Amendments to Criminal Code passed preliminary examination of Legislative Yuan, stipulating that computer crime could be sentenced to imprisonment of five years
E030424Y9 May. 2003（E44）
The Amendments to Part Provisions of Criminal Code passed the preliminary examination conducted by the Judicial Committee of Legislative Yuan on April 24, 2003, which adds the criminal penalty to be imposed on computer crimes, defining that anyone who produces virus programs so as to cause damage to others should be sentenced to imprisonment of not more than five years, or, or in addition to, a fine of not more than NT$200,000, and anyone who paralyzes others’ e-mail boxes without cause should be sentenced to imprisonment of not more than three years, or, or in addition to, a fine of not more than NT$100,000.
In order to cope with computers and Internet which have become the human important means in life and hackers who intentionally launch attacks to computers and web system so as to cause serious loss, the Executive Yuan and Judicial Yuan jointly proposed the Amendments to Part Provisions of Criminal Code and submitted the Amendments to the Legislative Yuan for examination, aimed at combating against computer and hi-tech crimes. The points of the Amendments include:
1. Anyone who accesses to others’ password, destroys protective measures, or makes use of bugs to intrude into others’ computer systems or relevant equipment should be sentenced to imprisonment of three years, detention, or, or in addition to, a fine of not more than NT$100,000.
2. Anyone who accesses to, remove or alter the magnetic records, such important data as electronic files, in others’ computers or relevant equipment without cause so as to cause damage to the public or others should be sentenced to imprisonment of not more than five years, detention, or, or in addition, a fine of not more than NT$200,000.
3. Anyone who interrupts others’ computers or relevant equipment by virtue of computer programs or other magnetic methods so as to cause damage to the public or others should be sentenced to imprisonment of not more than three years, detention, or, or in addition to, a fine of not more than NT$100,000. The same shall apply to hackers who paralyze Internet or others’ e-mail boxes intentionally.
4. The punishment to be imposed on the crimes in violation of the above three provisions with respect to computers or relevant equipment installed in governmental authorities should be increased to one-seconds more, provided that the crimes in violation of the above three provisions are indictable only upon complaint.
5. Anyone who produces the computer programs particularly used to interrupt others’ computers, i.e. computer virus, for his own or others’ commission of the crimes, so as to cause damage to the public or others, should be sentenced to imprisonment of not more than five years, detention, or, or in addition to, a fine of not more than NT$200,000.
