A new bill will felonize violating terms of service for online services.
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Why Fibbing About Your Age Is Relevant to the Cybersecurity Bill – “Congress is about to decide whether it is a crime to violate terms of service governing your use of Gmail, Facebook, Hulu, or any other on-line service. One of the amendments to the Cybersecurity Act that the Senate is likely to take up this week would substantially increase already severe penalties for violations of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), an important law designed to prevent malicious computer activity, such as hacking. The amendment would eliminate provisions setting lower sentences for first time offenders, establish mandatory minimum sentences for many offenders, make computer crimes “racketeering” predicates, and subject homes to civil asset forfeiture for computer crimes committed inside. The problem is, there is widespread agreement that the statute is already overly broad, sweeping in common online conduct, and the Department of Justice has interpreted it in a way that turns many – maybe most – Internet users into potential criminals.”
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my favorite line from the article:
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The CFAA makes it a crime to use a computer "in excess" of "authorization." This has been read to mean that it is illegal to use a computer in a manner that violates contractual agreements.
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