THIRD DIVISION

G.R. No. 202666, September 29, 2014

RHONDA AVE S. VIVARES AND SPS. MARGARITA AND DAVID SUZARA, Petitioners, v. ST.
THERESAS COLLEGE, MYLENE RHEZA T. ESCUDERO, AND JOHN DOES, Respondents.
DECISION
VELASCO JR., J.:
The individuals desire for privacy is never absolute, since participation in society is an equally
powerful desire. Thus each individual is continually engaged in a personal adjustment process in
which he balances the desire for privacy with the desire for disclosure and communication of
himself to others, in light of the environmental conditions and social norms set by the society in
which he lives.
~ Alan Westin, Privacy and Freedom (1967)
The Case
Before Us is a Petition for Review on Certiorari under Rule 45 of the Rules of Court, in relation to
Section 19 of A.M. No. 08-1-16-SC,1 otherwise known as the Rule on the Writ of Habeas Data.
Petitioners herein assail the July 27, 2012 Decision 2 of the Regional Trial Court, Branch 14 in Cebu
City (RTC) in SP. Proc. No. 19251-CEB, which dismissed their habeas data petition.
The Facts
Nenita Julia V. Daluz (Julia) and Julienne Vida Suzara (Julienne), both minors, were, during the
period material, graduating high school students at St. Theresas College (STC), Cebu City.
Sometime in January 2012, while changing into their swimsuits for a beach party they were
about to attend, Julia and Julienne, along with several others, took digital pictures of themselves
clad only in their undergarments. These pictures were then uploaded by Angela Lindsay Tan
(Angela) on her Facebook3 profile.
Back at the school, Mylene Rheza T. Escudero (Escudero), a computer teacher at STCs high
school department, learned from her students that some seniors at STC posted pictures online,
depicting themselves from the waist up, dressed only in brassieres. Escudero then asked her
students if they knew who the girls in the photos are. In turn, they readily identified Julia,
Julienne, and Chloe Lourdes Taboada (Chloe), among others.
Using STCs computers, Escuderos students logged in to their respective personal Facebook
accounts and showed her photos of the identified students, which include: (a) Julia and Julienne
drinking hard liquor and smoking cigarettes inside a bar; and (b) Julia and Julienne along the
streets of Cebu wearing articles of clothing that show virtually the entirety of their black
brassieres. What is more, Escuderos students claimed that there were times when access to or
the availability of the identified students photos was not confined to the girls Facebook
friends,4 but were, in fact, viewable by any Facebook user. 5
Upon discovery, Escudero reported the matter and, through one of her students Facebook page,
showed the photos to Kristine Rose Tigol (Tigol), STCs Discipline-in-Charge, for appropriate
action. Thereafter, following an investigation, STC found the identified students to have deported
themselves in a manner proscribed by the schools Student Handbook, to wit:

1. Possession of alcoholic drinks outside the school campus;

2. Engaging in immoral, indecent, obscene or lewd acts;
3. Smoking and drinking alcoholic beverages in public places;
4. Apparel that exposes the underwear;
5. Clothing that advocates unhealthy behaviour; depicts obscenity; contains sexually
suggestive messages, language or symbols; and
6. Posing and uploading pictures on the Internet that entail ample body exposure.
On March 1, 2012, Julia, Julienne, Angela, and the other students in the pictures in question,
reported, as required, to the office of Sr. Celeste Ma. Purisima Pe (Sr. Purisima), STCs high school
principal and ICM6 Directress. They claimed that during the meeting, they were castigated and
verbally abused by the STC officials present in the conference, including Assistant Principal
Mussolini S. Yap (Yap), Roswinda Jumiller, and Tigol. What is more, Sr. Purisima informed their
parents the following day that, as part of their penalty, they are barred from joining the
commencement exercises scheduled on March 30, 2012.
A week before graduation, or on March 23, 2012, Angelas mother, Dr. Armenia M. Tan (Tan), filed
a Petition for Injunction and Damages before the RTC of Cebu City against STC, et al., docketed
as Civil Case No. CEB-38594.7 In it, Tan prayed that defendants therein be enjoined from
implementing the sanction that precluded Angela from joining the commencement exercises. On
March 25, 2012, petitioner Rhonda Ave Vivares (Vivares), the mother of Julia, joined the fray as
an intervenor.
On March 28, 2012, defendants in Civil Case No. CEB-38594 filed their memorandum, containing
printed copies of the photographs in issue as annexes. That same day, the RTC issued a
temporary restraining order (TRO) allowing the students to attend the graduation ceremony, to
which STC filed a motion for reconsideration.
Despite the issuance of the TRO, STC, nevertheless, barred the sanctioned students from
participating in the graduation rites, arguing that, on the date of the commencement exercises,
its adverted motion for reconsideration on the issuance of the TRO remained unresolved.
Thereafter, petitioners filed before the RTC a Petition for the Issuance of a Writ of Habeas Data,
docketed as SP. Proc. No. 19251-CEB8 on the basis of the following considerations:
1. The photos of their children in their undergarments (e.g., bra) were taken for posterity
before they changed into their swimsuits on the occasion of a birthday beach party;
2. The privacy setting of their childrens Facebook accounts was set at Friends Only. They,
thus, have a reasonable expectation of privacy which must be respected.
3. Respondents, being involved in the field of education, knew or ought to have known of
laws that safeguard the right to privacy. Corollarily, respondents knew or ought to have
known that the girls, whose privacy has been invaded, are the victims in this case, and not
the offenders. Worse, after viewing the photos, the minors were called immoral and were
punished outright;
4. The photos accessed belong to the girls and, thus, cannot be used and reproduced without
their consent. Escudero, however, violated their rights by saving digital copies of the

photos and by subsequently showing them to STCs officials. Thus, the Facebook accounts
of petitioners children were intruded upon;
5. The intrusion into the Facebook accounts, as well as the copying of information, data, and
digital images happened at STCs Computer Laboratory; and
6. All the data and digital images that were extracted were boldly broadcasted by
respondents through their memorandum submitted to the RTC in connection with Civil
Case No. CEB-38594.
To petitioners, the interplay of the foregoing constitutes an invasion of their childrens privacy
and, thus, prayed that: (a) a writ of habeas data be issued; (b) respondents be ordered to
surrender and deposit with the court all soft and printed copies of the subject data before or at
the preliminary hearing; and (c) after trial, judgment be rendered declaring all information, data,
and digital images accessed, saved or stored, reproduced, spread and used, to have been
illegally obtained in violation of the childrens right to privacy.
Finding the petition sufficient in form and substance, the RTC, through an Order dated July 5,
2012, issued the writ of habeas data. Through the same Order, herein respondents were directed
to file their verified written return, together with the supporting affidavits, within five (5) working
days from service of the writ.
In time, respondents complied with the RTCs directive and filed their verified written return,
laying down the following grounds for the denial of the petition, viz: (a) petitioners are not the
proper parties to file the petition; (b) petitioners are engaging in forum shopping; (c) the instant
case is not one where a writ of habeas data may issue; and (d) there can be no violation of their
right to privacy as there is no reasonable expectation of privacy on Facebook.
Ruling of the Regional Trial Court
On July 27, 2012, the RTC rendered a Decision dismissing the petition for habeas data. The
dispositive portion of the Decision pertinently states:
To the trial court, petitioners failed to prove the existence of an actual or threatened violation of
the minors right to privacy, one of the preconditions for the issuance of the writ of habeas data.
Moreover, the court a quo held that the photos, having been uploaded on Facebook without
restrictions as to who may view them, lost their privacy in some way. Besides, the RTC noted, STC
gathered the photographs through legal means and for a legal purpose, that is, the
implementation of the schools policies and rules on discipline.
Not satisfied with the outcome, petitioners now come before this Court pursuant to Section 19 of
the Rule on Habeas Data.10cralawlawlibrary
The Issues
The main issue to be threshed out in this case is whether or not a writ of habeas data should be
issued given the factual milieu. Crucial in resolving the controversy, however, is the pivotal point
of whether or not there was indeed an actual or threatened violation of the right to privacy in the
life, liberty, or security of the minors involved in this case.
Our Ruling
We find no merit in the petition.
Procedural issues concerning the

availability of the Writ of Habeas Data

The writ of habeas data is a remedy available to any person whose right to privacy in life, liberty
or security is violated or threatened by an unlawful act or omission of a public official or
employee, or of a private individual or entity engaged in the gathering, collecting or storing of
data or information regarding the person, family, home and correspondence of the aggrieved
party.11 It is an independent and summary remedy designed to protect the image, privacy, honor,
information, and freedom of information of an individual, and to provide a forum to enforce ones
right to the truth and to informational privacy. It seeks to protect a persons right to control
information regarding oneself, particularly in instances in which such information is being
collected through unlawful means in order to achieve unlawful ends. 12cralawlawlibrary
In developing the writ of habeas data, the Court aimed to protect an individuals right to
informational privacy, among others. A comparative law scholar has, in fact, defined habeas
data as a procedure designed to safeguard individual freedom from abuse in the information
age.13 The writ, however, will not issue on the basis merely of an alleged unauthorized access to
information about a person. Availment of the writ requires the existence of a nexus between the
right to privacy on the one hand, and the right to life, liberty or security on the other. 14 Thus, the
existence of a persons right to informational privacy and a showing, at least by substantial
evidence, of an actual or threatened violation of the right to privacy in life, liberty or security of
the victim are indispensable before the privilege of the writ may be extended. 15cralawlawlibrary
Without an actionable entitlement in the first place to the right to informational privacy,
a habeas data petition will not prosper. Viewed from the perspective of the case at bar, this
requisite begs this question: given the nature of an online social network (OSN)(1) that it
facilitates and promotes real-time interaction among millions, if not billions, of users, sans the
spatial barriers,16 bridging the gap created by physical space; and (2) that any information
uploaded in OSNs leaves an indelible trace in the providers databases, which are outside the
control of the end-usersis there a right to informational privacy in OSN activities of its
users? Before addressing this point, We must first resolve the procedural issues in this case.
The writ of habeas data is not only confined to
cases of extralegal killings and enforced disappearances
Contrary to respondents submission, the Writ of Habeas Data was not enacted solely for the
purpose of complementing the Writ of Amparo in cases of extralegal killings and enforced
disappearances.
Section 2 of the Rule on the Writ of Habeas Data provides:
Sec. 2. Who May File. Any aggrieved party may file a petition for the writ of habeas
data. However, in cases of extralegal killings and enforced disappearances, the petition
may be filed by:
(a)
(b)

Any member of the immediate family of the aggrieved party, namely: the spouse,
children and parents; or
Any ascendant, descendant or collateral relative of the aggrieved party within the
fourth civil degree of consanguinity or affinity, in default of those mentioned in the
preceding paragraph. (emphasis supplied)

Had the framers of the Rule intended to narrow the operation of the writ only to cases of
extralegal killings or enforced disappearances, the above underscored portion of Section 2,
reflecting a variance of habeas data situations, would not have been made.
Habeas data, to stress, was designed to safeguard individual freedom from abuse in the
information age.17 As such, it is erroneous to limit its applicability to extralegal killings and

enforced disappearances only. In fact, the annotations to the Rule prepared by the Committee on
the Revision of the Rules of Court, after explaining that the Writ of Habeas Data complements the
Writ of Amparo, pointed out that:
The writ of habeas data, however, can be availed of as an independent remedy to
enforce ones right to privacy, more specifically the right to informational privacy. The
remedies against the violation of such right can include the updating, rectification, suppression
or destruction of the database or information or files in possession or in control of
respondents.18 (emphasis Ours)
Clearly then, the privilege of the Writ of Habeas Data may also be availed of in cases outside of
extralegal killings and enforced disappearances.
Meaning of engaged in the gathering,
collecting or storing of data or information
Respondents contention that the habeas data writ may not issue against STC, it not being an
entity engaged in the gathering, collecting or storing of data or information regarding the person,
family, home and correspondence of the aggrieved party, while valid to a point, is, nonetheless,
erroneous.
To be sure, nothing in the Rule would suggest that the habeas data protection shall be available
only against abuses of a person or entity engaged in the business of gathering, storing, and
collecting of data. As provided under Section 1 of the Rule:chanRoblesvirtualLawlibrary
Section 1. Habeas Data. The writ of habeas data is a remedy available to any person whose
right to privacy in life, liberty or security is violated or threatened by an unlawful act or omission
of a public official or employee, or of a private individual or entity engaged in the
gathering, collecting or storing of data or information regarding the person, family,
home and correspondence of the aggrieved party. (emphasis Ours)
The provision, when taken in its proper context, as a whole, irresistibly conveys the idea
that habeas data is a protection against unlawful acts or omissions of public officials and of
private individuals or entities engaged in gathering, collecting, or storing data about the
aggrieved party and his or her correspondences, or about his or her family. Such individual or
entity need not be in the business of collecting or storing data.
To engage in something is different from undertaking a business endeavour. To engage
means to do or take part in something.19 It does not necessarily mean that the activity must
be done in pursuit of a business. What matters is that the person or entity must be gathering,
collecting or storing said data or information about the aggrieved party or his or her family.
Whether such undertaking carries the element of regularity, as when one pursues a business,
and is in the nature of a personal endeavour, for any other reason or even for no reason at all, is
immaterial and such will not prevent the writ from getting to said person or entity.
To agree with respondents above argument, would mean unduly limiting the reach of the writ to
a very small group, i.e., private persons and entities whose business is data gathering and
storage, and in the process decreasing the effectiveness of the writ as an instrument designed to
protect a right which is easily violated in view of rapid advancements in the information and
communications technologya right which a great majority of the users of technology
themselves are not capable of protecting.
Having resolved the procedural aspect of the case, We now proceed to the core of the
controversy.

The right to informational privacy on Facebook

The Right to Informational Privacy
The concept of privacy has, through time, greatly evolved, with technological advancements
having an influential part therein. This evolution was briefly recounted in former Chief Justice
Reynato S. Punos speech, The Common Right to Privacy,20 where he explained the three strands
of the right to privacy, viz: (1) locational or situational privacy; 21 (2) informational privacy; and
(3) decisional privacy.22 Of the three, what is relevant to the case at bar is the right to
informational privacyusually defined as the right of individuals to control information
about themselves.23cralawlawlibrary
With the availability of numerous avenues for information gathering and data sharing nowadays,
not to mention each systems inherent vulnerability to attacks and intrusions, there is more
reason that every individuals right to control said flow of information should be protected and
that each individual should have at least a reasonable expectation of privacy in cyberspace.
Several commentators regarding privacy and social networking sites, however, all agree that
given the millions of OSN users, [i]n this [Social Networking] environment, privacy is no longer
grounded in reasonable expectations, but rather in some theoretical protocol better known as
wishful thinking.24cralawlawlibrary
It is due to this notion that the Court saw the pressing need to provide for judicial remedies that
would allow a summary hearing of the unlawful use of data or information and to remedy
possible violations of the right to privacy. 25 In the same vein, the South African High Court, in its
Decision in the landmark case, H v. W,26 promulgated on January 30, 2013, recognized that [t]he
law has to take into account the changing realities not only technologically but also socially or
else it will lose credibility in the eyes of the people. x x x It is imperative that the courts respond
appropriately to changing times, acting cautiously and with wisdom. Consistent with this, the
Court, by developing what may be viewed as the Philippine model of the writ of habeas data, in
effect, recognized that, generally speaking, having an expectation of informational privacy
is not necessarily incompatible with engaging in cyberspace activities, including those
that occur in OSNs.
The question now though is up to what extent is the right to privacy protected in OSNs? Bear in
mind that informational privacy involves personal information. At the same time, the very
purpose of OSNs is socializingsharing a myriad of information, 27 some of which would have
otherwise remained personal.
Facebooks Privacy Tools: a response to the clamor for privacy in OSN activities
Briefly, the purpose of an OSN is precisely to give users the ability to interact and to stay
connected to other members of the same or different social media platform through the sharing
of statuses, photos, videos, among others, depending on the services provided by the site. It is
akin to having a room filled with millions of personal bulletin boards or walls, the contents of
which are under the control of each and every user. In his or her bulletin board, a user/owner can
post anythingfrom text, to pictures, to music and videosaccess to which would depend on
whether he or she allows one, some or all of the other users to see his or her posts. Since gaining
popularity, the OSN phenomenon has paved the way to the creation of various social networking
sites, including the one involved in the case at bar, www.facebook.com (Facebook), which,
according to its developers, people use to stay connected with friends and family, to discover
whats going on in the world, and to share and express what matters to them. 28
Facebook connections are established through the process of friending another user. By
sending a friend request, the user invites another to connect their accounts so that they can
view any and all Public and Friends Only posts of the other. Once the request is accepted, the
link is established and both users are permitted to view the other users Public or Friends
Only posts, among others. Friending, therefore, allows the user to form or maintain one-to-one

relationships with other users, whereby the user gives his or her Facebook friend access to his
or her profile and shares certain information to the latter. 29
To address concerns about privacy, 30 but without defeating its purpose, Facebook was armed with
different privacy tools designed to regulate the accessibility of a users profile 31 as well as
information uploaded by the user. In H v. W,32 the South Gauteng High Court recognized this
ability of the users to customize their privacy settings, but did so with this caveat: Facebook
states in its policies that, although it makes every effort to protect a users information, these
privacy settings are not fool-proof.33
For instance, a Facebook user can regulate the visibility and accessibility of digital
images (photos), posted on his or her personal bulletin or wall, except for the users profile
picture and ID, by selecting his or her desired privacy setting:
(a) Public - the default setting; every Facebook user can view the photo;
(b) Friends of Friends - only the users Facebook friends and their friends can view the photo;
(b) Friends - only the users Facebook friends can view the photo;
(c) Custom - the photo is made visible only to particular friends and/or networks of the Facebook
user; and
(d) Only Me - the digital image can be viewed only by the user.
The foregoing are privacy tools, available to Facebook users, designed to set up barriers to
broaden or limit the visibility of his or her specific profile content, statuses, and photos, among
others, from another users point of view. In other words, Facebook extends its users an avenue
to make the availability of their Facebook activities reflect their choice as to when and to what
extent to disclose facts about [themselves] and to put others in the position of receiving such
confidences.34 Ideally, the selected setting will be based on ones desire to interact with others,
coupled with the opposing need to withhold certain information as well as to regulate the
spreading of his or her personal information. Needless to say, as the privacy setting becomes
more limiting, fewer Facebook users can view that users particular post.
STC did not violate petitioners daughters right to privacy
Without these privacy settings, respondents contention that there is no reasonable expectation
of privacy in Facebook would, in context, be correct. However, such is not the case. It is
through the availability of said privacy tools that many OSN users are said to have a
subjective expectation that only those to whom they grant access to their profile will
view the information they post or upload thereto.35cralawlawlibrary
This, however, does not mean that any Facebook user automatically has a protected expectation
of privacy in all of his or her Facebook activities.
Before one can have an expectation of privacy in his or her OSN activity, it is first necessary
that said user, in this case the children of petitioners, manifest the intention to keep
certain posts private, through the employment of measures to prevent access thereto
or to limit its visibility.36 And this intention can materialize in cyberspace through
the utilization of the OSNs privacy tools. In other words, utilization of these privacy
tools is the manifestation, in cyber world, of the users invocation of his or her right
to informational privacy.37
Therefore, a Facebook user who opts to make use of a privacy tool to grant or deny access to his
or her post or profile detail should not be denied the informational privacy right which
necessarily accompanies said choice.38 Otherwise, using these privacy tools would be a feckless
exercise, such that if, for instance, a user uploads a photo or any personal information to his or
her Facebook page and sets its privacy level at Only Me or a custom list so that only the user or

a chosen few can view it, said photo would still be deemed public by the courts as if the user
never chose to limit the photos visibility and accessibility. Such position, if adopted, will not only
strip these privacy tools of their function but it would also disregard the very intention of the user
to keep said photo or information within the confines of his or her private space.
We must now determine the extent that the images in question were visible to other Facebook
users and whether the disclosure was confidential in nature. In other words, did the minors limit
the disclosure of the photos such that the images were kept within their zones of privacy? This
determination is necessary in resolving the issue of whether the minors carved out a zone of
privacy when the photos were uploaded to Facebook so that the images will be protected against
unauthorized access and disclosure.
Petitioners, in support of their thesis about their childrens privacy right being violated, insist that
Escudero intruded upon their childrens Facebook accounts, downloaded copies of the pictures
and showed said photos to Tigol. To them, this was a breach of the minors privacy since their
Facebook accounts, allegedly, were under very private or Only Friends setting safeguarded
with a password.39 Ultimately, they posit that their childrens disclosure was only limited since
their profiles were not open to public viewing. Therefore, according to them, people who are not
their Facebook friends, including respondents, are barred from accessing said post without their
knowledge and consent. As petitioners children testified, it was Angela who uploaded the
subject photos which were only viewable by the five of them,40 although who these five are do
not appear on the records.
Escudero, on the other hand, stated in her affidavit 41 that my students showed me some
pictures of girls clad in brassieres. This student [sic] of mine informed me that these are senior
high school [students] of STC, who are their friends in [F]acebook. x x x They then said [that]
there are still many other photos posted on the Facebook accounts of these girls. At the
computer lab, these students then logged into their Facebook account [sic], and accessed from
there the various photographs x x x. They even told me that there had been times when these
photos were public i.e., not confined to their friends in Facebook.
In this regard, We cannot give much weight to the minors testimonies for one key reason: failure
to question the students act of showing the photos to Tigol disproves their allegation that the
photos were viewable only by the five of them. Without any evidence to corroborate their
statement that the images were visible only to the five of them, and without their challenging
Escuderos claim that the other students were able to view the photos, their statements are, at
best, self-serving, thus deserving scant consideration. 42
It is well to note that not one of petitioners disputed Escuderos sworn account that her students,
who are the minors Facebook friends, showed her the photos using their own Facebook
accounts. This only goes to show that no special means to be able to view the allegedly private
posts were ever resorted to by Escuderos students, 43 and that it is reasonable to assume,
therefore, that the photos were, in reality, viewable either by (1) their Facebook friends, or (2) by
the public at large.
Considering that the default setting for Facebook posts is Public, it can be surmised that the
photographs in question were viewable to everyone on Facebook, absent any proof that
petitioners children positively limited the disclosure of the photograph. If such were the case,
they cannot invoke the protection attached to the right to informational privacy. The ensuing
pronouncement in US v. Gines-Perez44 is most instructive:
[A] person who places a photograph on the Internet precisely intends to forsake and renounce all
privacy rights to such imagery, particularly under circumstances such as here, where the
Defendant did not employ protective measures or devices that would have controlled access to
the Web page or the photograph itself.45chanrobleslaw

Also, United States v. Maxwell46 held that [t]he more open the method of transmission is, the
less privacy one can reasonably expect. Messages sent to the public at large in the chat room or
e-mail that is forwarded from correspondent to correspondent loses any semblance of privacy.
That the photos are viewable by friends only does not necessarily bolster the petitioners
contention. In this regard, the cyber community is agreed that the digital images under this
setting still remain to be outside the confines of the zones of privacy in view of the following:
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)

Facebook allows the world to be more open and connected by giving its users the tools to
interact and share in any conceivable way; 47
A good number of Facebook users befriend other users who are total strangers; 48
The sheer number of Friends one user has, usually by the hundreds; and
A users Facebook friend can share49 the formers post, or tag50 others who are not
Facebook friends with the former, despite its being visible only to his or her own Facebook
friends.

It is well to emphasize at this point that setting a posts or profile details privacy to Friends is
no assurance that it can no longer be viewed by another user who is not Facebook friends with
the source of the content. The users own Facebook friend can share said content or tag his or
her own Facebook friend thereto, regardless of whether the user tagged by the latter is Facebook
friends or not with the former. Also, when the post is shared or when a person is tagged, the
respective Facebook friends of the person who shared the post or who was tagged can view the
post, the privacy setting of which was set at Friends.
To illustrate, suppose A has 100 Facebook friends and B has 200. A and B are not Facebook
friends. If C, As Facebook friend, tags B in As post, which is set at Friends, the initial audience
of 100 (As own Facebook friends) is dramatically increased to 300 (As 100 friends plus Bs 200
friends or the public, depending upon Bs privacy setting). As a result, the audience who can view
the post is effectively expandedand to a very large extent.
This, along with its other features and uses, is confirmation of Facebooks proclivity towards user
interaction and socialization rather than seclusion or privacy, as it encourages broadcasting of
individual user posts. In fact, it has been said that OSNs have facilitated their users self-tribute,
thereby resulting into the democratization of fame. 51 Thus, it is suggested, that a profile, or
even a post, with visibility set at Friends Only cannot easily, more so automatically, be said to
be very private, contrary to petitioners argument.
As applied, even assuming that the photos in issue are visible only to the sanctioned students
Facebook friends, respondent STC can hardly be taken to task for the perceived privacy invasion
since it was the minors Facebook friends who showed the pictures to Tigol. Respondents were
mere recipients of what were posted. They did not resort to any unlawful means of gathering the
information as it was voluntarily given to them by persons who had legitimate access to the said
posts. Clearly, the fault, if any, lies with the friends of the minors. Curiously enough, however,
neither the minors nor their parents imputed any violation of privacy against the students who
showed the images to Escudero.
Furthermore, petitioners failed to prove their contention that respondents reproduced and
broadcasted the photographs. In fact, what petitioners attributed to respondents as an act of
offensive disclosure was no more than the actuality that respondents appended said photographs
in their memorandum submitted to the trial court in connection with Civil Case No. CEB38594.52 These are not tantamount to a violation of the minors informational privacy rights,
contrary to petitioners assertion.
In sum, there can be no quibbling that the images in question, or to be more precise, the photos
of minor students scantily clad, are personal in nature, likely to affect, if indiscriminately

circulated, the reputation of the minors enrolled in a conservative institution. However, the
records are bereft of any evidence, other than bare assertions that they utilized Facebooks
privacy settings to make the photos visible only to them or to a select few. Without proof that
they placed the photographs subject of this case within the ambit of their protected zone of
privacy, they cannot now insist that they have an expectation of privacy with respect to the
photographs in question.
Had it been proved that the access to the pictures posted were limited to the original uploader,
through the Me Only privacy setting, or that the users contact list has been screened to limit
access to a select few, through the Custom setting, the result may have been different, for in
such instances, the intention to limit access to the particular post, instead of being broadcasted
to the public at large or all the users friends en masse, becomes more manifest and palpable.
On Cyber Responsibility
It has been said that the best filter is the one between your childrens ears.53 This
means that self-regulation on the part of OSN users and internet consumers in general is the best
means of avoiding privacy rights violations. 54 As a cyberspace community member, one has to be
proactive in protecting his or her own privacy. 55 It is in this regard that many OSN users,
especially minors, fail. Responsible social networking or observance of the netiquettes 56 on the
part of teenagers has been the concern of many due to the widespread notion that teenagers
can sometimes go too far since they generally lack the people skills or general wisdom to
conduct themselves sensibly in a public forum. 57cralawlawlibrary
Respondent STC is clearly aware of this and incorporating lessons on good cyber citizenship in its
curriculum to educate its students on proper online conduct may be most timely. Too, it is not
only STC but a number of schools and organizations have already deemed it important to include
digital literacy and good cyber citizenship in their respective programs and curricula in view of
the risks that the children are exposed to every time they participate in online
activities.58 Furthermore, considering the complexity of the cyber world and its pervasiveness, as
well as the dangers that these children are wittingly or unwittingly exposed to in view of their
unsupervised activities in cyberspace, the participation of the parents in disciplining and
educating their children about being a good digital citizen is encouraged by these institutions
and organizations. In fact, it is believed that to limit such risks, theres no substitute for parental
involvement and supervision.
As such, STC cannot be faulted for being steadfast in its duty of teaching its students to be
responsible in their dealings and activities in cyberspace, particularly in OSNs, when it enforced
the disciplinary actions specified in the Student Handbook, absent a showing that, in the process,
it violated the students rights.
OSN users should be aware of the risks that they expose themselves to whenever they engage in
cyberspace activities. Accordingly, they should be cautious enough to control their privacy and to
exercise sound discretion regarding how much information about themselves they are willing to
give up. Internet consumers ought to be aware that, by entering or uploading any kind of data or
information online, they are automatically and inevitably making it permanently available online,
the perpetuation of which is outside the ambit of their control. Furthermore, and more
importantly, information, otherwise private, voluntarily surrendered by them can be opened,
read, or copied by third parties who may or may not be allowed access to such.
It is, thus, incumbent upon internet users to exercise due diligence in their online dealings and
activities and must not be negligent in protecting their rights. Equity serves the vigilant.
Demanding relief from the courts, as here, requires that claimants themselves take utmost care
in safeguarding a right which they allege to have been violated. These are indispensable. We
cannot afford protection to persons if they themselves did nothing to place the matter within the
confines of their private zone. OSN users must be mindful enough to learn the use of privacy

tools, to use them if they desire to keep the information private, and to keep track of changes in
the available privacy settings, such as those of Facebook, especially because Facebook is
notorious for changing these settings and the sites layout often.
In finding that respondent STC and its officials did not violate the minors privacy rights, We find
no cogent reason to disturb the findings and case disposition of the court a quo.
In light of the foregoing, the Court need not belabor the other assigned errors.
WHEREFORE, premises considered, the petition is hereby DENIED. The Decision dated July 27,
2012 of the Regional Trial Court, Branch 14 in Cebu City in SP. Proc. No. 19251-CEB is
hereby AFFIRMED.
Peralta, Villarama, Jr., Reyes, and Jardeleza, JJ., concur.
Is there a right to privacy in online social networking?
Francisco Ed. Lim
November 13, 2014
A social phenomenon nowadays is online social networking (OSN). This is exemplified by
Facebook which, according to one case, has created a worldwide forum enabling friends to
share information such as thoughts, links, and photographs, with one another (H v. W, Case No.
12/10142, Jan. 30, 2013).
To address concerns about privacy, but without defeating their purpose, OSN sites use different
privacy tools. For example, while the default setting of Facebook profiles is public (where the
online information may be viewed by everyone on Facebook), a user can limit access to his or her
information to: Friends of Friends where only the users Facebook friends and their friends can
view the information; Friends where only the users Facebook friends can view the information;
Custom where the information is made visible only to designated individuals, and Only Me
where the information can be viewed only by the user.
When a user limits accessibility of his or her online information or data to friends (or other
similar privacy tools in other OSN sites), does such restriction legally protect the privacy of the
user?
This question was answered by the Supreme Court in Vivares vs. St. Theresas College (G.R. No.
202666, September 29, 2014).
Before answering the question, the high court, citing former Chief Justice Reynato Puno, said that
there are three strands of the right to privacy, viz: locational or situational privacy;
informational privacy, and decisional privacy.
The right to informational privacy refers to the right of individuals to control information about
themselves.
In the Vivares case, several high school students of the St. Theresas College were not allowed to
graduate because they were seen drinking liquor in public places and wearing revealing outfit in
public places in violation of the schools rules. The evidence consisted of photos shown by the
friends of the students to the school authorities.
They claimed that their right to privacy was violated, pointing out that they limited access to
their photos to their Friends.
The Supreme Court ruled against the students, stating that setting a posts or profile details
privacy to Friends is no assurance that it can no longer be viewed by another user who is not
Facebook friends with the source of the content. The users own Facebook friend can share said
content or tag his or her own Facebook friend thereto, regardless of whether the user tagged by
the latter is Facebook friends or not with the former. Also, when the post is shared or when a
person is tagged, the respective Facebook friends of the person who shared the post or who was
tagged can view the post, the privacy setting of which was set at Friends.

The court added: To illustrate, suppose A has 100 Facebook friends and B has 200. A and B are
not Facebook friends. If C, As Facebook friend, tags B in As post, which is set at Friends, the
initial audience of 100 (As own Facebook friends) is dramatically increased to 300 (As 100
friends plus Bs 200 friends or the public, depending upon Bs privacy setting). As a result, the
audience who can view the post is effectively expandedand to a very large extent.
But what if the students limited access to their photos only to themselves (Only Me) or
designated individuals (Custom), would they have been considered as having lost their right to
privacy?
The Vivares case did not answer the question as it was not directly in issue. However, according
to my two Ateneo law student sons who are online fanatics, the Supreme Court made some
pronouncements that should be welcome news to the online community. While the court cited
comments that reasonable expectations to informational privacy as wishful thinking nowadays
given the millions of OSN users the court categorically stated that having an expectation of
informational privacy is not necessarily incompatible with engaging in cyberspace activities,
including those that occur in OSNs. They also point out to me the following statement: with the
availability of numerous avenues for information gathering and data sharing nowadays, not to
mention each systems inherent vulnerability to attacks and intrusions, there is more reason that
every individuals right to control said flow of information should be protected and that each
individual should have at least a reasonable expectation of privacy in cyberspace.
Indeed, according to them, court stated that the utilization of privacy tools is the manifestation,
in cyber world, of the users invocation of his or her right to informational privacy. Otherwise,
using these privacy tools would be a feckless exercise, such that if, for instance, a user uploads
a photo or any personal information to his or her Facebook page and sets its privacy level at
Only Me or a custom list so that only the user or a chosen few can view it, said photo would still
be deemed public by the courts as if the user never chose to limit the photos visibility and
accessibility. Such position, if adopted, will not only strip these privacy tools of their function but
it would also disregard the very intention of the user to keep said photo or information within the
confines of his or her private space.
So there you are. The highest court of the land has given some guidance on what you can do to
safeguard your right to privacy in this online social networking environment.
Ultimately, the choice is yours but, as my two lawyers wannabes point out, be ready to suffer the
consequences of your choice.

Case Summary and Outcome

The right to privacy is not violated when a third party downloads images from an individuals
Facebook page that are accessible by friends of the individual or by the public at large.
Facts
Minors Nenita Julia V. Daluz and Julienne Vida Suzara, along with several others, took pictures of
themselves in their underwear, smoking cigarettes and drinking hard liquor. A third minor,
Angela Tan, uploaded them onto Facebook. A computer teacher at minors school, Mylene Rheza
T. Escuedro, discovered the pictures. The photos were reported to the Discipline in Charge and
the girls were found to have violated the Student Handbook.
The students were sent to the Principals office where they were chastised and verbally abused.
They were also banned from commencement. Angelas mother filed a Petition for Injunction and
Damages asking that the school be denied from prohibiting the girls from attending
commencement. A TRO was granted allowing the girls to attend graduation and the Plaintiffs
filed a writ of habeas data alleging an invasion of their childrens privacy by the Defendant.

The Regional Trial Court dismissed the petition for habeas data because petitioners failed to
prove the existence of an actual or threatened violation of the minors right to privacy.
Decision Overview
The primary issue was whether or not there was indeed an actual or threatened violation of the
right to privacy in the life, liberty, or security of the minors involved in the case. A writ of
habeas data protects an individuals right against invasion of informational privacy, and a nexus
between the right to privacy and the right to life, liberty or security must be proven.
In this case, the core issue was the right to informational privacy, defined as the right of
individuals to control information about themselves. To what extent should the right to privacy
be protected in online social networks whose sole purpose is sharing information over the web?
The petitioners argued that the privacy settings on Facebook limit who can see what information.
This gives users a subjective expectation of privacy. The Court agreed. However, the Court also
ruled that before one can have an expectation of privacy in her Facebook information, he or she
must manifest an intention to keep that information private by utilizing privacy tools. If someone
posts something on Facebook and does not limit who can see that information, there is no
expectation of privacy. The photos in the case at hand were all viewable by the friends of the
girls or by the general public. Therefore, the Court ruled that the Defendants did not violate the
minors privacy rights by viewing and copying the pictures on the minors Facebook pages.