Filming of people without permission unlawful in UAE

DUBAI: If one films or takes pictures of another person without permission in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), one may end up paying a penalty between $40,500 and $136,000 and also face a jail term of one year.

A video of a man who was crying at Dubai government department Roads and Transport Authority’s (RTA) customer care centre had recently gone viral. The person who filmed the footage and uploaded it has been arrested by the Dubai police. Dubai Police confirmed on Saturday that it had arrested the man responsible for filming the clip and posting it on social media. “The Dubai Police General HQ hereby urges members of the public to refrain from similar actions as filming or taking pictures of others without their permission or defaming others online is punishable by UAE’s laws and regulations,” it said in its Instagram post.

The police force went on to warn that the country’s cybercrime law prohibits the invasion of a person’s privacy by taking pictures of others or displaying those pictures.

“Moreover, the law states that those caught using technology to invade someone else’s privacy can be jailed for not less than one year and face fines of between Dh150,000 ($40,839) and Dh500,000 ($136,129),” it added.