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Ontario|Internet & ComputerInternet & Computer 352 E-commerce: Contracting for website development This is a new topic and will be available in March.
353 Computer crime: Hackers, theft and data manipulation
A computer crime is any illegal activity that involves a computer as the object of a crime, as an instrument used to commit a crime, or as a hiding or storage place for evidence related to a crime. For example, computer crime could be the theft of a computer, using a computer to illegally access someone else's computer system, or storing documents relating to a crime on a computer.
- Hackers
The main types of computer crime involve computer hackers, software piracy, stock manipulation, and business fraud. Hackers are people who use modems or other computer communication devices to enter someone else's private computer systems. Hackers can change information, steal data, or access confidential information. Hacking into a computer system is like breaking and entering into a private residence. It is a criminal offence to tamper with computerized information and to break into a private computer system.
You can obtain more information about computer crime from a computer or technology lawyer. You can also obtain more information about software privacy on Legal Line under 'Copyright for Internet information & computer software'.
354 Computer crime: Hate propaganda
The Internet makes it easy for someone to distribute hateful messages to the public. This is usually referred to as "hate propaganda". The Criminal Code of Canada recognizes three offences that relate to hate propaganda. The three offences are: advocating genocide, inciting hatred, and the willful promotion of hatred against an identifiable group. These are criminal offences whether they are committed using a printed copy of a document or whether they are distributed over the Internet.
- Advocating genocide
Advocating genocide means to promote the destruction or elimination of a race of people. For the offence of advocating genocide, the person who makes the statement will be held responsible. An Internet service provider who unknowingly allows its facilities to be used to post these statements will probably not be held responsible for the statements, but someone who posts the message on the Internet probably will be held responsible.
- Inciting hatred
Inciting Hatred is committed when someone makes hateful statements in a public place against an identifiable group that are likely to lead to a breach of the peace. This is not as likely to apply to the Internet as the other two areas of hate propaganda.
- Willful promotion of hatred against an identifiable group
The third offence, the Willful Promotion of Hatred Against an Identifiable Group, is committed when hateful statements directed at a particular group of people are made other than in private communications. Simply saying "I hate everybody" would not be hate propaganda, but saying "I hate everybody who believes a particular religion" would be hate propaganda.
Since the second and third offences do not cover private conversations, e-mails sent between two people would probably not be hate propaganda. However, statements made during an interactive chat session could be considered hate propaganda because chat sessions involve a larger number of people and can be considered a public place.
In addition to criminal penalties for individual offenders who distribute hateful messages to the public, Ontario human rights laws can be used to shut down a website and prevent hate propaganda from being distributed to the public. If you see hate propaganda on the Internet, you should contact the police.
355 Computer crime: Obscenity and protecting children
There is very little regulation or control of what is allowed on the Internet. Although there are many sites that contain nudity and sexually explicit material, most of these are not illegal. However, websites which depict sexual exploitation, violence, or images of children under 18 years old will probably be considered illegal.
There is currently no Canadian law that applies specifically to Internet communication. However, general laws governing obscenity would likely apply to acts committed on the Internet. In the United States, there was a federal law that attempted to regulate obscenity on the Internet, but the United States Supreme Court struck it down because it was vague and because it restricted freedom of speech.
In Canada, the production or distribution of obscene materials is prohibited. It is also an offence to knowingly sell or expose to public view, or to possess for such purposes, obscene materials. A related provision in the Criminal Code makes it an offence to publish, distribute or possess child pornography, subject to certain limited exceptions. This means that a person who visits a website which contains child pornography and views it on his or her computer monitor may be guilty of a criminal offence because a copy of the images may be left on the computer's hard disk.
- How to control what your children see on the Internet
Despite the fact that pornography can easily be found on the Internet, there is a simple way to prevent your children from accessing inappropriate websites. Since very few parents can provide constant personal supervision, you can use one of several software programs to block unwanted images or text. The most popular of these programs include Net Nanny, CyberPatrol and Surf Watch. These can be downloaded off the Internet for free or purchased from a computer store. If necessary, your Internet service provider can probably assist you to obtain and install this type of software.
356 Domain Names
A Domain Name is the address of a particular computer. An example of a Domain Name is www.LegalLine.ca. This is the Domain Name of the Legal Line website. The Domain Name allows a computer to be recognized by and communicate with other computers on the Internet. You must have a Domain Name to set up a web page, but you do not need a Domain Name to surf the web. A Domain Name can be made up of a combination of letters and/or numbers that you choose.
- Registering a Domain Name
There are several things you must do if you would like to have your own Domain Name. To be able to use a Domain Name, it must be registered with a domain registry. A domain registry is a company that regulates the use of Domain Names and ensures that no two people or organizations use the same name. You can register a Domain Name before you create your website. If you want to register a particular Domain Name, you can usually check the web page of a domain registry to see if the name is still available. You can contact the Internet Network Information Center to register Domain Names that end in '.com' or '.org'. Their Internet address is www.rs.internic.net. Or, you can contact CA*networking to register a Domain Name that ends in '.ca'. This identifies the website as originating in Canada.
In addition to making sure that the Domain Name you want to use is not already taken, you should ensure that the name does not infringe the rights of another person. In particular, you should ensure that the Domain Name you select does not infringe someone else's trademark. Because the Internet is so new, the law is not clear about the protection of Domain Names. If you want additional legal protection for your Domain Name, you should also get it trademarked. You can obtain more information about trademarks in the Intellectual Property section of Legal Line .
The requirements to register a Domain Name vary depending on the applicable domain registry. The rules in both Canada and the United States are currently under review. You should consult a lawyer who specializes in Internet and Electronic Commerce for up-to-date information.
357 Copyright: Information and computer software
Copyright laws make it illegal to copy any form of original work without the permission of the author. The author or creator of a work has certain legal rights. These rights apply even if the work does not contain a statement saying that the work is copyrighted. The general rules of copyright also apply to downloading Internet information and using computer software.
- Copying Information from the Internet
If you copy Internet information or images without the author's permission, you are probably unlawfully infringing on someone's copyright. You can only legally copy someone else's work if you have the author's permission to copy it, or if your actions fall within certain exceptions set out in the Copyright Act such as those applying to private study or research. As a result of international treaties, most copyrighted material that originates outside Canada will likely still be protected by Canadian copyright law.
There should be no doubt that copyrights, trade-marks and other aspects of intellectual property law apply to the Internet in the same way as other media. For example, you cannot post the works of others on your website without permission (adding a line identifying the source is not good enough to escape prosecution). Similarly, you cannot copy a substantial amount of another's work from the Web and claim it as your own.
It is not unusual for Internet users to assume that any material on websites is in the public domain and can be used without permission. That is just not so. A work enters the public domain only when its copyright expires (typically 50 years after the death of the author in Canada and even longer in other countries).
- Using computer programs
Copyright law protects many forms of expression, including written works, sound recordings, multimedia works, video clips, and computer programs. When you buy a computer program, you usually only acquire a licence to use that program. Unless permitted under the licensing agreement, it is illegal to copy the computer program, to load the program onto more than one computer, or to modify the program so that it can be used by more than one person on a network. This is often called piracy. If you are buying a computer program for use by three employees, you must buy three licences of the program.
Copyright infringement can be a serious criminal offence. Depending on the seriousness of the crime, you could be fined or sent to jail. If you have developed computer software or Internet information that you would like to protect, you should contact a lawyer. Additional information about Intellectual Property Law is also available in the Intellectual Property Law section of Legal Line .
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