CRS Reports – Week of 5-20-23 – Cybercrime

This week, the Congressional Research Service (CRS) published a report on “Cybercrime and the Law: Primer on the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and Related Statutes”. This longer than normal (53 pages) report provides a detailed look at the CFAA, its definitions and seven categories of actions prohibited under the statue. It concludes with a discussion of potential issues of concern for Congress.

The latter discussion should be of interest to anyone working in or on the fringes of the cybersecurity community. Topics include:

• Botnet trafficking,

• “Hacking back”,

• Critical infrastructure,

• Doxing and swatting, and

• The insider threat.