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10/10/14
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Legislation and Security Power Point Summary

There are a few legal requirements regarding computer security which include the Data Protection Act, Copyright Acts, the Computer Misuse Act, and Freedom of Information Act. Because technology advanced so quickly, laws had to be put into place to protect users from online threats such as hackers or scammers.
The Data Protection Act protects user’s personal information such as their phone numbers, address, IP address, name, and bank details. This is extremely important because if personal information was to get into the wrong hands, the user could be victims of fraud. In today’s world we can see this with recent outbreaks of personal data with large companies such as Home Depot. If the users are caught they will most likely be subject to penalty due to this act.
If you have ever tried to download a program through a torrent site you’re most likely breaking the Copyright Design and Patents Act. This act is used to protect the creative work of individuals. This includes music, art work, photographs, software, etc. Some individuals would debate the fairness of this act due to their beliefs that these resources should be freely used, which is why we have websites such as “thepiratebay.org” which is one of the largest torrent sites which distributes copyrighted materials.
Sites like “thepiratebay.org” can’t monitor all of the content people are uploading. In some cases users might upload a file infected with a computer virus, which can fully compromise the security of your computer. The Computer Misuse Act was put into effect for this exact reason. This act was put into place to discourage individuals who gather unauthorized access to computers; these individuals are widely known as “Hackers”. With the large expansion of technology, there will be more security risks to