Frequently Asked Internet Crime Questions
Q: Is Spam illegal?
A: Spam-or unsolicited e-mail-is not illegal in most states. It is regulated, however, and recipients must be given a way to inform the sender that they do not want to receive any more e-mail messages from that sender.
Q: Is distributing a computer virus a crime?
A: Yes. Federal law makes it a crime to cause the transmission of a program, information, code, or command that causes more than $5000 damage to a computer or computers, or that alters medical records, causes physical injury to any person, threatens public safety, or damages a government computer. The maximum penalty is a prison sentence of up to ten years, a fine of up to $250,000, or a combination of prison time and a fine.
Many states also have enacted anti-virus laws. States that do not have specific laws against disseminating a virus may prosecute offenders under other laws, such as laws that prohibit theft of computer services.
Q: My computer automatically forwarded an e-mail that had a virus attached to it, but I didn’t know the virus was there. Can I be prosecuted for distributing a virus?
A: No. The law prohibits knowingly sending out a virus. If you did not know that a virus was being sent out, and you had no part in the creation or transmission of the virus, you are not criminally liable.
Q: I copied some software online, and gave friends some of the copies without getting permission first. Can I be prosecuted for copyright infringement?
A: In order for copyright infringement to be a criminal act, the government must prove that ten or more illegal copies, with a total value of more than $2500, were made within a single 180-day period. It does not matter that the copies were not made for commercial purposes, or that the copier did not intend to charge for the copies.
Note that you may be civilly liable to the owner of the copyright, even if you did not make ten or more copies, or if the value did not exceed $2500. The number of copies and value are only elements of a criminal case.
Q: If I put a disclaimer on my website that says nothing on the site is meant to infringe anyone else’s copyright, will that be a defense to a copyright infringement prosecution?
A: No. In fact, the U.S. Department of Justice has advised prosecutors that such disclaimers help to prove that the website operator knew his or her conduct was unlawful, thus helping the prosecution to make its case that the infringement was done knowingly.
Q: I took some pictures of my toddlers in the bath. Am I guilty of distributing child pornography if I e-mail these pictures to other family members?
A: Probably not. While there are many stories about people being investigated or prosecuted on child pornography charges for taking nude snapshots of their children, these cases do not result in the conviction of the parents who took the pictures. A picture that does not include the “lascivious exhibition of the genitals or pubic area” does not fall within the federal definition of child pornography.
Q: Who makes the laws that govern the Internet?
A: There is no one governmental authority over the Internet. Federal and state governments have enacted laws that regulate certain transactions, including those that take place over the Internet.
Q: Where do I report an Internet crime?
A: As with any crime, the answer to that question depends upon the crime that was committed. For example, financial or banking crimes (such as “4-1-9 scams”) are investigated by the U.S. Secret Service, while fraud crimes are investigated by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Child pornography and related offenses are prosecuted by the FBI, or local law enforcement.
