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The Growing Exposure of Victims in Digital Affective Scams Led the Chamber to Create a New Layer of Protection Focused Especially on the Elderly, Expanding the Response to Frauds That Use Fake Profiles to Gain Financial Advantage
The Commission for the Defense of the Rights of the Elderly of the Chamber of Deputies approved a proposal that amends the Penal Code to address emotional fraud committed by electronic means.
The text defines emotional fraud as a crime when the agent simulates an affective bond to obtain an illicit advantage, especially in situations involving elderly individuals.
The behavior is characterized by the use of fake profiles on social networks or dating apps, with direct harm to the victim.
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Elderly Individuals and the Impact of Changes
The penalty for the crime will be imprisonment from three to eight years and a fine. The criminal action will be unconditional public, allowing the Public Prosecutor’s Office to initiate the process even without the victim’s manifestation.
The measure was approved after the committee accepted the report from Deputy Maria do Rosário, who presented a substitute to PL 69/25.
The original version, presented by Socorro Neri and other parliamentarians, suggested a broad and autonomous classification for emotional fraud, with a framing of high offensive potential.
The authors argued that emotional fraud represents an insidious practice, as it manipulates affective bonds with the aim of obtaining financial advantages and causes deep damage to the trust of those who suffer the scam.
Limitations Adopted by the Substitute
The new wording reduces the scope of the proposal by restricting its application to frauds committed electronically.
The focus falls on the use of fake profiles and dating apps on the internet, establishing an objective boundary to differentiate this type of scam from behaviors that, although morally reprehensible, do not reach a level of harm that justifies criminal intervention.
Maria do Rosário stated that the broad classification could lead to the criminalization of behaviors present in personal relationships, creating legal insecurity and encouraging unnecessary litigation in situations that already find resolution in the civil or family fields.
She highlighted that digital fraud provides criminals with anonymity, distance, and an expanded reach, factors that make it difficult to identify the author and prove the practice.
The use of electronic means, according to the rapporteur, enhances the effectiveness of the scam, which requires a specific and different criminal response than that applied to in-person fraud, which can be classified more easily under the general type of fraud.
Consequences When the Victim is an Elderly Individual
The substitute also amends the Statute of the Elderly. When the victim is 60 years old or older, the penalty will be increased by one third.
Maria do Rosário emphasized that elderly individuals face greater vulnerability, may experience loneliness, and have accumulated wealth, factors that make this group a recurring target and more affected by the effects of the crime.
Protection of Women
The proposal also includes electronic emotional fraud in the Maria da Penha Law. The fraud will be recognized as patrimonial and psychological violence in a domestic and family context. This will allow victims to access protective measures provided for in the legislation.
Proceedings
The initiative had already been approved with a substitute by the Commission for the Defense of Women’s Rights. The text will now move on for analysis by the Commission on Constitution and Justice and Citizenship. After this stage, it will be voted on by the Chamber’s Plenary.
To come into force, it must be approved by deputies and senators, maintaining special attention to the guarantees provided for the elderly.
Source: Agência Câmara de Notícias
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