Please enable JavaScript.
Coggle requires JavaScript to display documents.
Criminal Law and Tort Law Issues in Cyberspace - Coggle Diagram
Criminal Law and Tort Law Issues in Cyberspace
Type of Wrongful Conduct
Mala in se
A crime that is inherently wrong; "evil in itself
Crimes included are: murder, rape, kidnapping, robbery, theft, and arson
Mala prohibita
A crime that is not inherently evil, but society prohibits it.
Crimes included are: intellectual property violation, traffic laws violations, and tax evasions.
Misdemeanors
Crimes that are less serious than felonies. They bear a less severe and is generally punishable no more than a year.
Felonies
Crimes that are more serious. Punishable by more than a year.
Levels of misdemeanors and felonies may vary among states. Language like "first degree" or "second degree" differentiate between different levels of crime
Elements of a Crime
Mens rea
"Guilty mind"; describes someone with intent to commit a crime
Actus rea
"Guilty act"; for it to be a crime, the action must be voluntary. The actus rea requires to a physical act.
Jurisdiction
Subject matter jurisdiction
The power of a court to decide certain types of cases. This means federal courts have jurisdiction only to decide cases about federal laws and certain disputes of citizens in different states. State courts can decide only state laws or actions that occurred in-state.
Personal Jurisdiction
Refers to a court's ability to exercise power over a particular defendant.
Common Criminal Laws Used in Cyberspace
Computer Fraud and Abuse Act
The first piece of federal legislation that identified computer crimes as distinct offenses.
The CFAA criminalizes the act of causing certain types of damage to a protected computer.
Examples of protected computer:
federal government computer
financial institution computer
computer used in interstate or foreign commerce
Theft and Assumption Deterrence Act
Made identity theft a federal crime. If a person violates the law, he or she will get 15-30 years of prison, fined, and give any personal property used to commit identity theft to the government. The law makes it illegal for anyone to knowingly transfer or use another person's identification with the intent to commit a crime.
FTC is required to keep records of identity theft and must give victims educational material to help them repair any damage to their credit and personal data
Electronic Communications Privacy Act
Governs access to stored electronic communications. This includes access to the contents of communication and the headers and other transmission information.
Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing
The act covers unsolicited commercial e-mail messages. CAN-SPAM Act requires commercial e-mail senders to meet certain requirements. Commercial messages are messages with content that advertise or promote a product or service. The act also forbids sending sexually explicit e-mail unless it has a label or marking that identifies it as explicit.
Anti-Cybersquatting Consumer Protection Act
It is designed to stop people from registering domain names that are trademarks that belong to other entities.
Acts that protects against Cyberstalking
The Telephone Harassment Act: Makes it illegal to use the Internet to transmit any message to harass or threaten another person.
The Interstate Stalking and Prevention Act: Makes it illegal for anyone who travels across states to use any interactive computer service to cause substantial emotional distress.
The Interstate Communications Act: Makes it illegal to transmit in interstate commerce any threat to injure another person.
Tort Law in Cyberspace
Tort law
A tort is some sort of wrongful act or harm that injures a person. A person who is injured by a tort may sue the wrongdoer for damages
Common Tort Law Actions in Cyberspace
Defamation
Occurs when one person speaks or publishes a false statement of fact about another person that injures that person's reputation.
Libel: written defamation
Slander: oral defamation
Intentional Infliction of Emotional Distress
Also known as the tort of outrage. It is used to address conduct that is so offensive that a reasonable person would say "Outrageous."
A plaintiff must provide evidence that shows:
The defendant acted intentionally or recklessly
Defendant's conduct was extreme and outrageous
Defendant's conduct caused the plaintiff severe emotional distress
Trespass Torts
Two types of trespass torts: trespass on land and trespass to chattels
Chattels mean personal property. A trespass to chattels is intentionally interfering with a person's use or possession of personal property. Defendant's use of the plaintiff's personal property must cause an injury or damage. Courts have extended trespass to chattels cases to online situations.
Privacy Violations
Four privacy torts:
Intrusion into seclusion
Portrayal in a false light
Appropriation of likeness or identity
Public disclosure of private facts.