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Miami Computer and Internet Crime Laws by Statute
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your rights and Computer Internet Crimes.
Sec. 1029. Fraud and related activity in connection with
access devices
(a) Whoever--
(1) knowingly and with intent to defraud produces, uses, or
traffics in one or more counterfeit access devices;
(2) knowingly and with intent to defraud traffics in or uses one
or more unauthorized access devices during any one-year period,
and by such conduct obtains anything of value aggregating $1,000
or more during that period;
(3) knowingly and with intent to defraud possesses fifteen or more
devices which are counterfeit or unauthorized access devices;
(4) knowingly, and with intent to defraud, produces, traffics in,
has control or custody of, or possesses device-making equipment;
(5) knowingly and with intent to defraud effects transactions,
with 1 or more access devices issued to another person or persons,
to receive payment or any other thing of value during any 1-year
period the aggregate value of which is equal to or greater than
$1,000;
(6) without the authorization of the issuer of the access device,
knowingly and with intent to defraud solicits a person for the
purpose of--
(A) offering an access device; or
(B) selling information regarding or an application to obtain an
access device;
(7) knowingly and with intent to defraud uses, produces, traffics
in, has control or custody of, or possesses a telecommunications
instrument that has been modified or altered to obtain
unauthorized use of telecommunications services;
(8) knowingly and with intent to defraud uses, produces, traffics
in, has control or custody of, or possesses a scanning receiver;
(9) knowingly uses, produces, traffics in, has control or custody
of, or possesses hardware or software, knowing it has been
configured to insert or modify telecommunication identifying
information associated with or contained in a telecommunications
instrument so that such instrument may be used to obtain
telecommunications service without authorization; or
(10) without the authorization of the credit card system member or
its agent, knowingly and with intent to defraud causes or arranges
for another person to present tothe member or its agent, for
payment, 1 or more evidences or records of transactions made by an
access device;
shall, if the offense affects interstate or foreign commerce, be
punished as provided in subsection (c) of this section.
(b)(1) Whoever attempts to commit an offense under subsection (a)
of this section shall be subject to the same penalties as those
prescribed for the offense attempted.
(2) Whoever is a party to a conspiracy of two or more persons to
commit an offense under subsection (a) of this section, if any of
the parties engages in any conduct in furtherance of such offense,
shall be fined an amount not greater than the amount provided as
the maximum fine for such offense under subsection (c) of this
section or imprisoned not longer than one-half the period provided
as the maximum imprisonment for such offense under subsection (c)
of this section, or both.
(c) Penalties.--
(1) Generally.--The punishment for an offense under subsection (a)
of this section is--
(A) in the case of an offense that does not occur after a
conviction for another offense under this section--
(i) if the offense is under paragraph (1), (2), (3), (6), (7), or
(10) of subsection (a), a fine under this title or imprisonment
for not more than 10 years, or both; and
(ii) if the offense is under paragraph (4), (5), (8), or (9) of
subsection (a), a fine under this title or imprisonment for not
more than 15 years, or both;
(B) in the case of an offense that occurs after a conviction for
another offense under this section, a fine under this title or
imprisonment for not more than 20 years, or both; and
(C) in either case, forfeiture to the United States of any
personal property used or intended to be used to commit the
offense.
(2) Forfeiture procedure.--The forfeiture of property under this
section, including any seizure and disposition of the property and
any related administrative and judicial proceeding, shall be
governed by section 413 of the Controlled Substances Act, except
for subsection (d) of that section.
(d) The United States Secret Service shall, in addition to any
other agency having such authority, have the authority to
investigate offenses under this section. Such authority of the
United States Secret Service shall be exercised in accordance with
an agreement which shall be entered into by the Secretary of the
Treasury and the Attorney General.
(e) As used in this section--
(1) the term "access device" means any card, plate, code, account
number, electronic serial number, mobile identification number,
personal identification number, or other telecommunications
service, equipment, or instrument identifier, or other means of
account access that can be used, alone or in conjunction with
another access device, to obtain money, goods, services, or any
other thing of value, or that can be used to initiate a transfer
of funds (other than a transfer originated solely by paper
instrument);
(2) the term "counterfeit access device" means any access device
that is counterfeit, fictitious, altered, or forged, or an
identifiable component of an access device or a counterfeit access
device;
(3) theterm "unauthorized access device" means any access device
that is lost, stolen, expired, revoked, canceled, or obtained with
intent to defraud;
(4) the term "produce" includes design, alter, authenticate,
duplicate, or assemble;
(5) the term "traffic" means transfer, or otherwise dispose of, to
another, or obtain control of with intent to transfer or dispose
of;
(6) the term "device-making equipment" means any equipment,
mechanism, or impression designed or primarily used for making an
access device or a counterfeit access device;
(7) The term "credit card system member" means a financial
institution or other entity that is a member of a credit card
system, including an entity, whether affiliated with or identical
to the credit card issuer, that is the sole member of a credit
card system;
(8) the term "scanning receiver" means a device or apparatus that
can be used to intercept a wire or electronic communication in
violation of chapter 119 or to intercept an electronic serial
number, mobile identification number, or other identifier of any
telecommunications service, equipment, or instrument;
(9) the term "telecommunications service" has the meaning given
such term in section 3 of title I of the Communications Act of
1934 (47 U.S.C. 153);
(10) the term "facilities-based carrier" means an entity that owns
communications transmission facilities, is responsible for the
operation and maintenance of those facilities, and holds an
operating license issued by the Federal Communications Commission
under the authority of title III of the Communications Act of
1934; and
(11) the term "telecommunication identifying information" means
electronic serial number or any other number or signal that
identifies a specific telecommunications instrument or account, or
a specific communication transmitted from a telecommunications
instrument.
(f) This section does not prohibit any lawfully authorized
investigative, protective, or intelligence activity of a law
enforcement agency of the United States, a State, or a political
subdivision of a State, or of an intelligence agency of the United
States, or any activity authorized under chapter 224 of this
title. For purposes of this subsection, the term "State" includes
a State of the United States, the District of Columbia, and any
commonwealth, territory, or possession of the United States.
(g)(1) It is not a violation of subsection (a)(9) for an officer,
employee, or agent of, or a person engaged in business with, a
facilities-based carrier, to engage in conduct (other than
trafficking) otherwise prohibited by that subsection for the
purpose of protecting the property or legal rights of that
carrier, unless such conduct is for the purpose of obtaining
telecommunications service provided by another facilities-based
carrier without the authorization of such carrier.
(2) In a prosecution for a violation of subsection (a)(9), (other
than a violation consisting of producing or trafficking) it is an
affirmative defense (which the defendant must establish by a
preponderance of the evidence) that the conduct charged was
engaged in for research or development in connection with a lawful
purpose.
(h) Any person who, outside the jurisdiction of the United States,
engages in any act that, if committed within the jurisdiction of
the United States, would constitute an offense under subsection
(a) or (b) of this section, shall be subject to the fines,
penalties, imprisonment, and forfeiture provided in this title
if--
(1) the offense involves an access device issued, owned, managed,
or controlled by a financial institution, account issuer, credit
card system member, or other entity within the jurisdiction of the
United States; and
(2) the person transports, delivers, conveys, transfers to or
through, or otherwise stores, secrets, or holds within the
jurisdiction of the United States, any article used to assist in
the commission of the offense or the proceeds of such offense or
property derived therefrom.
Sec. 1030. Fraud and related activity in connection with computers
(a) Whoever--
(1) having knowingly accessed a computer without authorization or
exceeding authorized access, and by means of such conduct having
obtained information that has been determined by the United States
Government pursuant to an Executive order or statute to require
protection against unauthorized disclosure for reasons of national
defense or foreign relations, or any restricted data, as defined
in paragraph y of section 11 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954,
with reason to believe that such information so obtained could be
used to the injury of the United States, or to the advantage of
any foreign nation willfully communicates, delivers, transmits, or
causes to be communicated, delivered, or transmitted, or attempts
to communicate, deliver, transmit or cause to be communicated,
delivered, or transmitted the same to any person not entitled to
receive it, or willfully retains the same and fails to deliver it
to the officer or employee of the United States entitled to
receive it;
(2) intentionally accesses a computer without authorization or
exceeds authorized access, and thereby obtains--
(A) information contained in a financial record of a financial
institution, or of a card issuer as defined in section 1602(n) of
title 15, or contained in a file of a consumer reporting agency on
a consumer, as such terms are defined in the Fair Credit Reporting
Act (15 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.);
(B) information from any department or agency of the United
States; or
(C) information from any protected computer if the conduct
involved an interstate or foreign communication;
(3) intentionally, without authorization to access any nonpublic
computer of a department or agency of the United States, accesses
such a computer of that department or agency that is exclusively
for the use of the Government of the United States or, in the case
of a computer not exclusively for such use, is used by or for the
Government of the United States and such conduct affects that use
by or for the Government of the United States;
(4) knowingly and with intent to defraud, accesses a protected
computer without authorization, or exceeds authorized access, and
by means of such conduct furthers the intended fraud and obtains
anything of value, unless the object of the fraud and the thing
obtained consists only of the use of the computer and the value of
such use is not more than $5,000 in any 1-year period;
(5)(A)(i) knowingly causes the transmission of a program,
information, code, or command, and as a result of such conduct,
intentionally causes damage without authorization, to a protected
computer;
(ii) intentionally accesses a protected computer without
authorization, and as a result of such conduct, recklessly causes
damage; or
(iii) intentionally accesses a protected computer without
authorization, and as a result of such conduct, causes damage; and
(B) by conduct described in clause (i), (ii), or (iii) of
subparagraph (A), caused (or, in the case of an attempted offense,
would, if completed, have caused)--
(i) loss to 1 or more persons during any 1-year period (and, for
purposes of an investigation, prosecution, or other proceeding
brought by the United States only, loss resulting from a related
course of conduct affecting 1 or more other protected computers)
aggregating at least $5,000 in value;
(ii) the modification or impairment, or potential modification or
impairment, of the medical examination, diagnosis, treatment, or
care of 1 or more individuals;
(iii) physical injury to any person;
(iv) a threat to public health or safety; or
(v) damage affecting a computer system used by or for a government
entity in furtherance of the administration of justice, national
defense, or national security;
(6) knowingly and with intent to defraud traffics (as defined in
section 1029) in any password or similar information through which
a computer may be accessed without authorization, if--
(A) such trafficking affects interstate or foreign commerce; or
(B) such computer is used by or for the Government of the United
States;
(7) with intent to extort from any person any money or other thing
of value, transmits in interstate or foreign commerce any
communication containing any threat to cause damage to a protected
computer;
shall be punished as provided in subsection (c) of this section.
(b) Whoever attempts to commit an offense under subsection (a) of
this section shall be punished as provided in subsection (c) of
this section.
(c) The punishment for an offense under subsection (a) or (b) of
this section is--
(1)(A) a fine under this title or imprisonment for not more than
ten years, or both, in the case of an offense under subsection
(a)(1) of this section which does not occur after a conviction for
another offense under this section, or an attempt to commit an
offense punishable under this subparagraph; and
(B) a fine under this title or imprisonment for not more than
twenty years, or both, in the case of an offense under subsection
(a)(1) of this section which occurs after a conviction for another
offense under this section, or an attempt to commit an offense
punishable under this subparagraph;
(2)(A) except as provided in subparagraph (B), a fine under this
title or imprisonment for not more than one year, or both, in the
case of an offense under subsection (a)(2), (a)(3), (a)(5)(A)(iii),
or (a)(6) of this section which does not occur after a conviction
for another offense under this section, or an attempt to commit an
offense punishable under this subparagraph;
(B) a fine under this title or imprisonment for not more than 5
years, or both, in the case of an offense under subsection (a)(2),
or an attempt to commit an offense punishable under this
subparagraph, if--
(i) the offense was committed for purposes of commercial advantage
or private financial gain;
(ii) the offense was committed in furtherance of any criminal or
tortious act in violation of the Constitution or laws of the
United States or of any State; or
(iii) the value of the information obtained exceeds $5,000;
(C) a fine under this title or imprisonment for not more than ten
years, or both, in the case of an offense under subsection (a)(2),
(a)(3) or (a)(6) of this section which occurs after a conviction
for another offense under this section, or an attempt to commit an
offense punishable under this subparagraph;
(3)(A) a fine under this title or imprisonment for not more than
five years, or both, in the case of an offense under subsection
(a)(4) or (a)(7) of this section which does not occur after a
conviction for another offense under this section, or an attempt
to commit an offense punishable under this subparagraph; and
(B) a fine under this title or imprisonment for not more than ten
years, or both, in the case of an offense under subsection (a)(4),
(a)(5)(A)(iii), or (a)(7) of this section which occurs after a
conviction for another offense under this section, or an attempt
to commit an offense punishable under this subparagraph; and
(4)(A) a fine under this title, imprisonment for not more than 10
years, or both, in the case of an offense under subsection (a)(5)(A)(i),
or an attempt to commit an offense punishable under that
subsection;
(B) a fine under this title, imprisonment for not more than 5
years, or both, in the case of an offense under subsection (a)(5)(A)(ii),
or an attempt to commit an offense punishable under that
subsection;
(C) a fine under this title, imprisonment for not more than 20
years, or both, in the case of an offense under subsection (a)(5)(A)(i)
or (a)(5)(A)(ii), or an attempt to commit an offense punishable
under either subsection, that occurs after a conviction for
another offense under this section.
(d)(1) The United States Secret Service shall, in addition to any
other agency having such authority, have the authority to
investigate offenses under this section.
(2) The Federal Bureau of Investigation shall have primary
authority to investigate offenses under subsection (a)(1) for any
cases involving espionage, foreign counterintelligence,
information protected against unauthorized disclosure for reasons
of national defense or foreign relations, or Restricted Data (as
that term is defined in section 11y of the Atomic Energy Act of
1954 (42 U.S.C. 2014(y)), except for offenses affecting the duties
of the United States Secret Service pursuant to section 3056(a) of
this title.
(3) Such authority shall be exercised in accordance with an
agreement which shall be entered into by the Secretary of the
Treasury and the Attorney General.
(e) As used in this section--
(1) the term "computer" means an electronic, magnetic, optical,
electrochemical, or other high speed data processing device
performing logical, arithmetic, or storage functions, and includes
any data storage facility or communications facility directly
related to or operating in conjunction with such device, but such
term does not include an automated typewriter or typesetter, a
portable hand held calculator, or other similar device;
(2) the term "protected computer" means a computer--
(A) exclusively for the use of a financial institution or the
United States Government, or, in the case of a computer not
exclusively for such use, used by or for a financial institution
or the United States Government and the conduct constituting the
offense affects that use by or for the financial institution or
the Government; or
(B) which is used in interstate or foreign commerce or
communication, including a computer located outside the United
States that is used in a manner that affects interstate or foreign
commerce or communication of the United States;
(3) the term "State" includes the District of Columbia, the
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and any other commonwealth,
possession or territory of the United States;
(4) the term "financial institution" means--
(A) an institution with deposits insured by the Federal Deposit
Insurance Corporation;
(B) the Federal Reserve or a member of the Federal Reserve
including any Federal Reserve Bank;
(C) a credit union with accounts insured by the National Credit
Union Administration;
(D) a member of the Federal home loan bank system and any home
loan bank;
(E) any institution of the Farm Credit System under the Farm
Credit Act of 1971;
(F) a broker-dealer registered with the Securities and Exchange
Commission pursuant to section 15 of the Securities Exchange Act
of 1934;
(G) the Securities Investor Protection Corporation;
(H) a branch or agency of a foreign bank (as such terms are
defined in paragraphs (1) and (3) of section 1(b) of the
International Banking Act of 1978); and
(I) an organization operating under section 25 or section 25(a) of
the Federal Reserve Act.
(5) the term "financial record" means information derived from any
record held by a financial institution pertaining to a customer's
relationship with the financial institution;
(6) the term "exceeds authorized access" means to access a
computer with authorization and to use such access to obtain or
alter information in the computer that the accesser is not
entitled so to obtain or alter;
(7) the term "department of the United States" means the
legislative or judicial branch of the Government or one of the
executive departments enumerated in section 101 of title 5;
(8) the term "damage" means any impairment to the integrity or
availability of data, a program, a system, or information;
(9) the term "government entity" includes the Government of the
United States, any State or political subdivision of the United
States, any foreign country, and any state, province,
municipality, or other political subdivision of a foreign country;
(10) the term "conviction" shall include a conviction under the
law of any State for a crime punishable by imprisonment for more
than 1 year, an element of which is unauthorized access, or
exceeding authorized access, to a computer;
(11) the term "loss" means any reasonable cost to any victim,
including the cost of responding to an offense, conducting a
damage assessment, and restoring the data, program, system, or
information to its condition prior to the offense, and any revenue
lost, cost incurred, or other consequential damages incurred
because of interruption of service; and
(12) the term "person" means any individual, firm, corporation,
educational institution, financial institution, governmental
entity, or legal or other entity.
(f) This section does not prohibit any lawfully authorized
investigative, protective, or intelligence activity of a law
enforcement agency of the United States, a State, or a political
subdivision of a State, or of an intelligence agency of the United
States.
(g) Any person who suffers damage or loss by reason of a violation
of this section may maintain a civil action against the violator
to obtain compensatory damages and injunctive relief or other
equitable relief. A civil action for a violation of this section
may be brought only if the conduct involves 1 of the factors set
forth in clause (i), (ii), (iii), (iv), or (v) of subsection
(a)(5)(B). Damages for a violation involving only conduct
described in subsection (a)(5)(B)(i) are limited to economic
damages. No action may be brought under this subsection unless
such action is begun within 2 years of the date of the act
complained of or the date of the discovery of the damage. No
action may be brought under this subsection for the negligent
design or manufacture of computer hardware, computer software, or
firmware.
(h) The Attorney General and the Secretary of the Treasury shall
report to the Congress annually, during the first 3 years
following the date of the enactment of this subsection, concerning
investigations and prosecutions under subsection (a)(5).
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