SCREENSHOTS from social media such as Facebook, Twitter and Snapchat would be more commonly used in court if proposed changes to the Evidence Act pass State Parliament.

The changes including removing requirements for electronic coding to prove the authenticity of evidence and putting the onus on the other party to prove that what is tendered is not legitimate.

Attorney-General John Rau said the State Government’s plan was to make it easier to produce technology-based evidence in court.

“This includes an efficient framework for a court to receive evidence of electronic communications, including those on social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook, as well as the more standard forms of electronic communication, such as emails and text messages,” he said.

“The new laws will also facilitate the admission of evidence that is reproduced in a format different to its original.

“For example, documents containing screenshots or printouts from social media sites like Facebook, Instagram or Snapchat may be admitted without a requirement to tender to the court the electronic coding that produces the information.”

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