Man ordered to pay $2,500 for photographing girlfriend's underwear

A man in Taiwan has been ordered to pay 80,000 New Taiwan dollars (approximately $2,500 USD) in damages for taking and sharing photos of his girlfriend's underwear. The incident occurred when the woman, a master's student, hired the man to help her deal with cockroaches in her apartment, offering a reward of 500 New Taiwan dollars.

According to the lawsuit, the man, identified by the surname Lin, entered the woman's room and secretly photographed her underwear, which was on the bed. He then shared the photos with a female friend and other acquaintances. Lin also allegedly made sexually suggestive and insulting remarks about the woman, questioning if she was "seducing" or "tempting" him.

The woman discovered the incident through the friend who received the photos and became enraged and disgusted. She sued Lin for 200,000 New Taiwan dollars, citing the violation of her privacy and the damage to her reputation. Lin admitted to sharing the photos and discussing the matter with the friend.

An initial court ruling ordered Lin to pay 120,000 New Taiwan dollars. However, Lin appealed, arguing that he only shared the photo once and did not widely distribute it, and that the "honey trap" suggestion was made by other netizens, not him. The woman countered that she continued to receive online accusations of "honey trapping," damaging her reputation. The appellate court upheld the privacy violation but reduced the damages to 80,000 New Taiwan dollars, a decision that is final.