The LOPPSI 2, orientation and programmation for performance of interior security law (“loi d’orientation et de programmation pour la performance de la sécurité intérieure”), has been examined by the French Constitutional Court (“Conseil Constitutionnel”) and 13 articles of the law have been censored. The amended version has been published in the Official Journal (“Journal Officiel”) on March, 15, 2011.

This law introduces in the French legislation a new offense relating to identity theft comprising digital identity.

This offense is defined in article 226-4-1 (new) of the French “code pénal” as being the act of stealing a third party’s identity or of making use of one or more data of any nature allowing the identification of this party in order to disturb him or another party’s well-being, or to offend his honour or consideration. The text specifies that the offense can be committed on a public online network.

Identity theft is punished by one year of imprisonment and by a 15 000 euros fine.

The creation of such an offense had been considered in France in July 2005 with the presentation of a bill by Senator Michel Dreyfus-Smith followed by the presentation of another bill in December 2008 on the same subject. However these bills have never been adopted.