Posted on 06/04/2021 12:18:08 PM PDT by Renfrew
The Supreme Court has ruled that a police officer who searched a license plate database for an acquaintance in exchange for cash did not violate U.S. hacking laws.
The landmark ruling concludes a long-running case that clarifies the controversial Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, or CFAA, by putting limits on what kind of conduct can be prosecuted.
The court ruled 6-3 in favor of Nathan Van Buren, a former Georgia police sergeant who brought the case. Van Buren was prosecuted on two counts, one for accepting a kickback for accessing the database as a serving police officer, and another for violating the CFAA. His first conviction was overturned, but the CFAA conviction was upheld — until today.
(Excerpt) Read more at techcrunch.com ...
That kickback conviction was overturned, though.
Meaning he’s not considered guilty of that charge.
That kickback conviction was overturned, though.
Meaning he’s not considered guilty of that charge.
That kickback conviction was overturned, though.
Meaning he’s not considered guilty of that charge.
Yes, I noticed that.
“Hey NEWBIE..are you DRUNK???”
Actually, I agree with the Newbie here. He broke rules regarding the abuse of his access, but to say he ‘hacked’ into a computer system is simply not the case. Pretty much everyone here knows what a hacker is, and he wasn’t one.
As to whether he should still be punished - damn right, but he apparently skated, for some reason...either way, doesn’t affect the hacking decision.
Using the government’s rationale, I guess they could also go after him for being in possession of a firearm while committing a felony (hacking). Sounds insane, but we have people in DC who have been locked up for 5 months because they entered a building after being invited in by the guards.
If I am reading this right, he was acquitted of accepting money to access the database, so he might not have gotten any money for what he did.
My guess is he did it for a former cop he knew working as a PI, or family, and he was able to argue they were reporting a crime or suspicious person and he was investigating as a cop.
I had cops as relatives, and this is not uncommon with cop families, if they see a car on the street maybe casing a neighbor’s house or something, they’d tell the relative, and he would look into it and see if the plate belonged to a criminal and anybody had to worry. Departments try to crack down on that, but it can be a gray area.
Actually, seasoned freepers are smarter than newbies, and most other people as well. This is a site, not unlike Rush Limbaugh, the learning never stops. No one graduates from this school. By reading your posts, you have much catching up to do. Take it from one who has mastered the art of inserting foot in mouth, try to talk less and read more. Good luck.
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