Should Faking a Name on Facebook Be a Felony?
Should Faking a Name on Facebook Be a Felony?
Imagine that President Obama could order the arrest of anyone who broke a promise on the Internet. So you could be jailed for lying about your age or weight on an Internet dating site. Or you could be sent to federal prison if your boss told you to work but you used the company's computer to check sports scores online. Imagine that Eric Holder's Justice Department urged Congress to raise penalties for violations, making them felonies allowing three years in jail for each broken promise. Fanciful, right?
Think again. Congress is now poised to grant the Obama administration's wishes in the name of "cybersecurity."
The little-known law at issue is called the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. It was enacted in 1986 to punish computer hacking. But Congress has broadened the law every few years, and today it extends far beyond hacking. The law now criminalizes computer use that "exceeds authorized access" to any computer. Today that violation is a misdemeanor, but the Senate Judiciary Committee is set to meet this morning to vote on making it a felony.
The problem is that a lot of routine computer use can exceed "authorized access." Courts are still struggling to interpret this language. But the Justice Department believes that it applies incredibly broadly to include "terms of use" violations and breaches of workplace computer-use policies.
Breaching an agreement or ignoring your boss might be bad. But should it be a federal crime just because it involves a computer? If interpreted this way, the law gives computer owners the power to criminalize any computer use they don't like. Imagine the Democratic Party setting up a public website and announcing that no Republicans can visit. Every Republican who checked out the site could be a criminal for exceeding authorized access.
If that sounds far-fetched, consider a few recent cases. In 2009, the Justice Department prosecuted a woman for violating the "terms of service" of the social networking site MySpace.com. The woman had been part of a group that set up a MySpace profile using a fake picture. The feds charged her with conspiracy to violate the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. Prosecutors say the woman exceeded authorized access because MySpace required all profile information to be truthful. But people routinely misstate the truth in online profiles, about everything from their age to their name. What happens when each instance is a felony?
Getty Images
In 2010, the Justice Department charged a defendant with unauthorized access for using a computer to buy tickets from Ticketmaster. Ticketmaster's website lets anyone visit. But its "terms of use" only permitted non-automated purchases, and the defendant used a computer script to make the purchases.
Continues
http://online.wsj.com/art...
Replies to This Discussion
-
Permalink Reply by truth on
-
Logging onto Facebook could become a felony
Published: 16 September, 2011, 21:55
Logging onto Facebook could become a felony
TAGS: Crime, Scandal, SciTech, Politics, Law, Internet, Information Technology, USA, Culture, Social networks
Reading this article could land you in prison.
The Computer Fraud and Abuse Act has been on the books since the 1980s to allow the feds to go after the culprits of malicious hacks and cybercrimes. An addendum to the act that Congress is expected to take a look at today, however, can cause almost any misuse of a computer to be interpreted as a felony.
The Senate Judiciary Committee will vote on an updated version of the act on Friday that will make it a felony crime to use a computer in a way that “exceeds authorized access.” But what exactly constitutes authorized access?
Exactly.
The wording of the addition creates a slippery slope that could cause nearly anyone to be punished for violating the rules of, well, anyone. "The problem” with the proposed legislation, says Orin Kerr of The Wall Street Journal, “is that a lot of routine computer use can exceed 'authorized access.'"
Violating those mundane Terms of Use agreements on websites could be interpreted as a violation of the law, as could going against a workplace Internet protocol policy. That means that fibbing on your Facebook profile, logging on to check sports scores at work or even browsing RT.com when you’re on the clock could, depending on who says what’s cool and what’s not, land you in prison.
-
-
Permalink Reply by WTRH-AM-AE on
-
I am about to abort Facebook cause everything on there is getting out of control. I tried to play the sweepstakes and lost 117 times so far, never won anything. I feel that these sweepstakes are nothing but catches, scams, and obligations to make you buy something. No I don't think it should be a felony cause what if you lost your password and your user name you should have every right to create another account as much as you need to. I wish that people would not hack our Facebook accounts and compromise them. Also the spyware and adware NEED's to go! There is plenty of it on each app, page, and other parts of Facebook.
-
- ‹ Previous
- 1
- 2
- Next ›
"Destroying the New World Order"
THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING THE SITE!
Latest Activity
- Top News
- Everything
"The Warriors is one of my favorite movies. I couldn't help but laugh at this spoof."
"cheeki kea, You might want to see predictions made by Robert Welch in 1957 and 1974 stating that…"
"cheeki kea, good points. We have a world full of twisted allied agendas that seem contradictory,…"
Ghislaine Maxwell & The Secret "Shadow" 9/11 Commission? | John Kiriakou
In this gripping excerpt from the Julien Dorey podcast, former CIA officer and whistleblower John Kiriakou reacts to a leaked email from 2003. The document r...
"Greetings to you Holyroller very awesome you've joined up with us all. I know you'll find…"
"Yes it's a sad and sorry situation we see evolving here. On one front and it's a large…"
When the Communists Take Over America!...Famous 1957 Anti-Communist Movie
"I remember this when I was a little seeing it on TV years after it was filmed and it scared me even…"
When the Communists Take Over America!...Famous 1957 Anti-Communist Movie
Starring Jack Webb and Robert Conrad, this 1957 movie by the United States Armed Forces Information Agency is perhaps the best known anti-communist movie eve...
Are the End Times Drawing Near?
Are we seeing the gradual fulfillment of the Battle of Armageddon? Think of it. The US and Israel…See More
Catherine Fitts: Epstein, CIA Black Budget, the Control Grid, and the Banks’ Role in War
Programmable digital currency is the final piece of the global control grid that’s finally snapping into place. Catherine Austin Fitts on how to defeat it. C...
Ключові слова в тексті: як органічно їх вписати в статтю
Що таке ключові слова і чому вони важливіКлючові слова — це слова або фрази, які користувачі…See More
© 2026 Created by truth.
Powered by
