Regulatory frameworks, platform accountability and the protection of dignity in digital citizenship, interview with Alessandro Numini
Abstract: Digital violence is not a virtual phenomenon: it invades real lives, harms developing identities, and tests legal frameworks and social responsibilities. In this in-depth analysis, Cristina Di Silvio integrates the legal expertise of Alessandro Numini, criminal lawyer, with pedagogical, regulatory, and social reflections, offering a guide to understanding, preventing, and protecting young people in a hyperconnected society.
Keywords: #DigitalViolence #Cyberbullying #HumanDignity #DigitalResponsibility #GDPR #DigitalServicesAct #ProtectionOfMinors #DigitalCitizenship #Identity #DigitalEvidence #CristinaDiSilvio #EthicaSocietas #EthicaSocietasJournal #ScientificJournal #SocialSciences #ethicasocietasupli
Digital Violence, Bullying, and Identity Crisis: Toward a Culture of Responsibility and Substantive Dignity
In our time, digital violence is neither peripheral nor marginal, nor reserved for specialists: it is a profound wound to human dignity, affecting both young people and adults, impacting mental health, identity formation, and the very concept of citizenship in the connected era. Technology, far from being neutral, produces tangible effects in the lives of its users. As I have repeatedly affirmed in my previous works and interventions, the dignity of others is the foundation of civil coexistence, and this principle must guide every digital transformation. In a recent interview, criminal lawyer Alessandro Numini, president of the social cooperative Sophia “Esisto per creo” and a profound expert on both the legal and human dynamics underlying these phenomena, offered a technical yet humanistic perspective on what we now call digital violence. His contribution is essential to understanding both the Italian and European regulatory frameworks and the real-life implications for victims.
Digital violence is not “virtual”: it is invasive, continuous, and permanent
Digital violence extends offline persecutory and defamatory behaviors into cyberspace. As Numini explains, it includes actions such as aggravated defamation, stalking, unlawful processing of personal data, non-consensual sharing of intimate images, threats, and harassment. What changes is not only the instrument but also the scale and continuity of the action. Victims cannot fully escape the aggression because it permeates every area of daily life. This defining characteristic, the absence of spatial and temporal limits, represents the very essence of cyberbullying as a socio-digital phenomenon. From a legal perspective, Italy has a structured framework: Law 71/2017 defines and regulates cyberbullying, while the Criminal Code includes crimes such as revenge porn (art. 612‑ter c.p.) and stalking (art. 612‑bis c.p.). These rules aim to punish unlawful behaviors and protect victims’ dignity, yet the real challenge today is ensuring effective enforcement and timely intervention.
Legal norms and tools, but also a question of timing
“The Italian system provides various instruments,” Numini emphasizes, “from cyberbullying regulations to data protection provisions and rights to content removal.” However, he notes that “effectiveness depends on prompt intervention and collaboration between the judiciary, schools, and families.” Indeed, criminal action faces a practical limit in timing: even when the law is clear, the speed with which content spreads and becomes entrenched in collective memory makes it difficult to restore the previous situation. Field experience, also confirmed by international associations, shows that online victimization can persist for months or years, with long-term psychological effects.
Responsibility and anonymity: a legal and social challenge
Criminal responsibility remains personal, but the digital phenomenon raises new questions: anonymity, for example, complicates the identification of perpetrators. Numini proposes a possible legislative solution: introducing identity verification through official documents for social network access. According to him, “a potential law could require identity verification when creating social media accounts, impose sanctions on platforms that fail to comply, and provide fast-track procedures for identification in case of crime.” This proposal aligns with the European Digital Services Act, which aims to strengthen platforms’ responsibilities toward their users and the content they distribute, balancing privacy and security.
Evidence collection: from digital traces to court proceedings
Collecting digital evidence is another critical issue. Numini reminds us that screenshots, IP tracking, and forensic acquisitions require strict technical and legal procedures to ensure integrity and admissibility in court. Any breach in the chain of custody can render evidence unusable, with severe implications for criminal proceedings. This underscores the need for specialized skills and consolidated protocols, not only among judicial operators but also for law enforcement and technical consultants.
Immediate protection for minors: between law and reality
Numini highlights that tools such as the police chief’s warning, cyber police intervention, and urgent judicial measures exist. Yet, he observes with concern that “psychological harm occurs very quickly, while procedures, even when accelerated, still require formal steps.” Law cannot substitute for lived experience: numerous studies indicate that cyberbullying affects approximately one in three young people aged 11–19, with significant psychopathological outcomes. It is therefore essential that schools are trained to activate protective networks immediately, involving psychologists, families, and teachers, so that minors do not endure abuse in silence.
Psychological consequences and identity crisis
Understanding digital violence requires analyzing its impact on young people’s identity. Victims often experience anxiety, insomnia, isolation, and loss of self-esteem, up to severe forms such as depression or social withdrawal. Numini recounts adolescents “convinced they deserve the humiliation they endure,” highlighting how digital violence affects not only social standing but deeply personal self-perception. The phenomenon is not only cultural or educational; it has real and lasting psychological effects that demand structured interventions alongside legal responses.
Connection with self-harm behaviors
Unfortunately, the link between cyberbullying and self-harm is not theoretical: international cases like Amanda Todd demonstrate that prolonged online humiliation can have tragic outcomes. The suffering caused by exposure to an image, insult, or traumatic video can become unbearable for adolescents whose identities are still forming. In these instances, legal and human dimensions intertwine irreversibly.
Persistance of digital content: an unending experience
Once published, online content can become almost permanent. The law recognizes the right to erasure and data protection (art. 17 GDPR); yet in practice, achieving complete removal is difficult. Technical solutions like the “right to be forgotten” are crucial but not always fully effective. Users often ask: “Lawyer, when will this end?” and the answer is often that complete deletion cannot be guaranteed.
Empathy and responsibility: the educational key
Beyond criminal justice, education plays a crucial role. As I have repeatedly emphasized, and as international initiatives against cyberbullying show, it is essential to educate for digital responsibility from the earliest school years. Engaging parents, teachers, and the community forms an indispensable platform to foster a conscious and respectful “online generation.” Digital skills combined with responsible and cultural digital citizenship can transform technology from a source of pain into an opportunity for collective growth.
Conclusion: dignity and the digital future
Technology is not the enemy; it becomes dangerous when there is a lack of cultural and human guidance. To overcome the identity crisis affecting many young people, we need laws, yes, but above all a culture of dignity and respect: not as abstract formulas, but as operational principles in everyday life. In my studies on digital responsibility and the cultural transition our society is experiencing—topics I have addressed in numerous publications I strongly maintain that respect for others and relational ethics must become the pillars of the digital coexistence of the future. Only in this way can we genuinely protect young people, not only in courtrooms but in their capacity to participate in a digital community founded on dignity, respect, empathy, and responsibility.
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