§ 1030.
Fraud and related activity in connection with computers
(a) Whoever--
(1) having knowingly
accessed a computer without authorization or exceeding authorized
access, and by means of such conduct having obtained information that
has been determined by the United States Government pursuant to an
Executive order or statute to require protection against unauthorized
disclosure for reasons of national defense or foreign relations, or any
restricted data, as defined in paragraph y.[(y)] of section 11 of the
Atomic Energy Act of 1954 [42 USCS § 2014(y)], with reason to
believe that such information so obtained could be used to the injury of
the United States, or to the advantage of any foreign nation willfully
communicates, delivers, transmits, or causes to be communicated,
delivered, or transmitted, or attempts to communicate, deliver, transmit
or cause to be communicated, delivered, or transmitted the same to any
person not entitled to receive it, or willfully retains the same and
fails to deliver it to the officer or employee of the United States
entitled to receive it;
(2) intentionally
accesses a computer without authorization or exceeds authorized access,
and thereby obtains--
(A) information contained in a financial record of a financial
institution, or of a card issuer as defined in section 1602(n) of title
15, or contained in a file of a consumer reporting agency on a consumer,
as such terms are defined in the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C.
1681 et seq.);
(B) information from any department or agency of the United States; or
(C) information from any protected computer if the conduct involved an
interstate or foreign communication;
(3) intentionally,
without authorization to access any nonpublic computer of a department
or agency of the United States, accesses such a computer of that
department or agency that is exclusively for the use of the Government
of the United States or, in the case of a computer not exclusively for
such use, is used by or for the Government of the United States and such
conduct affects that use by or for the Government of the United States;
(4) knowingly and
with intent to defraud, accesses a protected computer without
authorization, or exceeds authorized access, and by means of such
conduct furthers the intended fraud and obtains anything of value,
unless the object of the fraud and the thing obtained consists only of
the use of the computer and the value of such use is not more than $
5,000 in any 1-year period;
(5) (A) (i)
knowingly causes the transmission of a program, information, code, or
command, and as a result of such conduct, intentionally causes damage
without authorization, to a protected computer;
(ii) intentionally accesses a protected computer without
authorization, and as a result of such conduct, recklessly causes
damage; or
(iii) intentionally accesses a protected computer without
authorization, and as a result of such conduct, causes damage; and
(B) by conduct described in clause (i), (ii), or (iii) of subparagraph
(A), caused (or, in the case of an attempted offense, would, if
completed, have caused)--
(i) loss to 1 or more persons during any 1-year period (and, for
purposes of an investigation, prosecution, or other proceeding brought
by the United States only, loss resulting from a related course of
conduct affecting 1 or more other protected computers) aggregating at
least $ 5,000 in value;
(ii) the modification or impairment, or potential modification or
impairment, of the medical examination, diagnosis, treatment, or care of
1 or more individuals;
(iii) physical
injury to any person;
(iv) a threat to public health or safety; or
(v) damage affecting a computer system used by or for a
government entity in furtherance of the administration of justice,
national defense, or national security;
(6) knowingly and
with intent to defraud traffics (as defined in section 1029 [18 USCS
§ 1029]) in any password or similar information through which a
computer may be accessed without authorization, if--
(A) such trafficking affects interstate or foreign commerce; or
(B) such computer is used by or for the Government of the United States;
[or]
(7) with intent to
extort from any person any money or other thing of value, transmits in
interstate or foreign commerce any communication containing any threat
to cause damage to a protected computer;
shall be punished
as provided in subsection (c) of this section.
(b) Whoever
attempts to commit an offense under subsection (a) of this section shall
be punished as provided in subsection (c) of this section.
(c) The
punishment for an offense under subsection (a) or (b) of this section
is--
(1) (A) a fine under
this title or imprisonment for not more than ten years, or both, in the
case of an offense under subsection (a)(1) of this section which does
not occur after a conviction for another offense under this section, or
an attempt to commit an offense punishable under this subparagraph; and
(B) a fine under this title or imprisonment for not more than twenty
years, or both, in the case of an offense under subsection (a)(1) of
this section which occurs after a conviction for another offense under
this section; or an attempt to commit an offense punishable under this
subparagraph;
(2) (A) except as
provided in subparagraph (B), a fine under this title or imprisonment
for not more than one year, or both, in the case of an offense under
subsection (a)(2), (a)(3), (a)(5)(A)(iii), or (a)(6) of this section
which does not occur after a conviction for another offense under this
section, or an attempt to commit an offense punishable under this
subparagraph;
(B) a fine under this title or imprisonment for not more than 5 years,
or both, in the case of an offense under subsection (a)(2), or an
attempt to commit an offense punishable under this subparagraph, if--
(i) the offense was committed for purposes of commercial
advantage or private financial gain;
(ii) the offense was committed in furtherance of any criminal or
tortious act in violation of the Constitution or laws of the United
States or of any State; or
(iii) the value of the information obtained exceeds $ 5,000; and
(C) a fine under this title or imprisonment for not more than ten years,
or both, in the case of an offense under subsection (a)(2), (a)(3) or
(a)(6) of this section which occurs after a conviction for another
offense under this section, or an attempt to commit an offense
punishable under this subparagraph;
(3) (A) a fine under
this title or imprisonment for not more than five years, or both, in the
case of an offense under subsection (a)(4) or (a)(7) of this section
which does not occur after a conviction for another offense under this
section, or an attempt to commit an offense punishable under this
subparagraph; and
(B) a fine under this title or imprisonment for not more than ten years,
or both, in the case of an offense under subsection (a)(4),
(a)(5)(A)(iii), or (a)(7) of this section which occurs after a
conviction for another offense under this section, or an attempt to
commit an offense punishable under this section;
(4) (A) except as
provided in paragraph (5), a fine under this title, imprisonment for not
more than 10 years, or both, in the case of an offense under subsection
(a)(5)(A)(i), or an attempt to commit an offense punishable under that
subsection;
(B) a fine under this title, imprisonment for not more than 5 years, or
both, in the case of an offense under subsection (a)(5)(A)(ii), or an
attempt to commit an offense punishable under that subsection;
(C) except as provided in paragraph (5), a fine under this title,
imprisonment for not more than 20 years, or both, in the case of an
offense under subsection (a)(5)(A)(i) or (a)(5)(A)(ii), or an attempt to
commit an offense punishable under either subsection, that occurs after
a conviction for another offense under this section; and
(5) (A) if the
offender knowingly or recklessly causes or attempts to cause serious
bodily injury from conduct in violation of subsection (a)(5)(A)(i), a
fine under this title or imprisonment for not more than 20 years, or
both; and
(B) if the offender knowingly or recklessly causes or attempts to cause
death from conduct in violation of subsection (a)(5)(A)(i), a fine under
this title or imprisonment for any term of years or for life, or both.
(d)
(1) The United
States Secret Service shall, in addition to any other agency having such
authority, have the authority to investigate offenses under this
section.
(2) The Federal
Bureau of Investigation shall have primary authority to investigate
offenses under subsection (a)(1) for any cases involving espionage,
foreign counterintelligence, information protected against unauthorized
disclosure for reasons of national defense or foreign relations, or
Restricted Data (as that term is defined in section 11y of the Atomic
Energy Act of 1954 (42 U.S.C. 2014(y)), except for offenses
affecting the duties of the United States Secret Service pursuant to
section 3056(a) of this title [18 USCS § 3056(a)].
(3) Such authority
shall be exercised in accordance with an agreement which shall be
entered into by the Secretary of the Treasury and the Attorney General.
(e) As used in
this section--
(1) the term
"computer" means an electronic, magnetic, optical, electrochemical, or
other high speed data processing device performing logical, arithmetic,
or storage functions, and includes any data storage facility or
communications facility directly related to or operating in conjunction
with such device, but such term does not include an automated typewriter
or typesetter, a portable hand held calculator, or other similar device;
(2) the term
"protected computer" means a computer--
(A) exclusively for the use of a financial institution or the United
States Government, or, in the case of a computer not exclusively for
such use, used by or for a financial institution or the United States
Government and the conduct constituting the offense affects that use by
or for the financial institution or the Government; or
(B) which is used in interstate or foreign commerce or communication,
including a computer located outside the United States that is used in a
manner that affects interstate or foreign commerce or communication of
the United States;
(3) the term "State"
includes the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and
any other commonwealth, possession or territory of the United States;
(4) the term
"financial institution" means--
(A) an institution, with deposits insured by the Federal Deposit
Insurance Corporation;
(B) the Federal Reserve or a member of the Federal Reserve including any
Federal Reserve Bank;
(C) a credit union with accounts insured by the National Credit Union
Administration;
(D) a member of the Federal home loan bank system and any home loan
bank;
(E) any institution of the Farm Credit System under the Farm Credit Act
of 1971;
(F) a broker-dealer registered with the Securities and Exchange
Commission pursuant to section 15 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
[15 USCS § 78o];
(G) the Securities Investor Protection Corporation;
(H) a branch or agency of a foreign bank (as such terms are defined in
paragraphs (1) and (3) of section 1(b) of the International Banking Act
of 1978 [12 USCS § 3101(1) and (3)]); and
(I) an organization operating under section 25 or section 25(a) of the
Federal Reserve Act;
(5) the term
"financial record" means information derived from any record held by a
financial institution pertaining to a customer's relationship with the
financial institution;
(6) the term
"exceeds authorized access" means to access a computer with
authorization and to use such access to obtain or alter information in
the computer that the accesser is not entitled so to obtain or alter;
(7) the term
"department of the United States" means the legislative or judicial
branch of the Government or one of the executive department enumerated
in section 101 of title 5;
(8) the term
"damage" means any impairment to the integrity or availability of data,
a program, a system, or information;
(9) the term
"government entity" includes the Government of the United States, any
State or political subdivision of the United States, any foreign
country, and any state, province, municipality, or other political
subdivision of a foreign country;
(10) the term
"conviction" shall include a conviction under the law of any State for a
crime punishable by imprisonment for more than 1 year, an element of
which is unauthorized access, or exceeding authorized access, to a
computer;
(11) the term "loss"
means any reasonable cost to any victim, including the cost of
responding to an offense, conducting a damage assessment, and restoring
the data, program, system, or information to its condition prior to the
offense, and any revenue lost, cost incurred, or other consequential
damages incurred because of interruption of service; and
(12) the term
"person" means any individual, firm, corporation, educational
institution, financial institution, governmental entity, or legal or
other entity.
(f) This section
does not prohibit any lawfully authorized investigative, protective, or
intelligence activity of a law enforcement agency of the United States,
a State, or a political subdivision of a State, or of an intelligence
agency of the United States.
(g) Any person
who suffers damage or loss by reason of a violation of this section may
maintain a civil action against the violator to obtain compensatory
damages and injunctive relief or other equitable relief. A civil action
for a violation of this section may be brought only if the conduct
involves 1 of the factors set forth in clause (i), (ii), (iii), (iv), or
(v) of subsection (a)(5)(B). Damages for a violation involving only
conduct described in subsection (a)(5)(B)(i) are limited to economic
damages. No action may be brought under this subsection unless such
action is begun within 2 years of the date of the act complained of or
the date of the discovery of the damage. No action may be brought under
this subsection for the negligent design or manufacture of computer
hardware, computer software, or firmware.
(h) The Attorney
General and the Secretary of the Treasury shall report to the Congress
annually, during the first 3 years following the date of the enactment
of this subsection [enacted Sept. 13, 1994], concerning investigations
and prosecutions under subsection (a)(5).