Legal issues surrounding monitoring during network research

This work was motivated by a discussion that two of the coauthors (computer science professors) had with the other coauthor (a law professor and a former computer crime Trial Attorney at the U.S. Department of Justice), in which it was pointed out that some of the network measurements that the computer scientists were thinking of making might potentially violate Federal laws. Several Federal laws prohibit or restrict network monitoring and the sharing of records of network activity. These laws are designed to protect online privacy. They apply both to private parties and government agents, although the details vary depending on who is doing the monitoring. The most important thing to note is that none of these laws contain any specific exceptions or safe harbors for scientific or academic research. The laws are complex, but they follow a basic pattern. First, certain types of network monitoring and data access are prohibited. People who violate the prohibitions may be sued by the pe...

• Type: Conference
• Year: 2007
• Where: IMC
• Authors: Douglas C. Sicker, Paul Ohm, Dirk Grunwald
• Keywords: Federal Law, IMC 2007, Internet Technology, Network Measurement, Network Monitoring