Legal and Geographic Issues on the Internet

2052 Words5 Pages

Legal and Geographic Issues on the Internet

Abstract Many states and nations have conflicting laws regarding what type of digital content is legal. When content is legal at its place of origin but illegal where it is downloaded the laws become unenforceable because no single jurisdiction applies. International cooperation and Internet fragmentation are potential solutions, but neither is currently viable. This paper discusses how the transfer of content across geographic boundaries on the Internet impacts the legal system.

The Internet has connected the world like no previous technology ever could. It allows nearly instant communication and data access across the entire globe. Internetworking technologies have given rise to Cyberspace, a digital world in which traditional notions of geography are meaningless. Factors such as distance and national boundaries now can be easily ignored when transferring data. While this creates many new opportunities, however, new legal problems relating to data transfer have arisen.

In most parts of the world, laws exist which govern information transfer. Such laws include censorship of obscene or dangerous messages and media, regulation of phone use, and so forth. Most of these laws, however, date from before the creation of the Internet, and they are inadequate and ineffective when applied to cyberspace. The main problem is jurisdiction. When people transfer illegal content across political borders using the Internet, where and under what jurisdiction did the illegal transfer take place? Furthermore, many nations (and even states) have wildly differing laws regarding what constitutes illegal content. This gives rise to a commonplace situation...

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