This June 18, 2019 photo shows the Wan Chai Tower in Hong Kong, where the District Court is located. (PHOTO / INFORMATION SERVICES DEPARTMENT, HKSAR)

HONG KONG - A former Hong Kong Telecom technician on Friday became the first person to be convicted of doxxing during last year’s social unrest in Hong Kong.

District Court Judge Frankie Yiu Fun-che described the case as “serious” and said immediate imprisonment will be considered.

The personal information of more than 3,700 police officers and their relatives and friends has been improperly disclosed since June 2019, according to the city’s police force. At least 67 people have been arrested on suspicion of engaging in doxxing

Chan King-hei, 33, was remanded for a sentencing hearing scheduled for Nov 3. He was convicted of three counts of “obtaining access to a computer with a view to dishonest gain for himself or another” and one count of “disclosing personal data obtained without consent from data users”.

Both offenses carry a penalty of five years’ imprisonment. Disclosing personal data is also punishable by a fine of up to HK$1 million (US$129,000).

READ MORE: Hong Kong CE calls for end to doxxing

According to the court, Chan took advantage of his post to obtain personal information of three celebrities, 20 police officers, and six family members of police officers from July to September 2019.

He then provided the information about an inspector’s father to a doxxing-platform group on Telegram, which later posted it online.

Yiu said in court that the Chan’s conduct — neither authorized nor necessary for his professional — was “pointless and boring”, and had violated the trust of his employers.

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The personal information of more than 3,700 police officers and their relatives and friends has been improperly disclosed since June 2019, according to the city’s police force. At least 67 people have been arrested on suspicion of engaging in doxxing.