French privacy laws: how strict are they? The French president Francois Hollande has hit back at revelations of an alleged affair with actress Julie Gayet 41, by claiming that he is entitled to privacy - just like any other French citizen. While he did not deny the allegations, his threaten to sue the magazine has reignited debate over the issue in a country where privacy laws are some of the strictest in the world. The French constitution demands that everyone has the right to privacy, which is why even Hollande can claim breaches of it despite placing himself in the most prominent spot in the public eye. Publication of an individual's private details is a criminal offence in France, if permission has not been sought first. And authors often have to pay the price, by blacking out photos or parts of a story that are deemed to infringe an individual's privacy. This is not the first time that Closer magazine has come up against France's privacy laws. In 2012, it received widespread criticism for publishing photos of the Duchess of Cambridge sunbathing topless on a private holiday. Clarence House issued a statement that the Duke and Duchess were seeking legal action, and likened the infringement of her privacy to the sort of intrusion Princess Diana endured by the world's press. The French president's official current partner, Valerie Trierweiler, has also advocated her right to privacy. In 2012, she took two TV journalists to court over allegations published in their unauthorised biography of her. The book by Christophe Jacubyszyn and Alix Bouilhagact stated that she had been two-timing Hollande and a former conservative minister Patrick Deridijan, all while she was still married to her ex-husband Denis Trierweiler, whom she divorced in 2010. A Paris court ordered the two authors to pay her 10,000 euros last year, though she had initially claimed 80,000 euros in damages. Any future publication of the book would also be required to flag up the material. Such a punishment was neglible to a major magazine, and the strictness of France's laws are undermined by the relative flimsiness of the punishment. British newspapers declined to publish Closer's photos of Kate Middleton, and condemnation of the incident far outweighed any speculation of the Duchess" decision to sunbathe topless. But Hollande might not be so lucky. Whatever the results of his complaint of a violation of privacy, the biggest damage has probably already been done.