Court Orders Dh40,000 Compensation for WhatsApp Threats Between Colleagues

A Dubai court has ordered an Arab man to pay Dh40,000 in compensation to a colleague after finding him guilty of sending insulting and threatening messages via WhatsApp.

The case arose from a personal dispute between two former friends that escalated into verbal abuse and threats exchanged on the messaging platform. The victim subsequently lodged an official complaint, triggering a criminal investigation.

Dubai’s misdemeanours court convicted the defendant of insult and threat, imposing a Dh5,000 fine. The court also ordered the confiscation of the device used to commit the offence, directed the deletion of the offending messages, and referred the accompanying civil claim to the competent court.

In its civil ruling, the court awarded the complainant Dh40,000 in moral damages, citing the psychological distress and reputational harm caused by abusive conduct on social media. The defendant was further ordered to pay legal interest at 5 per cent from the date the judgment becomes final until full settlement, in addition to court fees and related expenses.

The court stressed that the findings of the criminal conviction were binding in the civil proceedings and could not be challenged again. It held that the defendant’s conduct amounted to a proven fault that caused substantial moral harm, undermining the victim’s dignity, reputation, and social standing.

After assessing the circumstances of the case and the extent of the damage suffered, the court concluded that Dh40,000 represented fair and proportionate compensation for the emotional distress resulting from the offence.

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