The basic type of the crime of discovery and disclosure of secrets, provided for in article 197.1 of the Penal Code, contemplates two criminal modalities:

• On the one hand, the seizure of documents or personal belongings (such as letters or emails) for the purpose of uncovering other people’s secrets or violating another person’s privacy, without their consent.

• On the other hand, the interception of telecommunications or the use of technical devices for listening, transmitting or recording images or sounds , carried out with the aim of discovering the secrets of others or violating the privacy of another person, without their consent.

What do we mean by secrets? They are data or information related to a specific object or person that is known to a limited number of people and that it is not advisable for other people to know.

These offenses are punishable by prison sentences of 1 to 4 years and a fine of 12 to 24 months.

Any person who, without authorization, seizes, uses, or modifies confidential data belonging to others that is recorded in any type of file or registry is punishable, provided that this is done to the detriment of a third party.

In this case, the penalty is imprisonment of 1 to 4 years and a fine of 12 to 24 months.

In the two previous types of crimes, the Penal Code provides for greater penalties in the following cases:

• If the captured data, secrets, or images are disseminated or transferred to third parties, the penalty is two to five years in prison.

• If the perpetrator is the person in charge of or responsible for the files, archives, or records where the data is stored, or if the acts are carried out using the victim’s personal data without their consent, the penalty is 3 to 5 years in prison.

• The penalties are imposed in their upper half if the acts affect personal data related to ideology, religion, beliefs, health, racial origin, or sexual life, or if the victim is a minor or a person with a disability.

This crime, regulated in Article 197.7 of the Penal Code, was introduced in 2015 due to the increasing voluntary sending of sexually explicit images through messaging systems or social networks.

It punishes, with a prison sentence of 3 months to 1 year or a fine of 6 to 12 months , the dissemination, disclosure or transfer to third parties of images or videos without the authorization of the affected person, provided that this undermines the personal privacy of the victim.

Furthermore, any person who, after receiving the images or videos, disseminates, reveals, or transfers them to third parties without the victim’s consent is punishable. For example, anyone who receives an image with sexual content from a third party and forwards it to others through a WhatsApp group commits this crime. These offenses are punishable by a fine of one to three months.

In both cases, the penalties are imposed in their upper half if the perpetrator is the victim’s spouse or partner, if the victim is a minor or disabled person, or if the crime is committed for profit.

Article 197 bis of the Criminal Code punishes any person who, in violation of the established security measures, accesses or facilitates access to a computer system by another person, or remains within it against the will of its owner and without authorization. These acts are punishable by imprisonment of six months to two years.

Furthermore, Article 197 ter penalizes the production, acquisition, or use of computer programs intended to commit crimes of discovery and disclosure of secrets, or those who provide passwords or access codes to computer systems with the aim of facilitating the commission of a crime against privacy. In this case, the penalty is 6 months to 2 years in prison or a fine of 3 to 18 months.

Article 199 of the Criminal Code penalizes the disclosure of secrets of others learned in the course of a profession or employment relationship. The penalty is imprisonment of 1 to 3 years and a fine of 6 to 12 months.

However, if the professional who divulges another’s secret has a duty of secrecy or confidentiality, as is the case, for example, with lawyers or healthcare professionals, the penalty is imprisonment of 1 to 4 years, a fine of 12 to 24 months, and special disqualification from that profession for a period of 2 to 6 years.

Joaquín Sugrañes is a lawyer specializing in crimes involving discovery and disclosure of secrets . Given his extensive professional experience and training in this field, he will inform you of all the necessary steps for the best criminal defense in these types of proceedings.

As a law firm specializing in criminal law , we recommend that if you encounter a problem related to any of the situations described, you do not hesitate to seek legal advice. To do so, you can call us and discuss your case with us.

As attorneys specializing in privacy crimes , we can answer this question affirmatively. The Criminal Code itself clarifies, in Article 200, that the aforementioned crimes also apply to individuals who discover, reveal, or transfer confidential data of legal entities without the consent of their representatives.

As discovery and disclosure lawyers in Barcelona , we can affirm that, as a general rule, the answer is yes; a complaint is required from the injured party or their legal representative.

However, there are some exceptions, cases in which a complaint is not required:

• If the perpetrator of the crime is an authority or public official.
• If the crime affects several people or general interests.
• When the victim is a minor or a person with a disability.

We are a criminal law firm specializing in crimes involving the discovery and disclosure of secrets . This allows us to affirm that the answer to this question varies depending on whether the person recording the conversation actually participated in it. The courts consider that the recording of a conversation by one of the interlocutors, without the consent of the others, even clandestinely, does not violate any fundamental right and, therefore, does not constitute a crime.

However, the most controversial issue is whether the subsequent disclosure of this conversation to third parties or the publication of the recording could constitute a crime, as it violates the right to privacy.