A man in United Arab Emirates (UAE) has been fined $68,000 by the Federal Supreme Court (FSC) for swearing at a colleague in a WhatsApp message. A lower court had earlier slapped him with a fine of $800. The complainant then challenged the order in the FSC calling it ‘too lenient’. In UAE, online verbal insult is a criminal offence. Those living in the country could also face jail, and foreigners deportation. Authorities in the UAE last month warned that sending a middle finger emoji symbol would also be punishable under the law.
