logoalt Hacker News

fluoridationtoday at 3:54 AM2 repliesview on HN

>Because you're POSTing them to a server?

How does that change anything? The HTTP protocol is just how I communicate with the program, just like how the USB protocol is how I communicate with the word processor. The dividing line is when the message crosses computer boundaries? Then it should also be illegal to write "I am an FBI agent" in a text file and upload it to Github.

>The same way you can't type everything into Google.

Who says you can't, physically or legally? Maybe Google will refuse to fulfill some search requests, but that's a different matter from it being illegal.


Replies

bloppetoday at 6:56 AM

Intention is very relevant to legal interpretations of "unauthorized access"; both the intentions of the owner, and the intentions of the "intruder". See for example United States v. Auernheimer. There's relatively well-established precedent that when a service tries to safeguard some information, that information is legally protected no matter how technically feeble the attempt at safeguarding it was.

show 1 reply
trhwaytoday at 5:46 AM

>Then it should also be illegal to write "I am an FBI agent" in a text file and upload it to Github.

i think it may affect how people would communicate with you there. And based on that it would seem like impersonation, wouldn't it?

show 1 reply