Introduction
Short description:
What does law have to do with computer science experts? What is the difference between law, morality and politics? How do computational technologies change the playing field of traditional written law? What law applies to the sharing of personal data with a company established in the US, e.g. Google? Which investigative techniques can be employed lawfully by justice authorities and how can citizens contest violations of privacy or due process? What legal protection is offered by EU data protection legislation and how does the European legal framework differ from that of the US? This course aims to provide computer and information scientists with an overview of the legal domain and a reflection on the fundamental changes in the legal system due to the emerging computational infrastructure. Part I We will start with a general introduction to law in a constitutional democracy, and move on to explain the characteristics of private, public and criminal law. We will then investigate how deterritorialization brought about by the web affects the relationship between national and international jurisdiction. Part II The core part of the course will flesh out some the topical issues raised by the rise of ‘cyberspace’: privacy, data protection, eCommerce and cybercrime. Part III Finally, we will have a look at the problems caused by relatively independent behaviour of artificial agents and how this can be accommodated by the legal system. In this part of the course we will also investigate challenges and opportunities for building legal protection into the technological infrastructure.
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Objectives
Students should be able to - detect legal issues and distinguish them from the ethical, political and technical dimensions of a problem; - capable of locating and interpreting relevant legal sources (statutes, case law, doctrinal texts, international conventions, EU Directives).
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Subjects
- Law, Democracy and the Rule of Law - Private Law, Public Law and Criminal Law - International, Transnational Law and the Lex Informatica - Privacy and Data Protection - Legal implications of eCommerce - Cybercrime Convention - Legal Personhood for Artificial Agents? - Legal Protection by Design
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Study investment
- 24 hrs lecture
- 28 hrs student project
- 116 hrs individual study period
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Teaching methods
Lectures, discussion and written assignments Written exam
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Examination
written exam
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Literature
Will be distributed via Blackboard
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Extra information
This course is an optional course in the Kerckhoffs security master specialisation.
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