Talking About the Global Impact of Cybersecurity, Law, and Business Risk
The Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (“CFAA”), 18 U.S.C. § 1030, is predominately a criminal law that also permits those who have suffered a “damage” or “loss” to bring civil claims for its violations. The CFAA has a list of prohibitions but the most common one that individuals and business use for civil claims is …
Continue reading “Basic Elements of a Computer Fraud and Abuse Act – “Fraud” Claim”
“Everything has a computer in it nowadays” as we are told by Steve Wozniak, one of the co-founders of Apple Computer. See U.S. v. Kramer, 631 F.3d 900 (8th Cir. 2011). This quote was featured prominently in the Kramer opinion handed down on February 8, 2011 in which the United States Court of Appeals for …
Continue reading “Smartphones and the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act–Already Covered?”
Is there a difference in value of a businesses’ confidential information vis-a-vis copyrighted material? Is the taking of the former any less of a “loss” or “damage” to a business than the taking of the latter? Or is it something else? On April 1, 2011, I posted “Taking of Confidential Info Alone Not “Loss” Under …
“[T]he deletion of an employee’s emails can serve as the basis for a CFAA claim in certain circumstances, ….” In Meridian Financial Advisors, Ltd. v. Pence, 1:07-cv-00995 (S.D. Ind. 2011), the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana denied the Defendant’s motion for summary judgment on the Plaintiff’s Computer Fraud and Abuse …
Continue reading “Computer Fraud and Abuse Act Can Prohibit Employee From Deleting Emails”
A former employee’s deletion of data from his former employer’s computer, if intentional, may constitute an actionable “damage” as defined by the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. This is, in essence, what can be gleaned from a March 24, 2011 Memorandum and Opinion in Devon Energy Corporation v. Westacott, 4:09-cv-01689 (W.D. Tex. 2011) in which …
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The issue of whether the CFAA applies to business partners was presented to the Washington Court of Appeals and it punted. In its March 29, 2011 opinion in Wheeler v. Calloway, No. 28734-3-III (Wa. App. 2011), the Washington Court of Appeals was faced with such a scenario. In that case two business partners were in …
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Under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (“CFAA”), an employee’s mere taking of confidential information, without more, does not constitute a “loss” as required by the statute. On March 28, 2011, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin entered on Order in Direct Supply, Inc. v. Pedersen, No. 10-C-0278 (E.D. Wis. …
Continue reading “Taking of Confidential Info Alone Not “Loss” Under CFAA”
The Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (“CFAA”) is not subject to the heightened pleading requirement of Rule 9. On March 28, 2011, the United States District Court for the Northern District of California issued an Order in Facebook, Inc. v. MaxBounty, Inc. in which it reaffirmed earlier rulings that the CFAA is not subject to …
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Think about it. How accessible are you when it may matter the most? Whether your businesses is serving customers or clients, we all know that communication is an integral part of delivering good service. Often times when we think about how effectively we communicate with our customers or clients, we think about it in the …
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or — Just A Minute! The great strategist Napoleon has said that he was able to win so many battles because he understood the value of a minute. In The Art of Maneuver he is quoted as saying: It may be in the future that I may lose a battle, but I shall never lose …
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