Siya’s wife could be in hot water
Springbok rugby captain Siya Kolisi’ s wife, Rachel, could face severe consequences should the woman whose details she shared on social media decide to take legal action.
Rachel posted images of a semi-naked woman on her Instagram stories‚ accusing her of sliding into her husband’s direct messages.
“Just wondering why her a** is doing in my husband’s messages,” Rachel said.
Although she later deactivated her account, social media experts have warned that she could still face consequences.
Social media law expert Verlie Oosthuizen said Rachel might have violated terms of the Regulation of Interception of Communications and Provision of Communication Related Information if she had obtained the woman’s image without her consent.
“It is clear that the woman did not send the image to Rachel and rather sent it directly to Siya.
“Therefore, Mrs Kolisi was not party to the communication and may have intercepted it‚” Oosthuizen said.
By posting the image without the woman’s consent‚ Rachel had infringed on the privacy of the woman‚ which could have serious civil and criminal common law implications, Oosthuizen said.
“The woman could have grounds to approach the police or the courts and Rachel would then possibly face criminal charges or civil claims.
“It is never a good idea to deal with personal issues on social media‚ no matter how effective it can be in venting frustrations.”
Rachel could also be charged with criminal infringement of dignity and possibly defamation.
In the Instagram post‚ Rachel also claimed that the woman worked at a specific gym in Cape Town.
Oosthuizen said revealing a person’s private or identifying information on the internet was an infringement of privacy.
The woman said that she had been receiving messages calling her a slut after Rachel shared her details.