Its Legal, Ethical & Global Environment 6 th Ed. Its Legal, Ethical & Global Environment 6 th Ed. B...

Its Legal, Ethical &Global Environment 6th Ed.

B U S I N E S SMARIANNE M. JENNINGS

Copyright ©2003 by West Legal Studies in Business, a division of Thomson Learning. All rights reserved.

Chapter 8Cyber Law

2 Copyright ©2003 by West Legal Studies in Business, a division of Thomson Learning. All rights reserved.

Overview of Cyber LawCyber law is traditional law applied to

disputes in the on-line venue. Tort IssuesContract IssuesIntellectual Property IssuesCriminal ViolationsConstitutional Restraints, andSecurities Law Issues


Tort Issues in Cyber LawPrivacy Issues

Email and Worker Privacy• 90 Million Americans send 2.8 billion emails per

day.• Email exists as an electronic record not only

between sender and receiver but across the network as well.

• Do the parties have an expectation to privacy?Generally, Employers do have the right to

access an employee’s email.


Case 8.1 Kyllo v. U.S. (2001)Was the use of thermal imaging a

violation of privacy?Was the use of thermal imaging a

“search” under the Fourth Amendment?Was a search warrant required?

Tort Issues in Cyber Law


Case 8.2 Smyth v. Pillsbury (1996)Did Smyth have an expectation of

privacy?Was Smyth wrongfully discharged?Did Pillsbury violate its own policies?



Email Privacy and Statutory ProtectionsElectronic Communications Privacy Act

(1986) prohibits the interception of “live” communications.

What about the information collected by online e-tailers in their ‘cookies’?



Appropriation in CyberspaceMaking an image or likeness and then

using it for commercial advantage.Defamation in Cyberspace

Elements of traditional defamation are the same.

What about chat room defamation? (Mark S. Jakob’s press release)



Tort Issues in Cyber LawTrespass in Cyberspace

Is sending a ‘robot’ to another internet server a form of trespass?

Case 8.3 Compuserve v. Cyber Promotions (1997)When does free speech in an email

become trespass?


Contract Law in Cyber Space

Formation IssuesOnline contracts formed between

businesses (B2B) and business and consumers (B2C).

Is there an offer and acceptance?Is there a writing?Is the contract enforceable?



Case 8.4 Caspi v. Microsoft Network, LLC (1999)Do you think Caspi received adequate

notice of the contract terms?When was the contract accepted?What about online resolution of this

online contract?



E-SIGN, federal law on Electronic Contracts and Signatures.

UETA, the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act, adopted in over 18 states, including Texas.

These laws provide a framework for enforcing online contracts.


Misrepresentation and Fraud in CyberspaceFederal Trade Commission is actively

involved in shutting down illegal online activity.

Identity Theft occurs when hackers find social security numbers and personal information.



Intellectual Property Issues in Cyber Space

I.P. law has not changed, even though the internet allows the easy exchange of documents, pictures and music.

Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon.com, patented the ‘one-click’ process.

Free Music (Napster) vs. Royalties


Copyright Infringement and TechnologyDigital Millennium Copyright Act provides ‘safe

harbors’ for ISP’s.Protecting Domain Names

ICANNUDRP: domain name disputes

Trademarks in CyberspaceFederal Trademark Dilution Act provides private

cause of action.

Intellectual Property Issues in Cyber Space


Criminal Law Issues in Cyberspace

Most cyber crime is ordinary crime carried out by a computer.

Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and Economic Espionage Act (see Ch.9)

Case 8.5 U.S. v. Czubinski (1997)What is computer fraud?Why did the court caution about the broad

application of the wire fraud?


Constitutional Restraints and Protections in

Cyberspace First Amendment in Cyberspace

Speech on the internet enjoys the same protections as ‘real space’ speech.

Cyber Promotions v. AOL (1996)Child Pornography Prevention Act was

ruled unconstitutional in U.S. v. Hilton (1999) and Free Speech Coalition v. Reno (1999).


Commerce Clause in CyberspaceConstitutional requires some “nexus”

between taxing authority and business paying tax.

Due Process in CyberspaceWhen does an out-of-state, online company

have sufficient presence to be hailed into local court? See Bensusan Restaurant v. King.

Constitutional Restraints and Protections in

Cyberspace


Securities Law Issues in Cyberspace

‘Pump and Dump’ occurs when online traders post information on the web to make gains on their stock.

SEC and FTC still monitor and prosecute on-line security offerings and scams.

Any disclosures made to the public must apply same principles to real-space companies.


Cyberspace and International Law

Traditional notions of American jurisdiction do not always fit on the web.

Case 8.6 Yahoo! v. La Ligue Contre le Racisme (2001)Yahoo! appealed French court order and

U.S. Court held France had no jurisdiction over Yahoo!.

Its Legal, Ethical & Global Environment 6 th Ed. Its Legal, Ethical & Global Environment 6 th Ed. B...

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