Find an Internet -- Cyberspace Lawyer Continued…

Privacy advocates are carefully watching the ways online companies collect and store information about their visitors. And, since information transmitted over the Internet can be intercepted, they want laws to keep that information safe and secure. Every piece of data including e-mails that are sent, forms that are filled out online, sites that are visited and even images that are viewed can be recorded. Cyberspace laws will continue to evolve to protect the rights of both companies and individuals pertaining to the privacy issue. In 1997, legislation making electronic theft illegal was added to the criminal code. It made it illegal for people to distribute copies of software over the Internet, even if they were not charging for it. Other types of cybertheft include hacking and interception of data and all of them must be legislated. The kind of information available on the Internet and the way it is accessed is another area of cyberlaw that lawyers are actively debating. Specifically, pornography and gambling, and sales of things like alcohol, cigarettes and prescription drugs. Disputes over ownership of domain names and copyright abuses of online data have been some of the most common legal actions in this field. There have also been cyberspace cases dealing with anti-trust laws, fraud, constitutionality, contracts, defamation and libel, electronic signatures, encryption, jurisdiction, and the first amendment. Internet law overlaps with many other disciplines. Commercial ventures on the web are watched by business and trade lawyers; international lawyers follow the developments of Internet trade among nations; and, criminal attorneys prosecute and defend those who are using cyberspace for illegal means. Some of the most publicized Internet-related cases have involved the ownership and distribution of intellectual property. By Ann MacDonald