The Communications Decency Act

The U.S. Government should not attempt to place restrictions on the internet. The Internet
does not belong to the United States and it is not our responsibility to save the world, so why
are we attempting to regulate something that belongs to the world? The
Telecommunications Reform Act has done exactly that, put regulations on the Internet.

Edward Cavazos quotes William Gibson says, "As described in Neuromancer, Cyberspace
was a consensual hallucination that felt and looked like a physical space but actually was a
computer-generated construct representing abstract data." (1) When Gibson coined that
phrase he had no idea that it would become the household word that it is today. "Cyberspace
now represents a vast array of computer systems accessible from remote physical locations."
(Cavazos 2)

The Internet has grown explosively over the last few years. "The Internet's growth since its
beginnings in 1981. At that time, the number of host systems was 213 machines. At the
time of this writing, twelve years later, the number has jumped to 1,313,000 systems
connecting directly to the Internet." (Cavazos 10)

"Privacy plays a unique role in American law." (Cavazos 13) Privacy is not explicitly
provided for in the Constitution, yet most of the Internet users remain anonymous. Cavazos
says, "Computers and digital communication technologies present a serious challenge to
legislators and judges who try to meet the demands of economic and social change while
protecting this most basic and fundamental personal freedom." Networks and the Internet
make it easy for anyone with the proper equipment to look at information based around the
world instantly and remain anonymous. "The right to conduct at least some forms of speech
activity anonymously has been upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court." (Cavazos 15) In
cyberspace it is extremely uncommon for someone to use their given name to conduct
themselves, but rather they use pseudonyms or "Handles". (Cavazos 14) Not only is it not
illegal to use handles on most systems, but the sysop (System Operator) does not have to
allow anyone access to his data files on who is the person behind the handle. Some sysops
make the information public, or give the option to the user, or don't collect the information at
all.

The Internet brings forth many new concerns regarding crime and computers. With movies
like Wargames, and more recently Hackers, becoming popular, computer crime is being
blown out of proportion. "The word Hacker conjures up a vivid image in the popular
media." (Cavazos 105) There are many types of computer crime that fall under the umbrella
of "Hacking". Cavazos says, "In 1986 Congress passed a comprehensive federal law
outlawing many of the activities commonly referred to as 'hacking.'" (107) Breaking into a
computer system without the proper access being given, traditional hacking, is illegal;
hacking to obtain financial information is illegal; hacking into any department or agency of
the United States is illegal; and passing passwords out with the intent for others to use them
to hack into a system without authorization is also illegal.

"One of the more troubling crimes committed in cyberspace is the illicit trafficking in credit
card numbers and other account information." (Cavazos 109) Many people on the Internet
use their credit cards to purchase things on-line, this is a dangerous practice because anyone
with your card number can do the samething with your card. Millions of dollars worth of
goods and services a year are stolen using credit card fraud. No matter how illegal, many
are not caught. With the use of anonymous names and restricted access to provider's data on
users, it becomes harder to catch the criminals on-line.

The "[Wire Fraud Act] makes it illegal for anyone to use any wire, radio, or television
communication in interstate or foreigncommerce to further a scheme to defraud people of
money or goods." (Cavazos 110) This is interpreted to include telephone communications,
therefore computer communication as well. There is much fraud on the Internet today, and
the fraud will continue until a feasable way to enforce the Wire Fraud Act comes about.

Cavazos continues, "unauthorized duplication, distribution, and use of someone else's
intellectual property is subject to civil and criminal penalties under the U.S. Copyright Act."
(111) This "intellectual property" is defined to include computer software. (Cavazos 111)
Software piracy is very widespread and rampant, and was even before the Internet became
popular.

The spread of Computer Viruses has been advanced by the popularity of the Internet. "A
virus program is the result of someone developing a mischievous program that replicates
itself, much like the living organism for which it is named." (Cavazos 114) Cyberspace
allows for the rapid transfer and downloading of software over the entire world, this includes
viruses. If a file has been corrupted before you download it, you are infecting your system.
If you then give any software in any medium to any other user you run the risk of spreading
the virus, just as if you had taken in a person sick with the bubonic plague. "Whatever the
mechanism, there can be no doubt that virus software can be readily found in cyberspace."
(Cavazos 115)

The Electronic Communications Privacy Act was enacted to protect the rights of the on-line
users within the bounds of the United States. "Today the Electronic Communications
Privacy Act (ECPA) makes it illegal to intercept or disclose private communications and
provides victims of such conduct a right to sue anyone violating its mandate." (Cavazos 17)
There are exceptions to this law; if you are a party of the communication you can release it
to the public, your provider can use the intercepted communication in the normal course of
employment, your provider can intercept mail for the authorities if ordered by a court, if the
communication is public, and your provider can intercept communications to record the fact
of the communication or to protect you from abuse of the system. If you are not cardful as a
criminal then you will get caught, and the number of careful criminals are increasing.

Says Cavazos, "a person or entity providing an electronic communication service to the
public shall not knowingly divulge to anyone the contents o fa communication while in
electronic storage on that service." (21) The sysop is not allowed to read your e-mail,
destroy your e-mail before you read it, nor is he allowed to make public your e-mail unless
that e-mail has already been made public.

"Many systems monitor every keystroke entered by a user. Such keystroke monitoring may
very well constitute an interception for the purposes of the ECPS." (18) If the U/S/
Government is going to continue to place restrictions on the Internet then soon we will have
to do away with free speech and communications. Says Kirsten Macdissi, "Ultmiately,
control will probably have to come from the user or a provider close to the individual user..."
(1995, p.1). Monitoring individual users is still not the answer; to cut down on fraud and
other law violations a new system must be devised to monitor the Internet that does not
violate the right to privacy and does not prevent adults from having a right to free speech.

The Constitution reads, "Amendment 1. Congress shall make no law respecting an
establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of
speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the
Government for a redress of grievances." (1776). If you read the Communications Decency
Act of the Telecommunications Reform Act, there are now seven words taht cannot be used
on the Internet. A direct abridgement of the right to choose what we say. Yet the providers,
who have the right to edit what is submitted, choose let many things slide. The responsibility
should lie with the provider, not the U.S. Government. Says Macdissi, "As an access
provider, Mr. Dale Botkin can see who is connected, but not what they are doing." (1995).
Yet almost all providers keep a running record of what files are communivated through their
servers.

Macdissi quoted Mr. Dale Botkin, president of Probe Technology, an Internet access
provider, as saying, "'There is a grass roots organization called Safe Surf,' Botkin said.
'What they've done is come up with a way for people putting up information on the internet
to flag it as okay or not okay for kids.'" (1995). The system is idiot proof. The information
provider flags his web page as appropriate for children, the Safe Surf program will connect
to the site. If the information provider chooses to not flag his web page, or to flag it as
inappropriate for children, the Safe Surf program will not connect to the site. If this, or
something similar, were mandated for the Internet the Communications Decency Act would
be unnecessary. Says Eric Stone, an Internet user, "[The C.D.A.] attempts to place more
restrictive constraints on the conversation in cyberspace than currently exist in the Senate
Cafeteria..." (1996).

The liability is still with the end-user. The American, or fireigner, who sits in front of their
computer everyday to conduct business, chat with friends, or learn about something he didn't
know about before. For us to take liability away from the end-user we must lay the liability
on either the providers or on the system operators. Cavazos says, "the Constitution only
provides this protection where the government is infringing on your rights." (1994).

When the providers and system operators censor the users it is called editorial discretion.
When the Government does it, it is infringement of privacy. So why are we still trying to let
the Government into our personal and private lives? The popularity of the C.D.A. with the
unknowledgeable and the right conservatives makes it a very popular law. The left ant the
knowledgeable are in the minority, so our power to change this law is not great. The
Government also won't listen to us because we pose less of a threat than the majority in re-
election. This law will have to be recognized for what it is, a blatant violation of the First
Amendment right of free speech, by the average citizen before the C.D.A. will be changed.




Works Cited

Cavazos, E. (1994) Cyberspace and the law: Your rights and duties in the on-line world.
Boston: MIT Press

Macdissi, K. (1995) Enforcement is the problem with regulation of the Internet.
Midlands Business Journal

Stone, E. (1996) A Cyberspace independence declaration. Unpublished Essay,
Heretic@csulb.com (E-Mail address)