How Cyber Law Affects You

The average internet user seldom thinks about cyber law. It is out there though and you need to pay attention if you want to avoid inadvertently becoming a cyber criminal.

You can actually, technically commit a crime simply by opening a page that is not accepted in your country. There are differing laws in different countries, so it pays to know what exactly is legal and what is not. Most iffy websites will warn you with a popup window that says something like:

"This website contains ________. If this is illegal in your country, please click here to leave this site immediately."

By ignoring this little popup, you could be breaking cyber law!

Another common way to break cyber law is to order something from another country that is not legal in your own. Sure, this passes over into the realm of real world legal issues, but it originates online. Many countries prohibit the sale of firearms or explosive devices such as grenades online, so buying any of these could cause serious problems.

Starting your own business online is another problem. While internet businesses are not yet well regulated, certain activities that they perform are. If you are going to start a legit online business, you are probably ok, but if you have it in mind to do anything slightly shady, cyber law will catch up with you!

Even seemingly common and harmless business practices like sending out emails with your company information or latest offer can be breaking the law if it is considered to be SPAM. That is, if the recipients of your emails didn't give permission for you to send them information, you could be reported to the FBI or even the Secret Service! Therefore, it is well worth making sure that people understand that they will receive mail from you if they give you their email address. You should also maintain a list of people who subscribe to your ezine or mailing list so you can prove that they signed up. Most auto responders do this automatically, including the date.

Anything that constitutes fraud is also a crime against cyber law. This might seem pretty obvious, but with people being so jumpy, you could be reported for fraud simply by losing a package in the mail! For example, let's say you sell a product through your estore. It is paid for and you send it, but something untoward happens to the package. The client might assume that you just took the money and ran, and they could report you. The best way to prevent scenarios like this is to keep careful record of all transactions, offer refunds and to ask for a tracking number for every package that is sent out.

It pays to understand cyber law. Although you might not set out to break it, you can still do so simply by being unaware. So, educate yourself today and prevent being reported for a crime against cyber law in the future.