It will be difficult for Hongkongers to take legal action against the US government for hacking in the city, legal experts say.
But law scholars say whistle-blower Edward Snowden does risk breaching local laws if he discloses information relating to communications between Washington and the Hong Kong or Beijing governments.
Simon Young Ngai-man, director of the University of Hong Kong's centre for comparative and public law, said Snowden should be aware of Section 20 of the Official Secrets Ordinance, which deals with information relating to "security or intelligence, defence or international relations" communicated in confidence to foreign states by Beijing or the Hong Kong government.
It is an offence for someone to possess such information and make a "damaging disclosure" of it, knowing that the information was communicated in confidence. The definition of "damaging disclosure" includes any disclosure that could damage the "work of security and intelligence services". The maximum penalty is a HK$500,000 fine and two years in jail.
"These recent developments underline the importance of Snowden obtaining immediate legal advice in Hong Kong, especially before any further disclosures are made," Young said, referring to Snowden's accusation that the US had been hacking computers in Hong Kong and the mainland since 2009.
Anyone in Hong Kong looking to make a civil claim against the US government would have to show that their computer had been hacked and that the claimant had suffered damage due to the hacking, said Professor Michael Davis, a constitutional law specialist at HKU.
"Mere allegations from a whistle-blower that the US government is engaged in hacking without some proof that you have been directly targeted would not afford sufficient standing," he said. "Generally, to have standing a plaintiff has to prove direct injury."