Commercial · Defamation online
They posted it, then deleted it. Is it gone?
Not in law. A statement is published once it reaches one other person, and deleting it later does not undo that. What deletion changes is the proof.
The three things you prove
- 01
It was published.
It was communicated to at least one person other than you.
- 02
It refers to you.
By name, or by implication a reader would understand.
- 03
It is defamatory.
It tends to lower you in the estimation of right-thinking members of society.
Why deletion matters anyway
A screenshot is not the same exhibit as the system that produced it. Preserve the record early: what was published, where it sat, and how long it stayed there. The other side has defences too, among them truth, fair comment and privilege, and the record decides those as much as the claim.
What this page cannot see
Whether your record is enough.
That turns on what you kept, when you kept it, and who else saw it. Set it down before more of it goes.
Six steps, about twelve minutes. It is read by Raul, not by a clerk or an assistant.
Longer read: Defamation law in Malaysia
General information only. Not legal advice. Reading this page or sending a brief does not create a solicitor and client relationship; that begins only on a written engagement.