Section 338 — Blackmail
English translation
Whoever compels another person to give or to agree to give property or any other benefit to the offender or to a third person, by threatening to disclose a secret the disclosure of which would cause damage to the person threatened or to a third person, commits the offence of blackmail and shall be liable to imprisonment from one year to ten years and a fine from twenty thousand baht to two hundred thousand baht.
This English translation is provided for reference only and has not yet been firm-verified — always rely on the Thai original.
Firm annotation
Blackmail under Section 338 is a specialized and more heavily punished form of extortion. Its distinguishing element is the nature of the threat: the offender threatens to disclose a secret whose disclosure would damage the victim or a third person. A genuine secret is essential. If the matter threatened for disclosure is not true and so is not a secret at all, the conduct does not amount to blackmail, though it may still be extortion under Section 337 as a threat to reputation. The offence is complete when the victim gives or agrees to give property; where the victim refuses, the conduct is attempted blackmail. The penalty band, one to ten years, is markedly higher than plain extortion.
Why this matters in practice
Exposure is significant: one to ten years imprisonment together with a fine. Two points matter most in defence. First, the disclosure threatened must concern a genuine secret; if the alleged secret is false or already public, the blackmail charge may fail even though a different offence could apply. Second, if the victim never gave in, the charge is attempt rather than a completed offence. Blackmail is frequently paired with modern facts such as threats to release private images or messages online. Because the offence protects a secret, the details a defendant discloses in his own defence should be handled carefully. See our overview of criminal law in Thailand.
Supreme Court decisions interpreting this section
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Supreme Court Judgment No. 1188/2561 (2018)
Compelling another to give a property benefit by threatening to disclose a secret whose disclosure would cause damage completes the elements of blackmail; where the victim refuses to pay, the conduct is attempted blackmail.
The court held the acts satisfied the elements of blackmail, but because the victim did not hand over the money demanded, the offence was attempted blackmail rather than a completed one.
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Supreme Court Judgment No. 10843/2553 (2010)
If the matter threatened for disclosure is untrue and therefore not a secret, the conduct is not blackmail under Section 338, but threatening harm to reputation to obtain money is extortion under Section 337.
The accused threatened a monk with a false claim of a sexual relationship. Because the matter was untrue and not a secret, it was not blackmail, but the threat to reputation that made the victim pay amounted to extortion under Section 337 paragraph one.
Curated decisions with case numbers verified against the Supreme Court database. English renderings are the firm's editorial translation for study.
Frequently asked questions
How is blackmail different from ordinary extortion?
Blackmail under Section 338 requires a threat to disclose a damaging secret, and it carries a heavier penalty than ordinary extortion under Section 337.
What if the secret threatened to be disclosed is not true?
If the matter is false and not a genuine secret, the conduct does not amount to blackmail under Section 338, although it may still be extortion under Section 337 as a threat to reputation.
What is the penalty for blackmail?
Section 338 sets imprisonment from one year to ten years and a fine from twenty thousand to two hundred thousand baht.