Defamation and Online Harassment Laws in Brazil

Brazil is a civil law country. The Federal Constitution declares a person's honor and image inviolable and guarantees compensation for material or moral damage caused by their violation, as well as a right of reply proportional to the offense (Article 5, V and X). The Civil Code lets a person demand that an attack on their personality rights stop and claim damages (Article 12), sets the general rules on liability for unlawful acts (Articles 186 and 927), and explains how compensation for calúnia, difamação or injúria is measured (Article 953). The Penal Code defines these three conduct types as crimes against honor in Articles 138 to 140.

Sources1Federal Constitution of 1988, Article 5, items V and X2Civil Code (Law 10,406/2002), Articles 12, 186, 927 and 9533Penal Code (Decree-Law 2,848/1940), Articles 138 to 140

Calúnia is punishable by six months to two years of detention plus a fine, difamação by three months to one year plus a fine, and injúria by one to six months or a fine (Articles 138 to 140). Penalties rise by one third when the offense is committed in front of several people or by a means that makes it easier to spread, and they are tripled when the offense is committed or spread on any kind of social network (Article 141). As a rule, the case can only go forward if the victim files a private criminal complaint (queixa) (Article 145).

Source3Penal Code (Decree-Law 2,848/1940), Articles 138 to 141 and 145

Brazilian law does not distinguish between written and spoken defamation. A civil claim for damages (reparação civil) is generally subject to a three-year limitation period under Article 206, paragraph 3, item V of the Civil Code. For the criminal route, the victim usually loses the right to file a private criminal complaint six months after learning who the offender is (Penal Code, Article 103).

Sources2Civil Code (Law 10,406/2002), Article 206, paragraph 3, item V3Penal Code (Decree-Law 2,848/1940), Article 103

Brazil does not use the common law category of defamation per se. However, the Civil Code says that if the victim of calúnia, difamação or injúria cannot prove material loss, the judge sets compensation on an equitable basis according to the circumstances of the case (Article 953, sole paragraph), and the Constitution expressly allows compensation for moral damage (Article 5, X).

Sources2Civil Code (Law 10,406/2002), Article 9531Federal Constitution of 1988, Article 5, item X

Brazil has no general anti-SLAPP statute. In ADI 6792 (2024), the Supreme Federal Court ruled that when several lawsuits about the same facts are filed in different places with the clear aim of hindering the defense of journalists or media outlets (judicial harassment), the cases must be joined and heard where the defendant is domiciled.

Source4Supreme Federal Court (STF), ADI 6792, judgment of May 22, 2024

Law 13,188/2015 gives anyone offended by a report published or broadcast by a media outlet, on any platform, a free right of reply or correction proportional to the offense. The request must be sent to the outlet by letter with proof of receipt within 60 days of the publication, and if the outlet does not publish the reply within seven days of receiving it, the person can go to court. User comments on media websites are excluded, and a voluntary correction by the outlet does not prevent a reply or a claim for moral damages. In criminal cases, a defendant who fully retracts calúnia or difamação before sentencing is exempt from punishment, and if the offense was made through the media, the victim can ask that the retraction appear in the same media (Penal Code, Article 143).

Sources5Law 13,188/2015 on the right of reply, Articles 2, 3 and 53Penal Code (Decree-Law 2,848/1940), Article 143

Proving the truth is a defense to calúnia except in certain listed cases, but for difamação it is only allowed when the victim is a public official and the statement concerns their official duties (Articles 138, paragraph 3, and 139). Statements made by a party or their lawyer while arguing a case in court, unfavorable literary, artistic or scientific criticism (unless the intent to offend is clear) and a public official's assessments made in the course of duty are not punishable as injúria or difamação (Article 142). For journalists reporting on public figures or matters of public interest, the Supreme Federal Court held in ADI 6792 that civil liability requires intent or gross negligence and does not arise from mere value judgments, opinions or criticism.

Sources3Penal Code (Decree-Law 2,848/1940), Articles 138, 139 and 1424Supreme Federal Court (STF), ADI 6792, judgment of May 22, 20241Federal Constitution of 1988, Article 5, items IV and IX

Article 147-A of the Penal Code, added by Law 14,132/2021, makes it a crime to repeatedly pursue someone by any means in a way that threatens their physical or psychological integrity, restricts their movement or otherwise invades or disturbs their freedom or privacy. The penalty is six months to two years of imprisonment plus a fine, increased by half in aggravated cases (for example, against a child, teenager or older person, or when committed by two or more people), and prosecution depends on the victim's formal request (representação).

Source3Penal Code (Decree-Law 2,848/1940), Article 147-A

Since Law 14,811/2024, Article 146-A of the Penal Code punishes systematic intimidation (bullying), and when it is carried out through computer networks, social media, apps, online games or any other digital environment, the penalty rises to two to four years of imprisonment plus a fine, unless the conduct is a more serious crime. Article 147-B separately criminalizes causing emotional harm to a woman through threats, humiliation, manipulation, ridicule or similar means, and since Law 15,123/2025 the penalty increases by half when artificial intelligence or other technology is used to alter the victim's image or voice.

Source3Penal Code (Decree-Law 2,848/1940), Articles 146-A and 147-B

Article 218-C of the Penal Code makes it a crime to publish, share or distribute by any means, without the victim's consent, images or video containing sex, nudity or pornography, with a penalty of four to ten years plus a fine, increased by one third to two thirds when the offender had an intimate relationship with the victim or acted for revenge or humiliation. Article 216-B punishes recording intimate sexual content without authorization and creating fake montages that place someone in such scenes. Under Article 21 of the Marco Civil da Internet, a platform that fails to diligently remove this kind of private intimate content after notice from the person shown can be held liable.

Sources3Penal Code (Decree-Law 2,848/1940), Articles 216-B and 218-C6Marco Civil da Internet (Law 12,965/2014), Article 21