Spouse Email: Is it a crime to read?

[restart67]

I getting divorced and in the process of gathering information about adultery, I have been reading over some of her e-mails. I have recently discovered that she has been Googling about computer crime. Here's the deal. I made the account for her and one for her daughter. I made the passwords and used my email as the recovery. All the passwords are known between us and she has full knowledge that I have looked into her email in the past to write and forward messages. She's also aware that I have the password to her Facebook account as I made that as well.

 

If there was no attempt to hack the password and I freely had access to her accounts, does she have any grounds to file a charge? Mind you, we are not in Thailand.

 

Thanks in advance.

[superglue]

The golden rule is applicable.

[restart67]

1 minute ago, superglue said:

The golden rule is applicable.

Well, the golden rule isn't making any sense at the moment.

[superglue]

Make a decision you can sleep with.

[restart67]

23 minutes ago, superglue said:

Make a decision you can sleep with.

What does that have to do with my question? 

[superglue]

This is not a legal question.

It is a value judgment on your part.

[OneMoreFarang]

If you opened her account before, i.e. to forward mails, then she should know that you have access to her account. You didn't hack it to get the information. I guess that should be good enough - but I am no lawyer.

And if you are not in Thailand then obviously the question is where are you and which country's law is applicable?

[animalmagic]

Read the law in the country you are residing, it should all be available online and easy to find.  Most sensible and sane jurisdictions will look at access to a computer with criminal or dishonest intent.  Proof of the intent is necessary to charge with the offence.  The wording of the offence is key.

The forensic trail on your creation of accounts should be there on the computer and would show, to most impartial observers and investigators, that you had permission, whether express or implied, to access the accounts.  The fact that you accessed it regularly to assist in forwarding messages etc, and use of your personal email account as the backup would tend to reinforce this view.

From a purely speculative perspective it is possible the computer crime possibility is being researched in order to find ammunition or leverage in a divorce case.  This may be from advice from 'friends' who do not understand the law as stated in the country where you reside.

 

 

[dotpoom]

It's a very interesting question and it would have been nice to have received a straight answer.

   I'm intrigued as to know what this supposed "golden rule" is?

[AJBangkok]

There are 2 issues here if you intend to use whatever is in the emails to support your divorce.

 

UK case law I've seen says the fact that the information/evidence/ emails exist takes precedent over how it was obtained. In a normal situation she would have to provide any emails in disclosure so the court would expect to see them anyway.

 

The second point may or may not be a simple breach of privacy and a divorce court wouldn't care about it for the reason above so she would have to file a separate civil suit.  As you had the passwords it was common to share passwords and more importantly from time to time translated or answered emails for her, she would have a very hard time winning that.

[newatthis]

2 hours ago, dotpoom said:

It's a very interesting question and it would have been nice to have received a straight answer.

   I'm intrigued as to know what this supposed "golden rule" is?

The OP asked for legal advice.

I think Superglue was giving a moral opinion.......don't do to others what would be hurtful to you.

I may be legally entitled to look at emails/Facebook etc, but why would I invade other people's privacy if I wouldn't like them to do that to me.

 

[restart67]

6 minutes ago, newatthis said:

The OP asked for legal advice.

I think Superglue was giving a moral opinion.......don't do to others what would be hurtful to you.

I may be legally entitled to look at emails/Facebook etc, but why would I invade other people's privacy if I wouldn't like them to do that to me.

 

My accounts are open to her. She knows my passwords for all my Emails, Facebook, and other social accounts. When adultery plays a factor, trying to make sense of it is difficult.

[OneMoreFarang]

30 minutes ago, restart67 said:

My accounts are open to her. She knows my passwords for all my Emails, Facebook, and other social accounts. When adultery plays a factor, trying to make sense of it is difficult.

So your are getting divorced and you still keep the same passwords knowing that she has full access to everything? That does not sound very smart to me. I guess she could easily write or post something in your name which might cost you a lot of money or other trouble. Are you willing to risk that?

[restart67]

17 minutes ago, OneMoreFarang said:

So your are getting divorced and you still keep the same passwords knowing that she has full access to everything? That does not sound very smart to me. I guess she could easily write or post something in your name which might cost you a lot of money or other trouble. Are you willing to risk that?

I should have clarified. They were open to her. I have since changed mine but she hasn't. I am certain she has new accounts which I will not attempt to access. That would definitely be illegal.

[Tony125]

4 hours ago, dotpoom said:

It's a very interesting question and it would have been nice to have received a straight answer.

   I'm intrigued as to know what this supposed "golden rule" is?

Very easy to understand if you have ever read a Christian bible  " Do unto others as you would have them do unto you"

[OneMoreFarang]

52 minutes ago, Tony125 said:

Very easy to understand if you have ever read a Christian bible  " Do unto others as you would have them do unto you"

As far as I remember there is also something in that book about not f&%ing around...

[MyFriend You]

6 hours ago, dotpoom said:

It's a very interesting question and it would have been nice to have received a straight answer.

   I'm intrigued as to know what this supposed "golden rule" is?

"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you"??  Doesn't seem to fit this situation  

[Si Thea01]

It would help if one knew what country you were in, in order for someone to provide advise.  In, NSW, Australia, as long as you have access to her account, and it was agreed upon, you have not committed any offense, providing you are not using the content for illegal purposes.

 

Also, her consent, perceived or otherwise, which you will have to prove, will negate any breach of privacy.  The object of the exercise is to discredit her testimony and prove that any allegations against you are false, and that she, is in fact, the one who has caused the marriage breakdown.  Unfortunately, in most cases in NSW, it is the woman who they take to be the aggrieved,  not the man.

 

Under the family law court jurisdiction, your lawyer can gain access to the emails if they are substantive in content, are relevant and will assist in proving you case.  However, if you are somewhere else, then as someone suggested, Google that country's laws and then get yourself a bloody good lawyer.

 

Will cost you but at least it will give you peace of mind knowing where you stand, especially if children and financials are involved.  There, if a divorce is granted, the proceeds are normally 60/40, the higher to the woman and they normally gain  custody of the children. 

[Autonuaq]

Email and social media are seen as private conversation

 

Have the password not automatically implies permission to access.

 

When situation changes the premission has to be made clear.

 

You speak about adultery.are you aware of the special sections under thai law and the final protection there is for the partner who not did the adultery.

For this all evidence you can get is needed. As well the details as much as one can have and get.

 

in this case all emails are welcome too.

 

Do not forget the email headers too.

Use a free program like mailstore home version to backup all email so you have the completed set.

 

Access to email, smart phone electronic messages and all that is for n user id that you not have as your id. That belongs to others and their privacy

[restart67]

5 hours ago, Si Thea01 said:

It would help if one knew what country you were in, in order for someone to provide advise.  In, NSW, Australia, as long as you have access to her account, and it was agreed upon, you have not committed any offense, providing you are not using the content for illegal purposes.

 

Also, her consent, perceived or otherwise, which you will have to prove, will negate any breach of privacy.  The object of the exercise is to discredit her testimony and prove that any allegations against you are false, and that she, is in fact, the one who has caused the marriage breakdown.  Unfortunately, in most cases in NSW, it is the woman who they take to be the aggrieved,  not the man.

 

Under the family law court jurisdiction, your lawyer can gain access to the emails if they are substantive in content, are relevant and will assist in proving you case.  However, if you are somewhere else, then as someone suggested, Google that country's laws and then get yourself a bloody good lawyer.

 

Will cost you but at least it will give you peace of mind knowing where you stand, especially if children and financials are involved.  There, if a divorce is granted, the proceeds are normally 60/40, the higher to the woman and they normally gain  custody of the children. 

Canada

[cyberfarang]

12 hours ago, restart67 said:

I should have clarified. They were open to her. I have since changed mine but she hasn't. I am certain she has new accounts which I will not attempt to access. That would definitely be illegal.

Then you have answered your own questions. As a married couple you both openly shared your social media and email accounts details by consent. My guess is if she hasn`t denied you access to those accounts and there is nothing extraordinary going on in her accounts then it`s as you say she has opened new accounts that she prefers you not to see.

 

It is illegal to hack into someone`s private email and social media accounts but judging by what you`ve already explained you have not broken any laws. Also it is not illegal to copy any material from a facebook profile that you discover online that is openly displayed and you haven`t hacked into.

 

So there you are. Go and have a cold beer and forget all about it. Ps: sorry this has happened to you.

 

 

[Si Thea01]

6 hours ago, restart67 said:

Canada

I know that Canada and Australia are very much alike in many things, other than the freezing cold (55) as they are still, in some way, attached to mother England.  However, I have no idea as to the laws, sorry.  I would suggest for you to do your own research but given the similarities and that both our countries derived and enacted a lot of the laws based upon the English Common Law, then they could have more similarities than I am aware of.

 

Just check yourself and look for a good lawyer, if divorce is your intention. If you have no illegal intent, your wife knows you have access and has not withdrawn it or prohibited you from that access, than, IMO, you are OK but please check just to safeguard yourself, as not all situations are the same and different aspects may apply.

 

[MaeJoMTB]

The western world doesn't care about her adultery, it's called 'no fault divorce'.

Your reading her emails will be considered 'unreasonable behaviour' and are grounds for divorce in themselves.

 

If you have children under 16 years old, she'll get the house and 100% custody ...... nothing you can do.

[MaeJoMTB]

16 hours ago, TunnelRat69 said:

"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you"??  Doesn't seem to fit this situation  

 

The golden rule ...... If it floats, it flys or it f$#@s, cheaper to rent!

[Si Thea01]

30 minutes ago, MaeJoMTB said:

The western world doesn't care about her adultery, it's called 'no fault divorce'.

Your reading her emails will be considered 'unreasonable behaviour' and are grounds for divorce in themselves.

 

If you have children under 16 years old, she'll get the house and 100% custody ...... nothing you can do.

 

Not quite correct.  In Canada, apparently, there are two avenues. The first, as you stated, "No Fault", the second is "For Fault" where adultery and/or cruelty form the grounds.  Rather than going into the lot, I will attach the link to the Canadian laws, and I strongly suggest that the OP take time out and read it, then if he wants to do what he wants to do, there is even a spot when he can click onto in order to hire a lawyer.

 

Evidently, for No fault divorce, a 1 year separation is required and the cost, apparently is a lost less  than the cost of For Fault, so it would be practical and less of a financial strain to take the former, forget the latter, as it, in the end, it will have no bearing on what the court decides insofar as custody or property settlement. 

 

https://divorce-canada.ca/legal-grounds-for-divorce-in-canada

 

[Sumarianson]

When you read anything of value to you. Send it to your own e mail. She has no case.

[restart67]

Actually, my intentions go beyond the borders here. I am discovering a lot things that if fact, could be grounds for annulment. I am working with my Thai lawyer presently and he has indicated that I have grounds for divorce due to adultery.