UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS TO COMPUTER INFORMATION: LAW ENFORCEMENT ISSUES

This article presents an analysis of the problems arising in the application of Art. 272 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, which provides for liability for unauthorized access to computer information. The author divides these problems into two groups. The first group includes application issues related to the imperfections of the legislative structures used in the provisions of Art. 272 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and their expansive interpretation in the positions of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation. The author draws attention to the lack of a unified approach to defining the concept of «legally protected computer information» and to interpreting the element of «unauthorized access». The second group includes issues of distinguishing unauthorized access to computer information from other related  offenses, both from other chapters of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and from other crimes involving computer information. The author analyzes judicial practice and doctrinal positions on these issues, which are used to formulate rules for classifying offenses related to unauthorized access to legally protected computer information and other objects of criminal offense, in particular, information about a person’s private life, information constituting the secret of correspondence, telephone conversations, etc., non-cash funds and electronic money, information constituting commercial, banking and tax secrets and personal data.