Cybercrime Act 2001

In this Part:

access to data held in a computer means:

(a) the display of the data by the computer or any other output of the data from the computer; or

(b) the copying or moving of the data to any other place in the computer or to a data storage device; or

(c) in the case of a program—the execution of the program.

Commonwealth computer means a computer owned, leased or operated by a Commonwealth entity.

data includes:

(a) information in any form; or

(b) any program (or part of a program).

data held in a computer includes:

(a) data held in any removable data storage device for the time being held in a computer; or

(b) data held in a data storage device on a computer network of which the computer forms a part.

data storage device means a thing (for example, a disk or file server) containing, or designed to contain, data for use by a computer.

electronic communication means a communication of information in any form by means of guided or unguided electromagnetic energy.

impairment of electronic communication to or from a computer includes:

(a) the prevention of any such communication; or

(b) the impairment of any such communication on an electronic link or network used by the computer;

but does not include a mere interception of any such communication.

modification, in respect of data held in a computer, means:

(a) the alteration or removal of the data; or

(b) an addition to the data.

telecommunications service means a service for carrying communications by means of guided or unguided electromagnetic energy or both.

unauthorised access, modification or impairment has the meaning given in section 476.2.

In this Part, a reference to:

(a) access to data held in a computer; or

(b) modification of data held in a computer; or

(c) the impairment of electronic communication to or from a computer;

is limited to such access, modification or impairment caused, whether directly or indirectly, by the execution of a function of a computer.

476.2 Meaning of unauthorised access, modification or impairment

In this Part:

(a) access to data held in a computer; or

(b) modification of data held in a computer; or

(c) the impairment of electronic communication to or from a computer; or

(d) the impairment of the reliability, security or operation of any data held on a computer disk, credit card or other device used to store data by electronic means;

by a person is unauthorised if the person is not entitled to cause that access, modification or impairment.

Any such access, modification or impairment caused by the person is not unauthorised merely because he or she has an ulterior purpose for causing it.

For the purposes of an offence under this Part, a person causes any such unauthorised access, modification or impairment if the person’s conduct substantially contributes to it.

For the purposes of subsection (1), if:

(a) a person causes any access, modification or impairment of a kind mentioned in that subsection; and

(b) the person does so under a warrant issued under the law of the Commonwealth, a State or a Territory;

the person is entitled to cause that access, modification or impairment.

476.3 Geographical jurisdiction

Section 15.1 (extended geographical jurisdiction—Category A) applies to offences under this Part.

476.4 Saving of other laws

This Part is not intended to exclude or limit the operation of any other law of the Commonwealth, a State or a Territory.

Subsection (1) has effect subject to section 476.5.

476.5 Liability for certain acts

(1) A staff member or agent of ASIS or DSD (the agency) is not subject to any civil or criminal liability for any computer-related act done outside Australia if the act is done in the proper performance of a function of the agency.

(2) A person is not subject to any civil or criminal liability for any act done inside Australia if:

(a) the act is preparatory to, in support of, or otherwise directly connected with, overseas activities of the agency concerned; and

(b) the act:

(i) taken together with a computer-related act, event, circumstance or result that took place, or was intended to take place, outside Australia, could amount to an offence; but

(ii) in the absence of that computer-related act, event, circumstance or result, would not amount to an offence; and

(c) the act is done in the proper performance of a function of the agency.

Subsection (2) is not intended to permit any act in relation to premises, persons, computers, things, or telecommunications services in Australia, being:

(a) an act that ASIO could not do without a Minister authorising it by warrant issued under Australian Security Intelligence Organisation Act 1979 or under Part III of the Telecommunications (Interception) Act 1979; orDivision 2 of Part III of the

(b) an act to obtain information that ASIO could not obtain other than in accordance with Telecommunications Act 1997.section 283 of the

The Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security may give a certificate in writing certifying any fact relevant to the question of whether an act was done in the proper performance of a function of an agency.

In any proceedings, a certificate given under subsection (2B) is prima facie evidence of the facts certified.

In this section:

ASIS means the Australian Secret Intelligence Service.

civil or criminal liability means any civil or criminal liability (whether under this Part, under another law or otherwise).

computer-related act, event, circumstance or result means an act, event, circumstance or result involving:

(a) the reliability, security or operation of a computer; or

(b) access to, or modification of, data held in a computer or on a data storage device; or

(c) electronic communication to or from a computer; or

(d) the reliability, security or operation of any data held in or on a computer, computer disk, credit card, or other data storage device; or

(e) possession or control of data held in a computer or on a data storage device; or

(f) producing, supplying or obtaining data held in a computer or on a data storage device.

DSD means that part of the Department of Defence known as the Defence Signals Directorate.

staff member means:

(a) in relation to ASIS—the Director-General of ASIS or a member of the staff of ASIS (whether an employee of ASIS, a consultant to ASIS, or a person who is made available by another Commonwealth or State authority or other person to perform services for ASIS); and

(b) in relation to DSD—the Director of DSD or a member of the staff of DSD (whether an employee of DSD, a consultant to DSD, or a person who is made available by another Commonwealth or State authority or other person to perform services for DSD).