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Cyber Crime Charges in the Twin Cities?

Have you been accused of a cyber crime? You should be concerned about life-changing punishments such as a lengthy prison sentence, substantial fine and a criminal record.

You can ensure that your rights and reputation are protected by contacting William Mauzy, Attorney at Law, in Minneapolis. Attorney William Mauzy’s hard work on behalf of his many clients, in negotiations with prosecutors and litigating against them in court, has produced a significant track record of success during his decades of practice. In fact, he has obtained more than 100 trial victories in both state courts and federal courts. 

The Three Types of Computer Crimes

There are three broad categories of computer crimes. One is if the computer itself is stolen. This could be prosecuted in state court as theft or burglary and in federal court as interstate transportation of stolen goods.

Another variety of computer crime is when a computer is improperly used to inflict viruses or otherwise penetrate or damage another computer or computer network when done intentionally to cause damage to an employer, a specific company, or to an individual (commonly, the former significant other in a relationship).

Finally, a computer could be used as an instrument to commit a crime, such as viewing child pornography or as part of mail or wire fraud or identity theft. 

Unauthorized Computer Access is Serious

In 1984 Congress passed the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, which centralized computer crimes under one statute and extended the Act’s protections to all computers used in interstate and foreign commerce, which would include every computer connected to the internet. Courts have held that smartphones are computers for purposes of the Act. A separate federal statute prohibits cyberstalking.

The Act creates seven different categories of computer-related crime dealing with unauthorized computer access. The statute covers:

  1. Computer espionage (gaining access to government computers to obtain classified information)
  2. Protecting confidentiality of computer data (to punish unauthorized browsing through private financial and credit files, making it a crime to gain access to a computer without authorization to obtain information and financial records of a financial institution or a credit reporting company, or information from a government department or agency and information from a “protected computer,” defined as a computer used exclusively by a financial institution or the U.S. government)
  3. Unauthorized access to government computers (unlike other categories, this punishes simply accessing a government computer)
  4. Computer fraud (making it a crime to gain access and fraudulently use a protected computer to obtain anything valued at more than $5,000 in any one-year period)
  5. The “virus statute”, which prohibits transmission of any program to intentionally cause damage to a protected computer
  6. Password trafficking
  7. Computer extortion

In many computer charges, it is a defense that the defendant actually had authorization at the time he gained access, and in some situations, it is a defense if nothing of value was obtained. 

Federal Prosecutors Have Many Laws on Their Side

Federal prosecutors may use the Economic Espionage Act (protecting against trade secret theft), the National Stolen Property Act (to cover the theft of computer hardware and software), mail and wire fraud, the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (prohibiting unauthorized interception of computer communications such as emails); or the Child Pornography Prevention Act (which prohibits the distribution and possession of child pornography). 

Common Crimes in State Court

In state courts, computer crimes include:

  • Computer damage (intentionally destroying or damaging someone else’s computer or computer system or altering someone else’s computer system in order to injure or commit fraud)
  • Distributing deconstructive computer programs such as viruses, worms, etc., with intent to damage another computer system
  • Computer theft (gaining access to a computer system to obtain services or money)
  • Unauthorized access (gaining unauthorized computer access in an attempt to penetrate a computer security system; it is also a crime to aid someone else to gain access to a computer security system knowing that that person intends to commit a crime)
  • Encryption (it is a crime to use encryption in order to commit or conceal a crime)
  • Using a computer to sexually solicit a minor, or possess and distribute child pornography 

Talk to a Highly Experienced, Effective Defense Lawyer Today

William Mauzy, Attorney at Law, can aggressively represent you if you have been targeted by an investigation, grand jury or otherwise, of personal or commercial use of a computer, and if you have been arrested for any other kind of white collar crime. He is fully prepared to defend you against charges with discretion, poise and professionalism.

To speak in confidence with Bill Mauzy during a free initial consultation, contact him today by calling 612-340-9108 or sending an email message. 

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