[Infowarrior] - Pakistan Declares Death Penalty for 'Cyber Terror'

[Richard Forno]

Pakistan Declares Death Penalty for 'Cyber Terror'
By Noah Shachtman

http://blog.wired.com/defense/2008/11/cyber-terror.html

American officials can have some pretty over-the-top reactions to  
hackers and so-called cyber terrorists. Once, I saw a briefing  
comparing our own Kevin Poulsen to Osama bin Laden and Pablo Escobar  
-- seriously. But the U.S. has nothing on Pakistan, when it comes to  
cyber terror paranoia. Yesterday, Pakistani president Asif Ali Zardari  
signed a law making cyber terror a crime "punishable with death."

Executions will only be allowed if the hack attack "causes [the] death  
of any person," the Prevention of Electronic Crimes law states.

But the definition of what is considered "cyber terror" is alarmingly  
broad in the law, proposed last year and signed Thursday by the  
Pakistani president. Not only does it apply to "any person, group or  
organization who, with terroristic intent utilizes, accesses or causes  
to be accessed a computer or computer network or electronic system or  
electronic device or by any available means, and thereby knowingly  
engages in or attempts to engage in a terroristic act." The ordinance  
also considers cyber terrorism to be:

     (a)  altering by addition, deletion, or change or attempting to  
alter information that may result in the imminent injury, sickness, or  
death to any segment of the population;

     (b)  transmission or attempted transmission of a harmful program  
with the purpose of substantially disrupting or disabling any computer  
network operated by the Government or any public entity;

     (c)  aiding the commission of or attempting to aid the commission  
of an act of violence against the sovereignty of Pakistan, whether or  
not the commission of such act of violence is actually completed; or

     (d)  stealing or copying, or attempting to steal or copy, or  
secure classified information or data necessary to manufacture any  
form of chemical, biological or nuclear weapon, or any other weapon of  
mass destruction.

In contrast, the maximum penalty for a hacking crime under U.S. law is  
20 years in prison. Although, as we've seen in recent years,  
Washington seems to give itself a little, um, leeway when it comes to  
perceived terror threats.