Essentials of Business Law, 9h edition
INSTRUCTOR’S MANUAL
Chapter 29 Computer Privacy and Speech
LESSON OVERVIEW
While the previous chapter dealt with business and technology, Chapter 29 explains how the advent of
computer usage created the need for new laws to protect privacy in the United States. The chapter
discusses computer privacy in relation to the possible threats to a person’s right to privacy, thereby
dwelling on computer crimes and identifying ways in which unauthorized access to computers may
invite violations of rights. Pertaining to these issues, the major provisions of the Electronic
Communications Privacy Act, the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, the Electronic Funds Transfer Act,
and other federal and state legislation that covers computer crime are discussed at length in this chapter.
The concept of speech is also taken up, both in a traditional context, as well as in relation to computer
usage. Finally, students’ understanding of the topic is evaluated through objective-type questions,
discussion questions, and case scenarios. Students are encouraged to conduct their own research
through the use of the Internet and other sources.
CHAPTER OUTLINE
A. COMPUTER PRIVACY (pp. 484-486)
1. Cookies (p. 484)
2. Electronic Mail (pp. 485-486)
B. COMPUTER CRIME (pp. 486-487)
C. COMPUTER CRIME LEGISLATION (pp. 487-490)
1. The Electronic Communications Privacy Act (p. 488)
2. The USA Patriot Act (p. 488)
3. The Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (p. 488)
4. The Electronic Funds Transfer Act (p. 489)
5. General Criminal Law (p. 489)
6. Computer Gambling (p. 489-490)
D. COMPUTER SPEECH (pp. 490-493)
1. Harmful Speech (pp. 490-491)
2. Liability of an Internet Service Provider (pp. 491-492)
3. Obscenity (p. 492)
4. Spam (p. 492-493)
E. SOCIAL MEDIA (pp. 493-494)
1. Social Media Privacy (p. 493)
2. Social Media Crime (p. 493)
3. Social Media Speech (pp. 493-494)
F. CHAPTER SUMMARY (p. 494)
G. CHAPTER ASSESSMENT (pp. 495-500)
1. Matching Legal Terms (p. 495)
2. True/False Quiz (pp. 495-496)
3. Discussion Questions (pp. 496-497)
4. Thinking Critically About the Law (pp. 497-4981)
5. Case Questions (p. 498)
6. Case Analysis (pp. 499-500)
7. Legal Research (p. 500)
KEY TERMS
Key terms are listed at the beginning of the chapter, posted in the student textbook margins, and placed
in bold in the copy. They are listed here for your quick reference.
§ cookie (p. 484)
§ spyware (p. 485)
§ phishing (p. 485)
§ spoofing (p. 485)
§ hacker (p. 487)
§ virus (p. 487)
§ Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA) (p. 488)
§ USA Patriot Act (p. 488)
§ Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) (p. 488)
§ worm (p. 488)
§ Electronic Funds Transfer Act (EFTA) (p. 488)
§ public figure (p. 491)
§ spam (p. 492)
§ Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act (CAN-SPAM) (p. 493)
§ Social media (p. 493)
LEARNING OUTCOMES
The chapter Learning Outcomes will help you and the students discover the concepts and information
that should be understood upon completion of the chapter. You may want to access the PowerPoint
(PPT) slides for Chapter 29 when you begin the study of the chapter and discuss each Learning
Outcome. Each Learning Outcome will be covered separately in the Instructor Notes, but they are
shown here in total as an overview of the sections being presented in Chapter 29. The corresponding
text page numbers and PPT slides are listed next to each outcome. These slides should be used to
reinforce the main points of the lecture.
After completing this chapter, the students will be able to:
1. Discuss computer privacy and explain the possible threats to a person’s right to privacy. (pp.
484-486, PPT slides 2-6)
2. Describe computer crime and identify ways in which the unauthorized access to computers invites
violations of rights. (pp. 486-487, PPT slides 7-10)
3. Explain the major provisions of the Electronic Communications Privacy Act, the Computer Fraud
and Abuse Act, the Electronic Funds Transfer Act, and other federal and state legislation that covers
computer crime. (pp. 487-490, PPT slides 11-18)
4. Discuss the concept of speech in a traditional context, as well as in relation to computer usage.
(pp. 490-493, PPT slides 19-23)
5. Describe the law surrounding social media, and provide examples of legal issues associated with
this form of communication. (pp. 493-494)
LECTURE OUTLINE
A. COMPUTER PRIVACY
The great majority of people in the United States either own or have access to a computer and the
Internet. As a result, there is a new and increasingly significant threat to individual privacy.
1. Cookies
A cookie is a file that is imbedded on the hard drive of a computer, often without a
person’s knowledge, that collects and stores information about the user and his or her
behavior, including the Web sites that have been visited. Information gathered from
minors through cookies is regulated by the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act.
2. Electronic Mail
The Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA) makes it a federal crime to monitor
e-mail during real time, that is, when it is being sent or received. The ECPA specifically
provides that employers may view e-mail. Even if an employer promises not to read the
employee’s e-mail messages, courts in some states have still ruled that the promise does
not create a reasonable expectation of privacy, and the employer may change his or her
mind later, without letting the employee know. The ECPA also grants an Internet service
provider (ISP) the right to monitor e-mail messages without the subscriber’s consent.
B. COMPUTER CRIME
Many computer crimes, particularly those in which the computer is used as a means of engaging in
criminal activity, are simply technologically advanced versions of standard crimes. Another type of
computer crime concerns unauthorized access to computer data.
C. COMPUTER CRIME LEGISLATION
Specific computer crime statutes have been enacted by both federal and state legislatures.
1. The Electronic Communications Privacy Act
The Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA) is a statute that addresses
hacking and other forms of illegal conduct by making it a federal crime to gain
unauthorized access to any communication that is stored on a computer system. This law
states that individuals may not gain access without permission to an electronic
communication system, or to exceed the authorization they have been granted. It is also
a crime under the ECPA to disclose to a third party the contents of stored computer
information that has been obtained without permission.
2. The USA Patriot Act
The USA Patriot Act (which stands for United and Strengthening America by Providing
Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism) was passed in response
to the events that transpired on September 11, 2001. Specific provisions of the USA
Patriot Act include (1) lowering the standards required for law enforcement officials and
government agents to monitor e-mail and personal electronic information; (2) allowing
increased government cybersurveillance; and (3) making it easier to charge persons with
serious computer-related crimes.
3. The Computer Fraud and Abuse Act
The Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), the first federal computer crime statute
in the United States, covers the following areas:
• National defense
It is an unlawful use of a computer to gain access to secret information that could
affect national security.
• Financial institutions
It is unlawful to use without authorization a computer to gain access to the
financial records of a financial institution––including information held in any file
maintained by a consumer-reporting agency.
• Government computers
It is unlawful to access without authorization any department or agency
computer used for federal government business.
Even if a person’s intent is good, if his or her conduct accidentally causes
damage, he or she may be prosecuted for a federal crime under the CFAA.
4. The Electronic Funds Transfer Act
The Electronic Funds Transfer Act (EFTA) makes it a federal offense to use any
device that is part of an electronic transfer mechanism to steal money, goods, or services
or to alter data, interrupt wire transmissions, or use stolen codes or passwords, when the
purpose of such activity is to obtain something of value unlawfully.
5. General Criminal Law
Various federal criminal statutes, not originally concerned with computers, are still
frequently used to prosecute those who commit computer crimes. The most widely used
of these statutes are those that prohibit fraudulent activity using the U.S. mail, known as
mail fraud. Also used to prosecute computer crime are the statutes that prohibit the use
of the telephone and other electronic communication equipment for fraudulent activity,
known as wire fraud.
6. Computer Gambling
Federal and state laws make most forms of gambling illegal. However, there are
numerous exceptions to these regulations in terms of the form of gambling. The laws
governing online gambling vary from state to state, and most states have pending
regulations that would severely restrict how and when such gambling may take place.
Much more problematic is the issue of how to regulate offshore gambling, where
consumer protection laws generally do not apply. Because obtaining jurisdiction over
the companies that operate online gambling is difficult, special legislation would need to
be enacted to allow federal officials to take action when necessary.
D. COMPUTER SPEECH
Many of the laws that protect an individual’s right to freedom of speech in traditional contexts, such as
in public or in print, also apply to the expression of ideas using computers or network technologies,
such as the Internet.
1. Harmful Speech
The United States has always had a deep commitment toward maintaining an
individual’s right to freedom of speech. Protection afforded to freedom of speech is
embodied in the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
It is important to note that the rules of defamation vary depending upon whether one is
or is not a public figure.
2. Liability of an Internet Service Provider
When a person is defamed in cyberspace, often he or she is not able to determine the
identity of the individual who made the defamatory statements. People in cyberspace
frequently do not disclose their identities but use fictitious names instead. When
individuals learn that someone has posted an untruth about them, especially when such
untruth harms them professionally, they often attempt to hold their ISP liable. Courts
have consistently held, however, that ISPs are not liable for defamatory statements made
while using their service unless they had prior knowledge of such.
3. Obscenity
Sometimes pictures or words that are contained on Web sites are alleged to be obscene.
These pictures and words––both are considered speech––are legally obscene if they
depict sexual conduct in a manner that is patently offensive under contemporary
community standards, appeal to the prurient interest, and, taken as a whole, lack serious
literary, scientific, artistic, or political value.
4. Spam
Not all e-mail messages are welcomed, requested, or expected. Unsolicited e-mails sent
for commercial purposes are popularly referred to as spam. Spam is undesirable because
it can drain an ISP’s resources, strain network bandwidth, and clog a user’s e-mail
folders. In 2004, a federal statute, the Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited
Pornography and Marketing Act (CAN-SPAM Act), went into effect. Under this
statute, it remains allowable for a seller to solicit via e-mail.
E. SOCIAL MEDIA
Social media is online technology in which large groups of people interact, while creating, sharing, and
exchanging information, ideas and personal messages in virtual communities and networks. The laws
surrounding social media are essentially identical to those impacting other forms of public
communications media – including television, radio, mass emails, websites, etc.
INSTRUCTOR NOTES
A resulting answer or explanation is provided below for each Learning Outcome in Chapter 29. Every
outcome is also mapped to corresponding text page numbers, PPT slides, and relevant chapter
assessment exercises and activities for ease of reference and use.
LO1. Discuss computer privacy and explain the possible threats to a person’s right to privacy.
The rapid advances in technology being experienced today present a new and increasingly significant
threat to individual privacy. Cookies can be used to invade a person’s privacy because they contain
information about an Internet user’s behavior, including the sites he or she visits on the Web. Spyware
can change a computer’s security settings or steal a victim’s personal information, such as e-mail
addresses, bank account numbers, and credit card numbers. Phishing can trick individuals into
disclosing such personal information via e-mail. E-mail also can be used to violate a person’s privacy
because it can sometimes be intercepted and read by unintended recipients.
Text Pages: 484-486
PowerPoint: Slides 2-6
Discussion Questions: 21-22
Thinking Critically About the Law: 28-29
Case Questions: 32
Case Analysis: 35-36
LO2. Describe computer crime and identify ways in which the unauthorized access to computers
invites violations of rights.
Unauthorized access to computers invites the following violations of rights: invasion of privacy;
unauthorized use of the computer itself; manipulation of financial, medical, and other records; and
unauthorized access to databases.
Text Pages: 486-487
PowerPoint: Slides 7-10
Discussion Questions: 23-24
Case Questions: 33
LO3. Explain the major provisions of the Electronic Communications Privacy Act, the Computer
Fraud and Abuse Act, the Electronic Funds Transfer Act, and other federal and state legislation that
covers computer crime.
The ECPA is a federal statute that makes it a crime to gain unauthorized access to any communication
stored on a computer system. The CFAA protects the electronic communications systems involved in
government, finance, and national defense. The EFTA makes it a federal offense to use a device that is
part of an electronic transfer mechanism to steal money, goods, or services or to alter transmissions,
steal passwords, and so forth for the purpose of obtaining something of value illegally. Other statutes,
many not intended to cover computers, are now applied to computers and networks.
Text Pages: 487-490
PowerPoint: Slides 11-18
Discussion Questions: 25
Thinking Critically About the Law: 27
Case Analysis: 37
LO4. Discuss the concept of speech in a traditional context, as well as in relation to computer
usage.
While the U.S. Constitution guarantees the First Amendment right to freedom of speech, this right is
not absolute. Regulated or prohibited speech includes obscenity, defamation, certain one-to-one
communications, threats to person or property, and the intentional infliction of emotional distress. Laws
to protect computer users from obscenity and spam are currently developing. Obscene material can be
illegal if it is deemed patently offensive by community standards, appeals to prurient interests, and
lacks any serious value. Spam is legal but is subject to the provisions of the CAN-SPAM Act.
Text Pages: 490-493
PowerPoint: Slides 19-23
Discussion Questions: 26
Thinking Critically About the Law: 30-31
Case Questions: 34
Case Analysis: 38
LO5. Describe the law surrounding social media, and provide examples of legal issues associated
with this form of communication.
Social media is online technology in which large groups of people interact, while creating, sharing, and
exchanging information, ideas and personal messages in virtual communities and networks. The laws
surrounding social media are essentially identical to those impacting other forms of public
communications media – including television, radio, mass emails, websites, etc.
Text Pages: 493-494