Cyber Law Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Cyber Law - Research Paper Example 1. Cyberspace, cybercrime and cyber law: Before going any further, we have to know what â€Å"Cybercrime† and â€Å"Cyber law† really is and understand the concept of â€Å"Cyber crime† and â€Å"Cyber law.† â€Å"‘Cybercrime’ †¦ consists of engaging in conduct that is outlawed because it threatens order† (Brenner 10). Thus, cybercrime is something which has similarity to the term crime, as all crimes are illegal and all crimes threaten order. The term ‘cyberspace’ was first coined by William Gibson in 1982 which actually describes a â€Å"mentally constructed virtual environment within which computer activity takes place.† â€Å"Cybercrime† means the crimes that are committed within that space and it refers to the risks online (Wall 10). Thus, the term â€Å"cybercrime† indicates crimes that can be committed in a networked computer. It includes crimes like hacking, pornography, crimes related with online financial transactions, credit card frauds, email hijacking, cyber sabotage, virus attacks, etc. The definition of cyber law as given in the business dictionary states that cyber law is a â€Å"rapidly evolving area of civil and criminal law† which is applicable â€Å"to the use of computers, and activities performed and transactions conducted over internet and other networks.† (â€Å"Cyber law†). It includes laws related with electronic copyright, web image trademarks, software piracy, domain name disputes, electronic stocking, online business information, etc. (â€Å"Definition of cyber law†). 2. Different types of cyber crimes: 2.1 Offences against confidentiality, Integrity and Availability of Computer and System:1 It includes crimes that are against any one of the three principles of confidentiality, integrity and availability. The different crimes that can be included in this category can be offences of illegal access like â€Å"hackingâ₠¬  and â€Å"cracking.† â€Å"Hacking† means unlawful access to a computer. It includes offences like breaking the password of protected websites (Gercke 20-21). The second form of crime in this category includes â€Å"Data Espionage† which means accessing sensitive information without the permission of the host. The two approaches which are used to obtain information can be accessing a computer, and extracting information, and using manipulation to make users disclose their access codes, which is also known as â€Å"phishing† (Gercke 23-25). The other crimes coming within this category are illegal interception, data interference and system interference. 2.2 Content-related offences:2 The aforementioned category includes offences of publishing content which is illegal or obnoxious. It includes erotic or pornographic material excluding child pornography. Many countries criminalize access of pornographic content by minors. Secondly, child pornography is co nsidered as a criminal act and is also punishable (Gercke 32). The other types of offences included in this category are racism, hate speech, glorification of offence, religious offences, illegal gambling and online games, libel and false information, spam and related threats, other types of illegal content like unlawful sale of products, etc. (Gercke 34-40) 2.3 Copyright and Trademark-related