There's a long and healthy discussion about this question in many legal systems. The topic of discussion is the definition of 'public figure'[0] and what that entails. Public figures usually don't enjoy the same right to privacy as other persons.
> when you're a "public servant", and you use your social media as a medium, are you entitled to privacy in the same way a standard citizen is?
Public figures have different standards of privacy. For example, the standard for what a news publication can report about you are different; thresholds for slander are higher.
What is a public figure? AFAIK, it's someone who voluntarily puts themself forward as one. For example, a movie star, someone who makes public speeches, etc. Running for President of the U.S. is volunteering to be the most public figure in the world, and arguably Trump seeks publicity beyond any other president.
> So a person loses their right to privacy when enough strangers take an interest in them?
Depends on why strangers take an interest in them. I think it is reasonable to say that Nakamoto has made himself a public figure [1], so journalists should be able to research them within the confines of the law.
> So a person loses their right to privacy when enough strangers take an interest in them?
Depends on why strangers take an interest in them. I think it is reasonable to say that Nakamoto has made himself a public figure [1], so journalists should be able to research them within the confines of the law.
> Either public figures deserve a measure of privacy or they don't.
The real answer is that it depends. If a public figure is abusing their position, then yes, it is in the public interest to know about this abuse of power.
Imagine for a second if every politician’s financial history for all of their financial accounts were on an immutable ledger. That is something that is desirable, though it violates those individuals’ privacy. In this case we would say the public interest supersedes their right to privacy.
In the UK it is deemed that people have a right to privacy. This is overturned when it is deemed that information is "in the public interest," but knowing the sordid details of some "celebrity's" affairs is not necessarily deemed important enough. there is a balance to be had between an individual's privacy, and the right to public knowledge.
In Europe in general, and in the UK in particular, some reporting in the US is regarded with distaste, encroaching as it does on what the British regard as privacy, all in the name of "freedom of speech." The converse is also true, with USAians being horrified that anyone should claim a right to any kind of privacy once the press decide they are interested in them.
As long as they are public figures I think you'd be in the clear, if they are private individuals who have an 'expected right to privacy' it's a different problem altogether.
Describe it as good as you can and then go to a lawyer who knows the local laws for your jurisdiction and how those might apply to stuff you do over the net.
As a public figure you cannot have any reasonable expectation of privacy. That’s different from saying what should be done with his private medical records.
All rights do have limits, but this is too soft a limit for me, personally. I can understand how someone who is a well-known public figure would give up some rights related to slander, or being photographed, or whatever. But we're talking about private tax data, secured by the IRS. Guesses based on what someone makes based on or derived from publicly-available information I can understand, but leaked private tax documents crosses a line I'm not comfortable with. I do understand that others might think differently on this topic, though.
> Individuals who are considered to be limited-purpose public figures remain so as long as the public has an "independent" interest in the underlying controversy.
I would argue that _why's retreat to privacy is no longer a "controversy" of interest to the general public, assuming it ever was.
[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_figure
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