Internet trolls, you have been warned - especially if you are in England or in Wales!  Internet trolls who focus on fake/photoshopped images or on derogatory hashtags to target or humiliate others could face jail time in England and Wales.

The New Crown Prosecution Service guidance has stated that it would be considered as an offence to virtually "mob" or encourage people to target and harass others online. With these new rules, offenses that occur online could be prosecuted like those that happen offline.

The guidance also warns against "doxing" (sharing other people's personal details such as phone numbers, email addresses, and physical addresses) so they could be targeted and against "baiting" (humiliating another person by stating they are sexually promiscuous). 

Currently, the maximum sentence for offenses related to social media is 12 months in jail. However, the jail time could be increased if there is evidence of threatening behavior.

The guidance advises non-prosecution of teenagers for "sexting" (transfer of sexually explicit images) provided it is consensual and the teenagers are of same age. The guidance also prohibits the police from prosecuting people for satirical comments or comments which are of "banter and humor" nature. The online comments need to pass the "certain threshold" before any prosecution procedures can be initiated. The creation of false or offensive profiles on social media is also considered as a crime.

The Telegraph reported that these new laws are due to a recent suggestion that one in four teenagers is abused online in one manner or the other. There have been growing concerns about cyberbullying among people, especially parents. For the police, the new guidance could help in identifying online crimes more easily.

According to the BBC, ever since a new law was introduced in April 2015 on revenge porn (someone uploading explicit images/films of a former partner in order to embarrass or humiliate them ) around 206 people across England and Wales have been prosecuted for the crime.

Many countries could also be following the steps of England and Wales to bring stricter actions against online crimes.