R v Gold

Robert Schifreen and Stephen Gold, using conventional home computers gained unauthorised
access to British Telecom's Prestel interactive view data service. While at a trade show, Schifreen by
doing what latterly became known as shoulder surfing, had observed the password of a Prestel
engineer. Armed with this information, the pair explored the system, even gaining access to the
personal message box of Prince Philip.
Their counsel cited the lack of evidence showing the two had attempted to obtain material gain from
their exploits, and claimed the Forgery and Counterfeiting Act had been misapplied to their conduct.
They were acquitted by the Lord Justice Lane, but the prosecution appealed to the House of Lords. In
1988, the Lords upheld the acquittal.
The appellants' conduct amounted in essence, as already stated, to dishonestly gaining access to
the relevant Prestel data bank by a trick. That is not a criminal offence. If it is thought desirable to
make it so, that is a matter for the legislature rather than the courtsMany legal scholars to believe
that hacking was not unlawful as the law then stood

Re Levine
Banking computers located in the US were penetrated by hackers located in St Petersberg, accounts
belonging to a company from Indonesia were fraudulently debited and the proceeds diverted to
accounts in Finland, Germany, Israel, the Netherlands and US. One of the individual suspected of
involvement in the scheme was subsequently arrested in England and extradition proceedings were
initiated by US.

R v Whitetely
Appellant had obtained unauthorized access to a number of computer system and caused significant
amounts of data to be deleted. Upholding his conviction on a charge of criminal damage, COA
accepted that no physical damage had been caused to any element of the network but held that
what the act requires to prove is that tangible property has been damaged, not necessarily that the
damage itself is tangible. There can be no doubts that the magnetic particles upon the metals discs
were a part of the discs and if the appellant was proved to have intentionally and without lawful
excuse altered the particles in such a way as to cause impairment of the value of usefulness of the
disc to the owner, there would be damage.