SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WREX) � Impersonating someone online could become a crime in Illinois if new legislation passes.
 passed the Senate Criminal Law Committee with a 10-0 vote.
The legislation expands the state's ability to make it a crime for a person to use someone else's name to create a fake webpage on a social networking site or send a message to intentionally cause emotional or economic damage.
State Senator Steve Stadelman (D), of Rockford, helped pass the legislation through the committee and offered the following statement:
"If you knowingly impersonate another person in order to harm them, there have to be real consequences," Stadelman said. "There are cases where people’s lives are turned upside down or even ruined because someone is impersonating them. In the age of the internet, impersonating others has gotten easier and more common than ever."
The bill now heads to the full senate for consideration.
