of forced into it because they'd shown that they couldn't be trusted to do so on their own. It's hardly fair to say that it's not based on the US/British legal systems when it has some similarities and was, shall we say, "heavily influenced" by those other countries.

    Well done for not mentioning the War.

  77. copyright, privacy, consent separate by raymorris · · Score: 1

    A photographer also owns copyright to images they take without consent, the two are unrelated. The standard model release many photographers use has separate sections for each. They do cross a bit, I suppose , if the image happens to be a copy of a copyright protected work - a photo of a painting.

    Privacy is a separate issue. A peeping Tom owns the copyright to his pictures- that doesn't mean privacy laws disappear.

    Again, I wouldn't have ruled for the woman, based on the facts we know and what little German law we know. The reason I wouldn't is because I don't know of any concept in German law that gives her the right to consent or not at this point.

  78. Re: Thats a ruling to keep the lawyers happy... by echnaton192 · · Score: 2

    Short and simplified answer: Taking paparazzi photos in private situations and publishing them is already illegal in Germany.

    Bad for the yellow press, but no big deal for the freedom of press (other laws and decisions are another matter entirely). The decision was made in compliance with basic rights that also apply to celebrities.

  79. Re: Thats a ruling to keep the lawyers happy... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You'd all be speaking German right now, weren't for my Gran pappy. But it's beautiful culture!!

  80. Re: Thats a ruling to keep the lawyers happy... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Hey. I am in oregon. That would be Japanese.

  81. What if he's in the picture too? by almechist · · Score: 1

    So, if I read all this correctly, this would apply even if the photo was of the (then) happy couple, taken remotely. But why should HER right to privacy automatically trump HIS right to own a memento of the relationship? In the absence of any actual attempt by a guy to use a twosome pic in an underhanded way, it doesn't quite seem fair to force him to destroy such a photograph (or whatever).

  82. Re:I despise the so-called inclusive terms by uninformedLuddite · · Score: 1

    Why am I mercilessly mocked just for who I am?

    --
    The new right fascists are bilingual. They speak English and Bullshit.
  83. Nanny state at its worst by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    because the consent was given in the context of a relationship which since has ended

    To state this more completely, the consent was given in the context of a relationship which, any reasonable adult knows a priori, has a significant probability of ending at some time in the future.

    With this ruling, a government has absolved all of its citizens from the need to think about the consequences of decisions, such as giving consent to a potentially embarrassing activity.

    The woman had originally agreed to the images but this consent stopped when the relationship ended, the court said.

    At the time, she gave unconditional consent, not the conditional consent indicated by the words that the court later put in her mouth. It's a horrible precedent that a court can retroactively change the terms of an agreement, to the benefit of party B and the detriment of party A.

  84. Nanny state at its worst by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    it's obvious that permission was given based on having a relationship to the photographer, and once that relationship is gone, the permission is gone.

    Here's what is obvious: she gave permission based on a relationship that, any reasonable adult knows, has a significant probability of ending in the future.

    With this ruling, a government has absolved all of its citizens from the need to think about the consequences of decisions, such as giving consent to a potentially embarrassing activity.

    The woman had originally agreed to the images but this consent stopped when the relationship ended, the court said.

    At the time, she gave unconditional consent, not the conditional consent indicated by the words that the court later put in her mouth. It's a horrible precedent that a court can retroactively change the terms of an agreement, to the benefit of party B and the detriment of party A.

  85. Well, of course! by jargonburn · · Score: 1

    *Naked* images would just be disrespectful in this case. At least get them sleeved or framed! Geez!

  86. Re: Thats a ruling to keep the lawyers happy... by Plumpaquatsch · · Score: 1

    Well, the German legal system isn't exactly German really. They had some help writing it and were kind of forced into it because they'd shown that they couldn't be trusted to do so on their own. It's hardly fair to say that it's not based on the US/British legal systems when it has some similarities and was, shall we say, "heavily influenced" by those other countries.

    "German law is mainly based on early Byzantine law, specifically Justinian's Code, and to a much lesser extent the Napoleonic Code." - English or even American Law, not so much.

    --
    Of course news about a fake are Fake News.
  87. Re:Thats a ruling to keep the lawyers happy... by Plumpaquatsch · · Score: 1

    Next up, a pornstar decides she changed her mind and all those pictures must be destroyed...

    As opposed to the state deciding she was too young?

    --
    Of course news about a fake are Fake News.
  88. Re: Thats a ruling to keep the lawyers happy... by KGIII · · Score: 1

    I didn't say that it was based on 'em. I said "heavily influenced." If you go through your history books and read about what happened in the five or so years after the end of WWII then you'll see what I'm referring to. The Allied Forces spent a lot of money, time, and effort rebuilding and teaching them to think for themselves. They heavily influenced the whole process of turning them into a democracy, including specifics with the laws. The Allies weren't just going to let them keep the same regulations. They simply couldn't be trusted to do so.

    --
    "So long and thanks for all the fish."