In XXX v. People, October 22, 2025, G.R. No. 274842, the Supreme Court has affirmed the conviction of XXX for violation of Section 5(i) of R.A. No. 9262, or the Anti-Violence Against Women and Their Children Act. XXX was accused of having published on Facebook a defamatory post about his wife; however, he denied having published the same. The Supreme Court ultimately found by circumstantial evidence that XXX was indeed the publisher of the said post. For purposes of establishing beyond a reasonable doubt the identity of the perpetrator of the crime or offense committed through social media, the fact of social media account ownership or access, and the fact of authorship of a social media post or private message, may be established by: direct or circumstantial evidence, including but not limited to the following:

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1. The perpetrator admits ownership of or access to the social media account, or admits authorship of the social media post or private message.

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2. The perpetrator is seen accessing or using the social media account, or is seen composing, posting or sending the social media post or private message.

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3. The social media post or private message contains information known only to the perpetrator or a few people, or that only the perpetrator could be expected to say or know.

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4. The perpetrator posts or communicates using the social media account consistent with a unique manner, language pattern, or other distinctive characteristics indicating their authorship of the said post or communication.

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5. The records of the Internet service provider or telecommunications company, the records of a social media site, geolocation features, the results from an examination of the search history or hard drive of the perpetrator’s device, or a social media forensics authorship attribution report show that: (i) the social media account is owned or accessed by the perpetrator; (ii) the social media account is connected to the perpetrator’s email address, mobile number, or other social media accounts; or (iii) the social media post or private message originated from the perpetrator’s computer, laptop, mobile phone or similar device, under circumstances in which it is reasonable to believe that only the perpetrator would have had access to such device. In no case, however, should the foregoing records, geolocation features, search history or hard drive examination results, or investigation reports be indispensable in establishing the fact of social media account ownership or access; or the fact of authorship of a social media post or private message.

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6. The perpetrator acts in such a manner consistent with the post or private message previously or contemporaneously posted or sent through the social media account.

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7. Other pieces of evidence showing that the perpetrator is the owner of or has access to the social media account, or that the perpetrator is the author of the social media post or private message.

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