Posted on 11/15/2011 1:45:14 PM PST by FourPeas
The U.S. Department of Justice is defending computer hacking laws that make it a crime to use a fake name on Facebook or lie about your weight in an online dating profile at a site like Match.com.
In a statement obtained by CNET that's scheduled to be delivered tomorrow, the Justice Department argues that it must be able to prosecute violations of Web sites' often-ignored, always-unintelligible "terms of service" policies.
The law must allow "prosecutions based upon a violation of terms of service or similar contractual agreement with an employer or provider," Richard Downing, the Justice Department's deputy computer crime chief, will tell the U.S. Congress tomorrow.
Scaling back that law "would make it difficult or impossible to deter and address serious insider threats through prosecution," and jeopardize prosecutions involving identity theft, misuse of government databases, and privacy invasions, according to Downing.
The law in question, the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, has been used by the Justice Department to prosecute a woman, Lori Drew, who used a fake MySpace account to verbally attack a 13-year old girl who then committed suicide. Because MySpace's terms of service prohibit impersonation, Drew was convicted of violating the CFAA. Her conviction was later thrown out.
What makes this possible is a section of the CFAA that was never intended to be used that way: a general-purpose prohibition on any computer-based act that "exceeds authorized access." To the Justice Department, this means that a Web site's terms of service define what's "authorized" or not, and ignoring them can turn you into a felon.
On the other hand, because millions of Americans likely violate terms of service
(Excerpt) Read more at news.cnet.com ...
What # illegal war is this that Jug Ears has started now? 4 ?? 5 ?? Danke her resident!
So does this mean that Mitt Romney is committing a crime by stating on his website that he’s a Republican?
Honestly, I am not a Seahawk fan. I don’t even live in Washington State now.
This is to abrogate the first ammendment so they can prosecute people that violate the FR (or any website's) posting rules to say something like this, "Congress is full of bastards that should all be tried for treason and then hung from their balls until dead for violating their oath of office to protect and defend the US Constitution."
Lying about your weight is now a Federal offense?
Snap ‘em on, copper. I’m guilty of multiple offenses!
;^)
Turn a civil breach of contract case into a criminal matter. Why not just exercise the fraud statutes already in the books?
Yeah, it’s a rhetorical question.
I set up a fake profile on OKCupid and the dang guy got far more play than me.
Is that like molson jr or molson III? lol
One more law to make us all criminals...
Of course. All those sting operations rely on false postings and violations of the terms of service of the web sites. And since when does the government obey the law anyway?
A simple requirement that any law or regulation would apply equally to everyone, regardless of whether or not they work for the government would go a long way towards improving our society.
Did you see how Salman Rushdie had to fight Facebook to get to call himself Salman Rushdie? http://blog.chron.com/celebritybuzz/2011/11/salman-rushdie-wins-name-battle-with-facebook/
If lying about your diet to impress, misguide, or persuade others becomes a crime Michelle Obama will be in serious trouble.
If someone can lie about Stolen Valor then Match.com is fair game.
Does this mean they are going to prosecute DU trolls on FR?
OMG!!! LOL!
Will this mean that Chris Hanson, Dateline N.B.C. and To Catch A Predator, will no longer be able to lie and claim to be 13 year old girls?
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