Tweet allegedly spreading false Venezuelan banking rumor lands couple in jail

A tweet can land you in jail in Venezuela.

Two people were arrested Thursday for allegedly spreading false rumors on Twitter designed to destabilize Venezuela's banking system. It's against the law in that Latin American country to spread false rumors about the banking systems on any social network.

"Anybody who spreads malicious rumors by any means, emails, SMS messages on cellphones, Twitter, Facebook ... or any other means of communication is committing a crime and should answer for it before the competent authorities," national investigative police unit head Wilmer Flores Trosel said in a statement to Reuters.

The free speech site, Global Voices Advocacy, identified the pair today as Luis Acosta, 41, and Carmen Cecilia Nares Castro, 35. They could face up to 11 years in prison.

Twitter's term of service says all posts are the sole responsibility of the person tweeting the information and anyone relying on tweets does so at their own risk.

Even in this country, you may not end up in jail, but you could get sued. Read on WalletPop about what happened when a woman posted an online review and how you can avoid a lawsuit.