Policy

AZ May Ban Posing As Others in Social Media

Solving a problem that's not really a problem

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It could become a crime punishable by prison time in Arizona to create a Facebook or Twitter account in someone else's name if it's done without permission and for malicious reasons.

Republican State Rep. Michelle Ugenti is proposing legislation to make online impersonation a crime. House Bill 2004, if it becomes law, would make it a felony to use another person's name without permission to create a Web page intended to "harm, defraud, intimidate or threaten." It would be a misdemeanor to send an email or text message that appears to come from another person and is intended to harm or defraud.