FOI 559/25 Malicious Communications
Date: 10/06/25
Enquiry Reference: FOI 559-25
I write in connection with regards to your Freedom of Information request. Below is your request and our response.
Number of arrests made under section 127 of the Communications Act 2003 and Section 1 of the Malicious Communications Act 1988. I would like the data in calendar years from 2015 until 2025.
- a) Our system only holds arrest data for the last 3 years so we can only provide this information from 2022. Below is all arrests under malicious communications then filtered by the below crime types which fit with the sections requested.
|
2022 |
2023 |
2024 |
|
|
Cause to be sent by public communication network a false message to cause annoyance / inconvenience / anxiety (recordable) |
1 |
||
|
Cause to be sent by public communication network an offensive / indecent / obscene / menacing message / matter (recordable) |
1 |
1 |
|
|
Persistently make use of public communication network to cause annoyance / inconvenience / anxiety (recordable) |
3 |
||
|
Send by public communication network an offensive / indecent / obscene / menacing message / matter (recordable) |
11 |
16 |
8 |
|
Send communication / article of an indecent / offensive nature (recordable) |
1 |
1 |
|
|
Send false message by public electronic communication network to cause annoyance, inconvenience or anxiety (recordable) |
9 |
10 |
2 |
|
Send letter / communication / article conveying a threatening message (recordable) |
11 |
16 |
1 |
|
Send letter / communication / article conveying indecent / offensive message (recordable) |
4 |
2 |
3 |
Having made enquiries within the Force above is all the information we hold. Please note that all statistical data supplied in relation to Freedom of Information requests is a snapshot of data held at the time the request was received by the Freedom of Information office and is subject to constant change/updates.
The Cleveland Police response to your request is unique and it should be noted that Police Forces do not use generic systems or identical procedures to capture and record data therefore responses from Cleveland Police should not be used as a comparison with any other force response you receive.
If you are not satisfied with this response or any actions taken in dealing with your request, you have the right to request an independent internal review of your case under our review procedure. The Freedom of Information Code of Practice (see below link) states that a request for internal review should be made within 20 working days of the date on this response or 40 working days if extenuating circumstances to account for the delay can be evidenced. Public authorities are not obliged to accept internal reviews after this date.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/freedom-of-information-code-of-practice
Yours sincerely
Information Rights Decision Maker