Legal Recourse For Doxxing

Summary

Mary may have potential legal recourse against Mark if his actions are deemed doxxing or defamation. Doxxing involves revealing private information without consent, which can be illegal if it causes harm. Defamation requires proving that the statement was false and damaging to her reputation. However, since Marks comment was based on publicly available information, it might be protected under free speech laws. The outcome would depend on the specific circumstances and applicable state laws. Mary should consider consulting with a legal professional to explore her options and understand the potential implications of pursuing a case against Mark.

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Mary is an escort under the pseudonym "Mistress X", and has a publicly-available website describing her offerings. Mary is also a model and actress and has a publicly-available Instagram page with modeling photos of herself. Mary does not want people to know that she is Mistress X, because it would harm her modeling and acting career if word got out. Mark is a man who was scammed by Mistress X in the past. One day Mark was looking at Instagram and saw Mary's modeling photos. He commented on one of the photos "nice pictures, Mistress X", thus revealing Mary's identity as an escort. Does Mary have any legal recourse to come after Mark for what he did? On the one hand, Mark was clearly motivated by spite and it could be argued that he illegally doxxed Mary, or defamed her. But on the other hand, all Mark did was draw a conclusion from two publicly-available sources (the escort web site and the Instagram page) and adding that comment could be considered free speech.
Mary is an escort under the pseudonym "Mistress X", and has a publicly-available website describing her offerings. Mary is also a model and actress and has a publicly-available Instagram page with modeling photos of herself. Mary does not want people to know that she is Mistress X, because it would harm her modeling and acting career if word got out. Mark is a man who was scammed by Mistress X in the past. One day Mark was looking at Instagram and saw Mary's modeling photos. He commented on one of the photos "nice pictures, Mistress X", thus revealing Mary's identity as an escort. Does Mary have any legal recourse to come after Mark for what he did? On the one hand, Mark was clearly motivated by spite and it could be argued that he illegally doxxed Mary, or defamed her. But on the other hand, all Mark did was draw a conclusion from two publicly-available sources (the escort web site and the Instagram page) and adding that comment could be considered free speech.
Mary is an escort under the pseudonym "Mistress X", and has a publicly-available website describing her offerings. Mary is also a model and actress and has a publicly-available Instagram page with modeling photos of herself. Mary does not want people to know that she is Mistress X, because it would harm her modeling and acting career if word got out. Mark is a man who was scammed by Mistress X in the past. One day Mark was looking at Instagram and saw Mary's modeling photos. He commented on one of the photos "nice pictures, Mistress X", thus revealing Mary's identity as an escort. Does Mary have any legal recourse to come after Mark for what he did? On the one hand, Mark was clearly motivated by spite and it could be argued that he illegally doxxed Mary, or defamed her. But on the other hand, all Mark did was draw a conclusion from two publicly-available sources (the escort web site and the Instagram page) and adding that comment could be considered free speech.