Follow-up On Texas PI Law For PC Techs

boyko.at.netqos writes "Network Performance Daily has put out an in-depth series on the Texas law that requires private investigator licenses for computer repair techs, network analysts, and other IT professionals. It includes an interview with the author of the law, Texas Rep. Joe Driver, the captain of the Texas Private Security Bureau, RenEarl Bowie, and Matt Miller at the Institute for Justice, which is suing the state over the law. Finally, there's a series summary and editorial."

Comments

Your Stupidity at Work.

[fm6]

Read. The. Fucking. Article. A computer tech only has to be a PI if they are searching a computer for evidence of a crime.

Re:Your Stupidity at Work.

[Obfuscant]

I did RTFA. And yes, the law was intended to work that way. Unfortunately, that's not what the law says.

Yes, that IS what the law says. It is reasonably clear. If you are in the BUSINESS of investigating criminal acts, you need a PI license. Computer techs, unless working for a company that is in the BUSINESS of such investigation, are NOT in the business of investigating criminal acts.

That's what the author of the law said. That's what the licensing bureau chief said.

And since almost any work on a computer involves investigating data on that computer not accessible to the public (the user's firewall settings, for example, aren't available to the public), any such work falls under the "investigation" part and requires a PI license.

The section of the law that refers to "computer data not available to the public" applied only to the section of the law that defines who needs a license. It does NOT, by itself, create a new class of people who need a license. Looking at data "not available to the public" does not automatically mean you need a PI license. If you are not IN THE BUSINESS OF investigating the listed criminal or civil acts under the first section, it does not matter if what you are looking at is data "not available to the public".

The guy who enforces this law went as far as to say that a network tech who looks for a slowdown in performance and finds a virus or "theft of intellectual property" is NOT subject to this law, even though the virus may be the result of a criminal act, or the IP theft result in civil litigation.

The guy who wrote the law says computer techs are not required to have a PI license. The guy who enforces the law says they are not required to have a PI license. The LAW lists who is required to have a PI license, and "computer repair tech" is NOT in that list.

This is a publicity stunt to get money for this new institute, trying to scare people into giving them money to defend against something that a simple reading of the law -- the WHOLE law and not just one sentence -- would tell them doesn't apply to them.

And the law will be enforced based on what it says, not on what anyone thinks it should have said instead.

The person who is responsible for enforcing the law has said how it will be enforced, and people who repair computers are NOT on the list.

Stop spreading FUD. There are more important things to spend time on. There is no story here.