Internet-security: interests should be balanced
Date: November 05, 2003Source: Computer Crime Research Center
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... has technical means to affect or even interfere with users’ relations. The influence can be ranged from secretly obtaining information to blocking an access to data resources and transferring confidential information to the third persons.
We are faced with the dilemma. The Internet has been created to communicate and exchange information in a safe and free way. The search system (for example, in the USA - the FBI program of controlling information traffic in the Internet and intercepting e-messages by using keywords; in Great Britain - the Law “On Investigating agencies”) allows tracing not only those potentially and really cracking the others’ web sites but also monitoring personal electronic correspondence. At present, the law enforcement bodies from many countries actively interfere with the activity of Internet-users under the pretence of preventing those or other computer crimes.
Now Ukraine elaborates the bill “On monitoring information in the telecommunication systems” to protect personal and other privileged data from unauthorized access that violates the rights of particular persons and can threaten the national information security. A wrong interpretation of “monitoring” caused loud discussions. This step was regarded as an attempt to control personal e-correspondence in a secret way, infringement of the legal procedure of seizing information, and ungrounded surveillance [3].
According to N. Akhtyrskaya, “monitoring” has been already fixed in Ukraine’s legislation and its definition gives rise to no critical remarks. The regulations “On activity and interaction of Ukraine’s public phone network operators” of February 14, 2001 define “monitoring” as a way of collecting, processing, storing and analyzing information on the network current condition without disturbing its operation (Item 1.5).
The draft should establish the status of monitoring (inquiry action or search measure) and order of introducing changes into laws. According to its regulations, data obtained by monitoring telecommunication systems on a person against whom proceedings were not instituted would be destroyed within six months when finished, a corresponding report being drawn up. It is expedient to introduce amendments into the Complex program of preventing crimes for 2001-2005 if “monitoring” is considered a way of fighting computer crimes [4].
The acceptance of the law on protecting confidential information should become an additional guarantee of the Internet-users’ rights and legal interests.
At the same time, the privileged information on Internet-users has its limits, which should be specified in the legislation as well. It is obvious that when it is a matter of planning or committing computer crimes, the confidentiality cannot be considered more important than the potential victim’s interests.
The interests between the society having the right to information and the state protecting it from crimes, violence and other negative phenomena should be balanced in a proper way.
1. V.Golubev Some aspects of fighting transnational computer crimes - http/www.crime-research.org/library/Golubev0205.html.
2. V.Golubev, V.Gavlovsky, V.S. Tsymbalyuk Information security: problems of fighting computer technology crimes / Edited by Professor R.A. Kaluzhny. – Zaporozhye: Prosvita, 2002. – P.3.
3. N. Akhtyrskaya “Information monitoring” should be fixed in Ukraine’s legislation. - http/www.crime-research.org/library/Akhtirsk0404.html.
4. The same
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