Is a Screenshot Proof?

Is a screenshot proof? Messages as evidence in Korea, New York and England

Evidence Literacy #2 · Korea · New York · England & Wales · October 2026

At a glance

Messages sent to youCapture them. A screenshot is generally usable evidence in all three places, if it can be shown to be genuine.

Someone else's phone or accountHands off. Unlocking it to collect their chats can be a crime, and can backfire on you.

Warm-up

Myth or Fact? 🤔

Guess first, then read. Three quick statements.

Imagine this 📱

Class 10B 💬24 members

Minjunlol did you see what she wore today

wait what did you just say??

🚫 Message deleted

By the next morning the worst messages are gone, and the chat does not even show who deleted them. You remember exactly what they said. Can you prove it? The messages were sent to you, so you are in the conversation.

The question is: can you show your screenshot is real, complete and unchanged?

The rule in Korea

Criminal Act (형법) · Information and Communications Network Act (정보통신망법) · Supreme Court rulings on digital evidence

Korea has no special law for screenshots. A court checks two things.

Same as the original?A photo or screenshot of the screen must match the message on the phone exactly. If the phone itself can be handed in, the court may want the phone.

Complete?One cropped message invites the claim that the context was left out.

Messages are often the only record of online bullying or threats. Captured the right way, they can carry:

🏫 A school violence hearing🚓 A police report⚖️ A divorce case

Korea · New York · England & Wales

All three places accept a screenshot of a message sent to you. They differ in who has to show it is real, and in what happens if you post it.

	Korea	New York (state + federal)	England & Wales
What must be shown first	That the copy matches the original; the device may be checked	“Authentication”: enough proof that it is what it claims to be	No special test. In civil cases, a disclosed document is accepted as genuine unless the other side asks for it to be proved; the judge decides how much it proves
Posting a true screenshot to shame someone	Can be defamation even if true	Truth is usually a defense; privacy and school rules still apply	Truth is a defense; privacy claims still possible

The big difference

Who decides if it is real?

In New York the judge first asks whether there is enough proof that the screenshot is genuine. In 2017 the state's top court threw out a photo taken from a social media page because nothing tied it to the person accused. If the screenshot passes, the jury decides how much it proves. In Korea and England a judge looks at the evidence and decides how much it proves.

The question underneath: in an age of AI-made fake screenshots, should courts trust screenshots less and ask for the original phone every time? Or would that make it too hard for victims, who often only have the screenshot?

Jaein's answer

In criminal cases, the prosecutor carries the burden of proof and has forensic tools to detect fakes, so a victim should not have to hand over the original phone just to be believed. In civil cases, the two sides stand on equal footing, so when one side challenges a screenshot, the court should be able to demand the original.

School violence hearings are harder. They are a dispute between students, like a civil case, but they hand out punishments, like a criminal one. Their goal is to help students change, not just to punish. So when a screenshot is challenged, the hearing committee, not the victim, should send it to a certified digital forensics examiner, at no cost to either student.

Jaein

Korea's trap: true can still be defamation

Criminal Act, Art. 307(1)

Stating a true fact that lowers someone's reputation, where others can hear or read it, can be a crime. Even a group chat can count if the message can spread.

Exception (Art. 310): not punished if it is solely for the public interest. A post meant to shame someone rarely qualifies.

Information and Communications Network Act, Art. 70(1)

Posting a true fact online, on Instagram or in a chat, with the purpose of disparaging someone (비방할 목적) is punished more heavily.

Art. 310 does not apply here. Instead, courts ask whether there was a purpose to disparage. A post made mainly for the public interest usually has none.

Instead: report to the school or the police, and keep the screenshot only as evidence.

Beyond school 🌸

Linh's messages

Meet LinhFrom Vietnam, married to a Korean man, living in Korea on a marriage visa. Linh is an example, not a real person.

Her husband sends her these texts, then deletes them.

HusbandI won't sign your visa papers.

HusbandNo money for you this month.

✓ She already captured themName, number and dates showing, chat exported to her own email. Usable with the police, in a divorce, or to stay in Korea.

✕ She unlocks his phoneTo screenshot his chats with someone else: the same law can be used against her.

📌 Remember

Capture what was sent to you, whole and unedited.
Never collect what was sent to someone else.

Read this guide in Korean on Bom Notes →

Try it

Can I use this screenshot?

Pick a place, then decide each case. Switch places and try the same cases again: the same act can get a different answer.

Simplified for learning. Real cases turn on their facts.

If you capture messages sent to you

Show who and whenMake sure the sender's name or number, the date and the time are on screen.

Capture right awayOn KakaoTalk, a sender can delete a message for everyone up to 24 hours later.

Export the chatKakaoTalk: chat room ☰ → Settings → Export chat history (대화내용 내보내기). Email it to yourself, and keep the chat room.

Keep the phoneThe original device may need to be checked.

Caveats

AI tools can now fake screenshots, so expect more courts to ask for originals.
Rules on posting and privacy differ between U.S. states and are changing.
If you are in danger, get safe first and call 112 (Korea) or 911 (U.S.).