Cyber Crime: Law and Practice

Foreword
Introduction
List of Contributors
List of Abbreviations
Table of Cases
Table of Statutes
Table of Statutory Instruments
Table of Conventions

1OFFENCES INVOLVING MISUSE OF COMPUTERS
1.1Background to the Computer Misuse Act 1990
1.2Section 1 of the Computer Misuse Act 1990 – unauthorised access to computers
1.3Section 2 of the Computer Misuse Act 1990 – unauthorised access with intent to commit or facilitate further offences
1.4Section 3 of the Computer Misuse Act 1990 – unauthorised acts with intent to impair, or recklessness as to the impairment of, a computer
1.5Types of computer misuse and charges under the Computer Misuse Act 1990
1.6Section 3ZA of the Computer Misuse Act 1990 – unauthorised acts causing, or creating risk of, serious damage
1.7Section 3A of the Computer Misuse Act 1990 – making, supplying or obtaining articles for use in offences under Section 1 or section 3
1.8Meaning of ‘computer’ with regard to offences under the Computer Misuse Act 1990
1.9Jurisdictional issues for offences under the Computer Misuse Act 1990

2OFFENCES INVOLVING DATA PROTECTION
2.1Overview
2.2Section 170 of the Data Protection Act 2018 – unlawful obtaining or disclosure of personal data
2.3Access and disclosure of personal data
2.4Investigatory offences

3OFFENCES RELATING TO PROPERTY
3.1Theft under the Theft Act 1968
3.2Intellectual property theft – infringement of copyright under section 107 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988

4OFFENCES INVOLVING COMMUNICATIONS
4.1Introduction
4.2Section 127 of the Communications Act 2003 – improper use of public electronic communications network
4.3Section 1 of the Malicious Communications Act 1988 – sending letters, etc. with intent to cause distress or anxiety
4.4Applicability of section 127 of the Communications Act 2003 and section 1 of the Malicious Communications Act 1988 to computer communications
4.5Unlawful interception of communications

5OFFENCES RELATING TO INTERNET OR COMPUTER CONTENT
5.1Introduction
5.2Section 1 of the Protection of Children Act 1978 and section 160 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988 – making, possession, publication and distribution of indecent images of children
5.3Section 62 of the Coroners and Justice Act 2009 and section 63 of the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008 – possession of prohibited images of children and possession of extreme pornographic images
5.4Section 2 of the Obscene Publications Act 1959 – publishing an obscene article or having an obscene article for gain
5.5Section 53 of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 – ancillary offence of failing to disclose access to computers

6CYBER HARASSMENT AND CYBER STALKING
6.1Offences Against the Person
6.2Sections 2 and 2A of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 – harassment and stalking

7CONTEMPT OF COURT, THE INTERNET AND COURT REPORTING
7.1Criminal contempt of court

8CRIMINAL EVIDENCE AND COMPUTER TECHNOLOGY
8.1General background to the rules of criminal evidence
8.2Hearsay and computer-derived evidence
8.3Police powers of seizure of computer evidence

APPENDICES
A1Criminal Procedure Rules 2015
A2New Social Media Guidelines CPS