Legislation relevant to Computer Science: Computer Misuse Act 1990

The Computer Misuse Act 1990 makes it illegal to access or modify computer data without authorisation. It covers several offences of increasing severity, from simple unauthorised access to causing serious damage.

Key points

• Offence 1: Unauthorised access to computer material — e.g. using someone's login details to read their emails without consent.
• Offence 2: Unauthorised access WITH INTENT to commit further offences — e.g. accessing someone's bank account to steal money.
• Offence 3: Unauthorised acts with intent to impair a computer — e.g. deliberately sending a virus to a rival company.
• Offence 4: Unauthorised acts causing serious damage — e.g. crashing hospital systems, endangering patients.
• Offence 5: Making, supplying, or obtaining tools for computer misuse — e.g. creating a phishing website.
• Exam Tip:You need to describe the offence AND give an EXAMPLE. Exam questions often present a scenario and ask which offence applies.
• Common Mistake:Listing offences without examples. Always include a specific scenario/example for each one.
• Exam Example:Computer Misuse Act applies when — a student guesses a teacher's password and accesses their account, a secretary accesses a lawyer's personal email without permission, or someone installs a keylogger on another's computer.
• Exam Tip:Note — if someone leaves their computer logged in and another person leaves a message on their desktop, this IS Computer Misuse Act (unauthorised use of someone else's account).