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> with the implied threat of criminal prosecution without the actual threat. I wonder how much difference this really makes. A stronly implied threat might be

> with the implied threat of criminal prosecution without the actual threat. I wonder how much difference this really makes. A stronly implied threat might be just as much a threat as an actal threat. Law isn't maths, after all.

BoysenberryPi 9y ago
This would be up to the discretion of the judge however the way you word it matters. Legally there is a difference between a threat and an implied threat. Saying "pay us or we report you" is extortion. Saying "pay us and we may in good faith drop this matter" is now vague enough to not be interpreted as extortion.
- bb88 9y ago
  Hey, the cool part about this is, we can try it out in different scenarios. "Hello, this is LargeISPCo calling to ask you to pay your latest bill. Oh, in an entirely unrelated matter, we found this picture of your son, and we have a link to a discussion board for NAMBLA." See, perfectly fine. There's no _actual_ threat here.
downandout 9y ago
They can go pretty far with it. I've seen attorneys actually say "if you don't pay us, we will file a lawsuit detailing all of your illegal actions, and that will be a matter of public record that may open you up to other kinds of actions by various agencies". In that instance, the person being threatened filed a police report for extortion against the attorney involved, and...it went nowhere. So they can get their point across and the law seems to be OK with it.
- bb88 9y ago
  This might be just a case where the law hasn't caught up with what the lawyers are doing. Extortion is "Pay me ${X} or I do ${Y}". "Pay me $10,000 or I release these naughty images of you on the internet." is extortion. "Pay me $1,000, or I will foreclose on your property" is not, because likely you signed a contract agreeing to such a scenario. Now "Pay me $500, or I'll file a police report..." is extortion (at least according to here: https://criminal-law.freeadvice.com/criminal-law/violent_crimes/extortion.htm https://criminal-law.freeadvice.com/criminal-law/violent_cri... ) Even though you may have broken the law, the extortion of money to prevent the police report is still illegal.

BoysenberryPi 9y ago

This would be up to the discretion of the judge however the way you word it matters. Legally there is a difference between a threat and an implied threat. Saying "pay us or we report you" is extortion. Saying "pay us and we may in good faith drop this matter" is now vague enough to not be interpreted as extortion.

bb88 9y ago
Hey, the cool part about this is, we can try it out in different scenarios. "Hello, this is LargeISPCo calling to ask you to pay your latest bill. Oh, in an entirely unrelated matter, we found this picture of your son, and we have a link to a discussion board for NAMBLA." See, perfectly fine. There's no _actual_ threat here.

downandout 9y ago

They can go pretty far with it. I've seen attorneys actually say "if you don't pay us, we will file a lawsuit detailing all of your illegal actions, and that will be a matter of public record that may open you up to other kinds of actions by various agencies". In that instance, the person being threatened filed a police report for extortion against the attorney involved, and...it went nowhere. So they can get their point across and the law seems to be OK with it.

bb88 9y ago
This might be just a case where the law hasn't caught up with what the lawyers are doing. Extortion is "Pay me ${X} or I do ${Y}". "Pay me $10,000 or I release these naughty images of you on the internet." is extortion. "Pay me $1,000, or I will foreclose on your property" is not, because likely you signed a contract agreeing to such a scenario. Now "Pay me $500, or I'll file a police report..." is extortion (at least according to here: https://criminal-law.freeadvice.com/criminal-law/violent_crimes/extortion.htm https://criminal-law.freeadvice.com/criminal-law/violent_cri... ) Even though you may have broken the law, the extortion of money to prevent the police report is still illegal.