Computer Misuse Act
Data stored electronically is easier to misuse and this can have an impact on data becoming corrupted, either accidentally or deliberately.
Types of computer misuse
Misuse of computers and communications systems comes in several forms:
Hacking
Hacking is where an unauthorised person uses a A group of interconnected computers/devices., internet or A piece of hardware that connects a computer to the internet. connection to gain access past security passwords or other security to see data stored on another computer. Hackers sometimes use software hacking tools and often target, for example, particular sites on the internet.
Data misuse and unauthorised transfer or copying
Copying and illegal transfer of data is very quick and easy using online computers and large storage devices such as A device used to store large amounts of data. , A thumb-sized portable storage device used primarily for transferring files between computers. and A plastic, circular disc used to store music, video or data. DVDs are optical storage media, similar to CDs and Blu-ray discs.. Personal data, company research and written work, such as novels and textbooks, cannot be copied without the copyright holder's permission.
Copying and distributing copyrighted software, music and film
This includes copying music and movies with computer equipment and distributing it on the internet without the A set of rights that prevents people copying and distributing a piece of work without the copyright holder's permission. holder's permission. This is a widespread misuse of both computers and the internet that breaks copyright regulations.
Email and chat room abuses
Internet services such as Accessed on the internet, users can meet to chat in real-time, messages are typed out but voice chat rooms exist too. and Electronic mail. A method for sending messages and files to other people. have been the subject of many well-publicised cases of impersonation and deception where people who are online pretend to have a different identity. Chat rooms have been used to spread rumours about well known personalities. A growing area of abuse of the internet is email spam, where millions of emails are sent to advertise both legal and illegal products and services.
Pornography
A lot of indecent material and pornography is available through the internet and can be stored in electronic form. There have been several cases of material, which is classified as illegal, or which shows illegal acts, being found stored on computers followed by prosecutions for possession of the material.
Identity and financial abuses
This topic includes misuse of stolen or fictional credit card numbers to obtain goods or services on the internet, and use of computers in financial frauds. These can range from complex well thought out deceptions to simple uses such as printing counterfeit money with colour printers.
Viruses
A small program written to cause harm to a computer. are relatively simple Sequences of instructions for a computer. written by people and designed to cause nuisance or damage to computers or their files.