Therefore, there are three motivations for studying the legal section
to know what protection the law provides for computers and data;
to appreciate laws that protect the rights of others with respect to computers, programs, and data; and
to understand existing laws as a basis for recommending new laws to protect computers, data, and people.
::->There are three common used ways to provide protections by laws:
@Copyright
Copyright gives the author/programmer exclusive right to make copies of the expression and sell them to the public. That is, only the author can sell copies of the author’s book (except, of course, for booksellers or others working as the agents of the author).
< style="font-style: italic;">Copyrights for Computer Works
The algorithm is the idea, and the statements of the programming language are the expression of the idea.
Therefore, protection is allowed for the program statements themselves, but not for the design: copying the code intact is prohibited, but reimplementing the algorithm is permitted.
Examples of Copyrights
A second problem with the copyright protection for computer works is the requirement that the work be published.
A program may be published by distributing copies of its object code, for example on a disk. However, if the source code is not distributed, it has not been published.
An alleged infringer cannot have violated a copyright on source code if the source code was never published.
A copyright controls the right to copy and distribute; it is not clear that allowing distributed access is a form of distribution in distributed system.
@Patent
Patents are unlike copyrights in that they protect inventions, not works of the mind.
The distinction between patents and copyrights is that patents were intended to apply to the results of science, technology, and engineering, whereas copyrights were meant to cover works in the arts, literature, and written scholarship.
The patents law excludes newly discovered laws of nature … [and] mental processes.
Computer Objects
The patent has not encouraged patents of computer software.
For a long time, computer programs were seen as the representation of an algorithm was a fact of nature, which is not subject to patent.
There was a case on a request to patent a process for converting decimal numbers into binary. The Supreme Court rejected the claim, saying it seemed to attempt to patent an abstract idea, in short, an algorithm. But the underlying algorithm is precisely what most software developers would like to protect.
@Trade Secret
A trade secret is information that gives one company a competitive edge over others. For example, the formula for a soft drink is a trade secret, as is a mailing list of customers, or information about a product due to be announced in a few months.
The distinguishing characteristic of a trade secret is that it must always be kept secret. The owner must take precautions to protect the secret, such as storing it in a safe, encrypting it in a computer file, or making employees sign a statement that they will not disclose the secret.
Trade secret protection applies very well to computer software.
The underlying algorithm of a computer program is novel, but its novelty depends on nobody else’s knowing it.
Trade secret protection allows distribution of the result of a secret (the executable program) while still keeping the program design hidden.
Trade secret protection does not cover copying a product (specifically a computer program), so that it cannot protect against a pirate who sells copies of someone else’s program without permission.
However, trade secret protection makes it illegal to steal a secret algorithm and use it in another product.
Rights of Employees and Employers
• Employers hire employees to generate ideas and make products. Thus, the protection offered by copyrights, patents, and trade secrets applies to the idea and products.
• However, considering the issue of who owns the ideas and products is much more complex.
• Ownership is an issue of computer security because it relates to the rights of an employer to protect the secrecy and integrity of works produced by the employees.
Ownership of the Products
• Ownership of a patent - The person who owns a work under patent or copyright law is the inventor.
• Therefore, employee can has the right of the patent.
• However, in a patent law, it is important to know who files the patent. If an employee lets an employer patent an invention, the employer is deemed to own the patent and , therefore, the right to the invention.
• The employer also has the right to patent if the employee’s job functions included inventing the product.
• Ownership of a copyright - Ownership of a copy right is similar to ownership of a patent.
• The author (programmer) is the presumed owner of the work.
• Normally, the owner has all rights to an object.
• However, a special situation known as work for hire applies to many copyrights for development of software or other products.
• Trade secret protection - In the event a trade secret is revealed, the owner can prosecute the revealer for damages suffered.
• But first, ownership must be established because only the owner can be harmed.
• A company owns the trade secrets of its business as confidential data. As soon as a secret is developed, the company becomes the owner.
• Employment contracts - Sometimes there is no contract between the software developer and a possible employer. However, commonly an employment contract will spell out rights of ownership. Having a contract is desirable both for employees and employers so that both will understand their rights and responsibilities.
Why Computer Crime is Hard to Define?
Understanding
*Neither courts, lawyers, police agents, nor jurors necessarily understand computers.
Fingerprints
*Polices and courts for years depended on tangible evidence, such as fingerprints. But with many computer crimes there simply are no fingerprints, no physical clues.
Form of Assets
*We know what cash is, or diamonds, or even negotiable securities. But are 20 invisible magnetic spots really equivalent to a million dollars?
Juveniles
*Many computer crimes involve juveniles. Society understands immaturity and can treat even very serious crimes by juveniles as being done with less understanding than when the same crime is committed by an adult.
Type of Crimes Committed
Telecommunications Fraud
It is defined as avoiding paying telephone charges by misrepresentation as a legitimate user.
Embezzlement
It involves using the computer to steal or divert funds illegally.
Hacking
It denotes a compulsive programmer or user who explores, tests, and pushes computers and communications system to their limits - often illegal activities.
Automatic Teller Machine Fraud
It involves using an ATM machine for a fraudulent activity - faking deposits, erasing withdrawals, diverting funds from another person’s account through stolen PIN numbers.
Records Tampering
It involves the alteration, loss, or destruction of computerised records.
Acts of Disgruntled Employees
They often use a computer for revenge against their employer.
Child Pornography and Abuse
They are illegal or inappropriate arts of a sexual nature committed with a minor or child, such as photographing or videotaping.
Drug Crimes
Drug dealers use computers to communicate anonymously with each other and to keep records of drug deals.
Organised Crime
For all kinds of crime, the computer system may be used as their tools.
Cryptography and the Law
• Cryptography is a regulated activity, but the issues are a little less clear-cut, in part because there is little open discussion of the subject.
• Everybody wants cryptography e.g. business, individual, criminal, bankers, and government.
• France prohibits use of encryption by individuals, asserting that in order to control terrorism, it must have access to communications of suspected terrorists.
What are Ethics?
• Society relies on ethics or morals to prescribe generally accepted standards of proper behaviour.
• An ethic is an objectively defined standard of right and wrong within a group of individuals.
• These ethics may influence by religious believe. Therefore, through choices, each person defines a personal set of ethical practices.
• A set of ethical principles is called and ethical system.
Differences of The Law and Ethics
• Firstly, laws apply to every one, even you do not agree with the laws. However, you are forced to respect and obey the laws.
• Secondly, there is a regular process through the courts for determining which law supersedes which if two laws conflict.
• Thirdly, the laws and the courts identify certain actions as right and others as wrong. From a legal standpoint, anything that is not illegal is right.
• Finally, laws can be enforced, and there are ways to rectify wrongs done by unlawful behaviour.
Ethical Issue in Computer Security
SUMMARY
Laws are formally adopted rules for acceptable behavior in modern society. Ethics are socially acceptable behaviors. The key difference between laws and ethics is that laws carry the sanction of a governing authority and ethics do not.
Organizations formalize desired behaviors in documents called policies. Policies must be read and agreed to before they are binding.
Civil law represents a wide variety of laws that are used to govern a nation or state. Criminal law addresses violations that harm society and are enforced by agents of the state or nation. Tort law is conducted by means of individual lawsuits rather than criminal prosecution by the state.
Private law focuses on individual relationships, public law addresses regulatory agencies.
Deterrence can prevent an illegal or unethical activity from occurring. Deterrence requires significant penalties, a high probability of apprehension, and an expectation of enforcement of penalties.
As part of an effort to encourage positive ethics, a number of professional organizations have established codes of conduct or codes of ethics that their members are expected to follow.
END OF LECTURE 10
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