chuqui@nsc.UUCP (Laurie Sefton, C/O chuqui) (07/19/85)
A few questions on electronic mail... 1.) Would the transmission of threats via electronic mail be treated in the same manner as a telephoned threat. Also, would harassing electronic mail (either by sheer volume or by content) be treated the same way that harassing phone calls would be? 2.) If electronic mail was treated in the same manner that phone calls would be, how would one determine whether the caller had crossed state (province) boundaries to do it? For example, in California, many times the only route from one site to the next is through ihnp4 (Illinois) or seismo (Virginia?). Would the person who had sent the electronic mail be accused of willfully crossing state (province) lines to commit a crime? 3.) The phone companies (whichever would be involved) seem to be quite willing to open up their "sys logs" to find out where phone calls had come from. What would be involved in opening up a site's sys log to determine if mail had indeed come from that site? Would the phone companies be able to prosecute the person sending the electronic mail, as they would for harassment, or phone fraud? 4.) What are, if any, the legal precedents for electronic mail used as a device to harass, threat, or defraud? Thanks for any help.. (Maybe I should just go to law school and find out.... :-) ) Laurie Sefton -- :From the carousel of the autumn carnival: Chuq Von Rospach {cbosgd,fortune,hplabs,ihnp4,seismo}!nsc!chuqui nsc!chuqui@decwrl.ARPA Your fifteen minutes are up. Please step aside!