Laws Impacts Digital Technology (Edexcel IGCSE ICT)

Data protection

What is the Data Protection Act?

• The Data Protection Act (DPA) is a law that protects personal data from being misused

• Examples of personal data would include

  • Name

  • Address

  • Date of Birth

  • Race

  • Religion

• Most people that store personal data has to follow the Data Protection Principles although there are a few exemptions:

  • Domestic purposes – if you only use personal data for such things as writing to friends and family or taking pictures for your own enjoyment, you are not subject to the DPA

  • Law enforcement – the Police investigating a crime is not subject to the DPA. E.g. if someone has been suspected of a crime they can't request to see the evidence about them

  • Intelligence services processing – personal data processed by the intelligence services (e.g. MI5) is not covered by the DPA

The data protection principles 

Copyright

What is copyright?

• Copyright is covered under a law called the Copyright Designs & Patents Act

• This protects the intellectual property of an individual or a company

• It makes it illegal to copy, modify or distribute software or other intellectual property without the relevant permission

• If original work is original, copyright will be automatically applied and will not expire until 25 - 70 years from the death of the creator depending on the type of work

• If an individual believes that their work has been copied it is their responsibility to take action under the Copyright Designs and Patents Act

• Many sites online offer free downloads of copyrighted software/videos which prevents the intellectual copyright holder from earning their income on the work they have created

  • E.g. If someone downloaded videos from Netflix and shared them with others, they would be breaching the act

• The act covers videos and audio where peer-to-peer streaming prevents a copyright owner from receiving an income

What is prohibited under the Copyright, Designs & Patents Act?

Primary breaches:

• Copying an original work

• Issuing a copy of the original work to the public

• Renting/lending a copy of the original work to the public

• Performing, showing or playing the original work in public

• Making an adaptation of the original work

Secondary breaches:

• Importing a copy of the original work

• Possessing or dealing with a copy of the original work

• Providing means to make copies of the original work

• Permitting the use of premises for making copies of the original work

• Provision of props/equipment for a performance of a copy of the original work

Software piracy

• Software piracy is the illegal copying and distribution of software

• Companies often take a lot of steps to prevent software piracy, some of these methods include:

  • Product key / license: Often a unique string or letters and numbers supplied with the software to activate it

  • Agreement of terms and conditions: Users will be asked to click to agree to the license agreement before being able to install the software

  • Holograms: Holograms are often used on the packaging of software and they indicate that the copy is genuine as they are too difficult and costly for pirates to implement

  • Some older software would only run if the CD ROM or memory stick was physically in the device using it

Are there any copyright exemptions?

• Some countries have exemptions to the copyright law

• In the UK for example, they have fair use

• Examples of fair use include:

  • Uses for the benefit of people with a disability

  • Non-commercial research or private study

  • Recordings of broadcasts for archiving

  • Copies of books/documents made by a library, educational establishment, museums or archives

  • When used in a parody

Monitoring individuals

How can individuals be monitored?

• Digital technology can be used to monitor individuals but it is a controversial subject

• Examples of how individuals can be monitored include:

  • Closed circuit television (CCTV)

  • Automatic number plate recognition (ANPR)

  • Physical forms of identification (passports, bank cards, drivers licence etc.)

  • Network activity (IP/MAC addresses)

  • GPS data shared by apps

  • GPS trackers

• Individuals communication can also be monitored

  • Parental control software to monitor children's online activity

  • Social media

  • Web histories

• In the UK, the Investigatory Powers Act (2016) allows the police to access these kinds of digital communications

Benefits & drawbacks