Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

European Law Could Give Hackers Mimimum Two-Year Sentence

Posted by Soulskill on from the if-only-they-understood-what-hacking-is dept.

judgecorp writes "A proposed European law would apply a minimum two-year prison sentence for hacking across the region. This is a step up for nations including Britain, whose Computer Misuse Act currently has a two-year maximum sentence."

10 of 147 comments (clear)

  1. Minimum Sentences by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Judges hate minimum sentences. Legislators should stop making them.

    1. Re:Minimum Sentences by elucido · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Minimum sentences as well as private prisons should be entirely unconstitutional.

    2. Re:Minimum Sentences by sg_oneill · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Judges hate minimum sentences. Legislators should stop making them.

      Yeah, you can see how this will go wrong. Someone finds an open facebook at a netcafe, and decide to post some dopey comment on the unsuspecting security-ignoramasus page. The person flips out and calls the cops, and the cops charge him, because technically it is hacking.

      The judge hears the case and goes "Well I have to find this guy guilty, and normally I'd give him a $50 fine and tell him to quit being a dick, but instead he's going to jail for 2 years and having the rest of his life ruined because of a harmless prank.

      Yes indeed, theres a very good reason judges hate mandatory minimums.

      --
      Excuse the Unicode crap in my posts. That's an apostrophe, and slashdot is busted.
    3. Re:Minimum Sentences by interkin3tic · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Simpletons are the only ones who like mandatory minimums. You have a mechanism to investigate crimes on a case-by-case basis, looking at all the evidence, the factors that went into the crime, and setting the punishment to fit the case. That's the job of the courts. It's not perfect, but one-size-fits-all justice is usually not justice. The mandatory minimum sentence should be zero in ALL crimes.

    4. Re:Minimum Sentences by Kat+M. · · Score: 4, Informative

      The article is not entirely clear on the minimum sentence part. From the body of the text it appears that it's that the maximum sentence should be at least two years (which makes sense, given that individual member states would be free to set higher maximum sentences if it's a directive), and five if there are aggravating circumstances. Also, given that petty offenses should not carry criminal sanctions at all does not mesh with a minimum two year sentence.

      The only part that mentions a two year minimum sentence is the summary paragraph, which may be the result of poor editing.

      There's a video recording of the committee meeting, but I don't really have the time to search through it to find what was actually decided. I guess it'll become clearer within the next few days.

    5. Re:Minimum Sentences by davester666 · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Yes, you, a reasonable person with neither an axe to grind or a political point to make.

      But in reality, things like"I've had too many of these stupid hacks screwing up the wifi at the coffee shop I go to. Find the guy doing it and nail his balls to the wall for 2 years." Or it's a funny hack that goes viral, giving it lots of publicity, so the prosecutor has to follow through "because it's the law and we don't want to encourage this behaviour".

      --
      Sleep your way to a whiter smile...date a dentist!
  2. Also prohibits hacking tools. by BitterOak · · Score: 4, Insightful
    From the article:

    The proposal also targets tools used to commit offences: the production or sale of devices such as computer programs designed for cyber-attacks, or which find a computer password by which an information system can be accessed, would constitute criminal offences.

    So, what would the scope of such a prohibition be? Would pen testing tools commonly used by security professionals be prohibited in Europe? Would you need a license to possess or use such tools? This sounds like an overreaching law. And since when did the European parliament get the authority to impose mandatory minimum prison sentences in its member nations?

    --
    If I can be modded down for being a troll, can I be modded up for being an orc, or a balrog?
    1. Re:Also prohibits hacking tools. by X0563511 · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I used wireshark to fix a bug today. Apparently I would be a criminal in the UK, with a minimum sentence of 2 years.

      This is fucked.

      --
      For large sets, this will be our guide even unto death, for the LORD will work for each type of data it is applied to...
  3. What is illegal for the citizenry... by NemoinSpace · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Should be illegal for the government.

  4. Queue the misapplications of this law by lightknight · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Just watch and wait: it'll be the kid who takes apart his iPod to replace the broken battery who gets charged.

    --
    I am John Hurt.