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ECPA, Electronic Communications Privacy Act What This Means for Online Users In 1986 congress passed the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA) to expand the scope of the existing federal wiretap laws, such as the Wiretap Act to include protection for electronic communications. There are five important ways that it has expanded and they may even impact you.
The Electronic Communications Privacy Act expands to include all forms of electronic transmissions, including video, text, audio and data into the scope of privileged communications. This means that with the increased use of other online electronics and the sensitive data that is contained on them or passed between them, that these new forms of communication are now also protected. Many people are branching out from the old computer emails, and using other electronics such as blackberrys, mobile phones that send
video and text, and other electronics. This will help provide users with a wider range of protection for their privacy when they use these newer technologies.
Also the Electronic Communications Privacy Act eliminates the requirement that communications be transmitted via common carrier to receive legal protection. This means that not only your standard transmissions through e-mail fax etc. Are protected, but now the newer technologies will also be included. This makes it illegal for someone to hack into your PDA, and steal your private information, or intercept a text message that may contain private data. This new expansion includes the newest technologies that we use to communicate and send information and assures that they are now protected as well.
Electronic Communications Restriction Act maintains restriction on the interception of messages in transmission and adds a prohibition on access to stored electronic communications. This means that not only is your e-mail transmissions protected, but so are youre your hard drives, and the servers that operate your computer. This allows any transmission to be exposed to the same protection that the older means of communication have been protected by under this law. It is unlawful for someone to hack into your phone database, just as it is to break into your e-mail. Your PDA transmissions should be considered safer now that they will be included under this new expansion of the Electronic Communications Restriction Act.
The ECPA responds to the Supreme Courts ruling in Smith v. Maryland that telephone toll records are not private and restricts law enforcement access to transactional information pertaining to users of electronic communication services. This means that although other electronic communication devices are protected under this law, that phone records are not, however it restricts the law enforcements access to the information in the transactions. It is illegal to bug or tap someones telephone without their knowledge and consent; however this information can be used by law enforcement or the government without your permission.
The Electronic Communications Privacy Act broadens the reach of the Wiretap Act by restricting both government and private access to communications. This means that the government and other law enforcement officials can no longer use a wiretap on your communications devices without permission from you or without just legal cause and permission via a warrant or through a court of law. You can rest assured that this expansion is keeping your private information safer and limiting the access anyone may have to that information.
With the expansion of the Electronic Communications Privacy Act in 1986 by congress, the public should be aware of the implications it has on their own privacy. Your electronic transmissions including text, video, data and audio are now safe and protected under the law, making it illegal for hackers to try to intercept your private information, which can lead to disaster and identity theft. It is still however, important to track your data and if you think that someone may be hacking into an electronic system of yours, be sure to follow through and check it out.
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