U.S. House of Representatives pass I-SPY bill

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By Steve Ragan May 23, 2007, 15:36 GMT

Zoe Lofgren (D-San Jose) and Bob Goodlatte (R-Virginia) are still applauding their House colleagues for passing HR 1525, the Internet Spyware (I-SPY) Prevention Act of 2007 this past Tuesday. The bill makes it a criminal offense, punishable by a prison term of up to five years with stiff fines, to access a computer without authorization to further another federal criminal offense.Additionally, the bill authorizes $10 million USD to the Department of Justice in order to help with its efforts to combat Spyware, Phishing, and Pharming scams. Phishing scams use fake e-mail messages or Web sites to trick people online into handing over bank account information, credit card numbers, and other personal information. Pharming attacks re-direct Internet traffic to fake sites in order to steal personal information, and Spyware encompasses several potential risks, including the promotion of identity theft, by harvesting personal information from users’ computers.“I am pleased that my first stand-alone bill to pass this Congress is one that both protects Americans on the internet and fosters continued technological innovation,” said Rep. Zoe Lofgren. “HR 1525 is a bipartisan measure that identifies the truly unscrupulous acts associated with Spyware and subjects them to criminal punishment.” Lofgren added that the bill is the correct approach because it focuses on behavior and not technology. “It targets the worst forms of Spyware without unduly burdening technological innovation. HR 1525 avoids these pitfalls by targeting illegal conduct and providing a rigorous enforcement mechanism.”“By imposing criminal penalties on these bad actors, this legislation will help deter the use of Spyware, and will thus help protect consumers from these aggressive attacks. At the same time, the legislation leaves the door open for innovative technology developments to continue to combat Spyware programs.”Under the new bill it would be an offence to “intentionally access a computer without authorization, or intentionally exceed authorized access, by causing a computer program or code to be copied onto the computer and using that program or code to further another federal criminal offense,” which earns guilty parties a deserved five-year prison sentence. Should users “intentionally obtain or transmit personal information with the intent of injuring or defrauding a person or damaging a computer or intentionally impair the security protections of a computer with the intent of injuring or defrauding a person or damaging a computer,” they can earn a further two years for each offence.Other bills closely related to HR 1525 have already been passed in the House, which bodes well, but there is still the Senate to deal with, and it’s worth noting that it has yet to pass this particular type of bill into the domain of formal law.

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Vlad MayzelMay 25th, 2007 - 06:22:50

Finally! it was long overdue. Too many people become victimized by spyware and the damages are often higher than simple vandalism on the street. Now it is time to see the bill in action in court. Looking forward to seeing those who spread spyware being actually charged!

Vlad Mayzel,Operations Manager
604-GEt-HELP On-Site Computer Services
www.604-GET-HELP.com

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ZiggyTheBearJun 24th, 2007 - 07:41:57

So now it is going to be a crime if one colleague doesnt authorize another to hack into their root? What if few kids are playing around and decide to allow each other to hack into their own systems? Is this authorization? No, do you know why? Because it'll be turned around and loop holes will be found such as the owner[parents] of the system did not authorize. It's just another law that is going to allow BS legislators feel as though they are doing the common wealth good by catching these 'deserved' criminals. Those criminals whose only crime is that of curiosity. Many of you praise the well known Bill Gates, right? You know what Bill and his fellow friends used to do when they were young? Yes, hack into one another's computers. Why? For malicious purposes, no. To cause harm to others, no. It is just curiosity. So if the underground generation of computer kids are the curios cat that you want to kill, then shame on you. You may think you are doing good and this bill may help you sleep at night. However, when there's a young boy or girl sitting in prison because all they wanted to do was learn, then that blood is on your hands. You may not understand where I am coming from, but that's because youre not in my mind, youre not in our minds.

'Yes, I am a criminal. My crime is that of curiosity. My crime is that of judging people by what they say and think, not what they look like. My crime is that of outsmarting you, something that you will never forgive me for.

I am a hacker, and this is my manifesto. You may stop this individual, but you can't stop us all... after all, we're all alike.' -The Mentor

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hiddenJul 6th, 2007 - 21:08:22

Damn right ziggy, damn right.

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