Legal Protection Against the Commercial Use of Personal Photos of Street Runners without Permission by Street Photographers
Abstract
The development of digital technology and social media has increased the practice of documenting public activities, including running events, which are often commercially exploited by street photographers without the subject’s consent. This phenomenon raises legal concerns regarding privacy rights, portrait rights, and personal data protection. This study aims to analyze the legal protection framework and available legal remedies against the unauthorized commercialization of personal photographs. The research applies a normative juridical method through literature study of relevant laws and legal doctrines. The findings indicate that legal protection is regulated under Article 28G paragraph (1) of the 1945 Constitution of Indonesia, the Personal Data Protection Law, the Copyright Law, the Electronic Information and Transactions Law, and Article 1365 of the Civil Code. Unauthorized commercialization may result in civil liability and administrative sanctions, enforceable through litigation or non-litigation mechanisms.
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