Computer Crime
...across the keyboard. While it appears that he is only word
processing or playing a game, he may be committing a felony.
In the state of Connecticut, computer crime is defined as: 53a-251. Computer
Crime
(a) Defined. A person commits computer crime when he violates any of the
provisions of this section.
(b) Unauthorized access to a computer system. (1) A person is guilty of the
computer crime of unauthorized access to a computer system when, knowing that he
is not authorized to do so, he accesses or causes the be accessed any computer
system without authorization...
(c) Theft of computer services. A person is guilty of the computer crime o f
theft of computer services when he accesses or causes to be accessed or
otherwise uses or causes to be used a computer system with the intent to obtain
unauthorized computer services.
(d) Interruption of computer services. A person is guilty of the computer
crime of interruption of computer services when he, without authorization,
intentionally or recklessly disrupts or degrades or causes the disruption or
degradation of computer services or denies or causes the denial of computer
services to an authorized user of a computer system.
(e) Misuse of computer system information. A person is guilty of the computer
crime of misuse of computer system information when: (1) As a result of his
accessing or causing to be accessed a computer system, he intentionally makes or
causes to be made an unauthorized display, use, disclosure or copy, in any form,
of data residing in, communicated by or produced by a computer system.
Penalties for committing computer crime range from a class B misdemeanor to a
class B felony. The severity of the penalty is determined based on the monetary
value of the damages inflicted. (2)
The law has not always had much success stopping computer crime. In 1990 there
was a nationwide...
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