A 12-year-old girl from Virginia, US, never thought that a simple message she put online could bring her big problems. She posted the words, "Killing. Meet me in the library Tuesday", with three emojis (表情符号) of a gun, a knife and a bomb (炸弹) on Instagram, a social media (社交媒体). She was told that she broke the law because of threatening (威胁) her school.
This problem is not far away from us. Not long ago, Ni Hanxiang, a Chinese student at a university in the US, was sent back to China after expressing on social media that he would kill his teachers if he failed to pass his exams.
In China, posting threatening words online is also against the law. In 2013, Wu Hongfei, a singer, got into trouble for saying on weibo that she wanted to blow up a building.
"Threatening happens not only face to face but also through the Internet, social media and the telephone," said Mr. Cao, a lawyer from Chongqing. "Although the law of China protects people's right of free speech, it doesn't include words that threaten others' lives and national safety."
"Some people may not mean to threaten. They may just be trying to say "I'm strong", said Fred Pratt, a lawyer from the US.
The girl's mother said her daughter was a good kid who had never been in trouble before. Ni Hanxiang also said he didn't realize that what he put online was so serious.
"But not knowing the law doesn't mean the law will treat you any differently if you break it," says David Allen Green, a lawyer from the UK. So, do you think we'd better spend a minute or two thinking about the words or emojis we use on social media before we press "send"?
