|  | <<  
             ^ 
              >> 
            
              | Date: 2000-05-16 
 
 Cybercrime Convention als Unsicherheitsfaktor-.-. --.- -.-. --.- -.-. --.- -.-. --.- -.-. --.- -.-. --.-
 
 Für Bruce Schneier ist das geplante Verbot fürt "Hacker-
 Tools" in der Cybercrime-Convention des Europarats/G-8  ein
 klassicher Fall, das Kind mit dem Bade aus zu schütten.
 Damit würden Security Tools illegalisiert, die zur Abwehr
 echter Angriffswaffen auf Netze nötig seinen.
 
 -.-. --.-  -.-. --.-  -.-. --.-  -.-. --.-  -.-. --.-  -.-. --.-
 The Council of Europe has released a draft of a proposed
 treaty on crime in cyberspace.  (The Council of Europe
 consists of over 40 signatory nations, including the U.S.,
 Canada, Japan, Russia, and South Africa.) While well-
 intentioned, it has a provision that could effectively cripple
 research.
 
 The offending paragraph states:
 
 > Article 6 Illegal Devices > > Each Party shall adopt such
 legislative and other measures as > may be necessary to
 establish as criminal offences under its > domestic law when
 committed intentionally and without right: > > a.the
 production, sale, procurement for use, import, > distribution
 or otherwise making available of: > > 1.a device, including a
 computer program, designed > or adapted [specifically]
 [primarily] [particularly] for the > purpose of committing any
 of the offences established in > accordance with Article 2
 
 This would make it illegal to create, post, or download any
 piece of software that is "designed or adapted" to break into
 computer systems.
 
 This is one of those "throwing the baby out with the
 bathwater" sorts of provisions.
 
 Many legitimate computer-security tools -- vulnerability
 scanners, for example -- fall into this category.  So does
 most of the computer-security research that discovers and
 fixes existing vulnerabilities.  The effects of this treaty, if
 enforced, will only enable more insecure software.
 
 I don't see how this law will affect the computer criminals.
 They're already distributing attack tools, and most of them do
 so anonymously.  This will primarily affect legitimate
 computer-security research.
 
 Treaty:
 <http://conventions.coe.int/treaty/en/projets/cybercrime.htm>
 
 News article:
 <http://wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,36047,00.html>
 
 -.-. --.-  -.-. --.-  -.-. --.-  -.-. --.-  -.-. --.-  -.-. --.-
 - -.-. --.- -.-. --.- -.-. --.- -.-. --.- -.-. --.- -.-. --.-
 edited by Harkank
 published on: 2000-05-16
 comments to office@quintessenz.at
 subscribe Newsletter
 - -.-. --.- -.-. --.- -.-. --.- -.-. --.- -.-. --.- -.-. --.-
 <<  
                   ^ 
                    >>
 |  |  |  |