Cybercrime Bill sent to Special Select Committee

Aug 05, 2016 News

The Cybercrime Bill of 2016 was presented and read for the first time in the National Assembly yesterday by Attorney General Basil Williams. The Legal Affairs Minister also referred the complex legislation to a Special Select Committee, so that it can be properly perused and amendments made where necessary.
Williams explained that the Bill seeks to combat cybercrime by creating offences related to it and provide for penalties, investigation and prosecution of the offences and related matters.
The Bill sets out that a person commits an offence if he intentionally, without authorization or in excess of authorization, or by infringing any security measure, accesses a computer system or any part of a computer system of another person.
The draft legislation also deals with child pornography and child luring. It says that a person who produces child pornography for the purpose of distribution through a computer system, or offers or makes available, distributes or transmits child pornography through a computer system, commits an offence.
It says, too, that a person who uses a computer system to arrange a meeting with a child with the intent of abusing or engaging in sexual activity with the child or producing child pornography, whether or not he takes any steps to effect such a meeting, commits child luring.
Another clause in the Bill addresses the publication or transmission of images of the private area of a person. It states that a person who captures, stores in, publishes or transmits through a computer system, the image of the private area of another person without that other person’s consent commits an offence.
Additionally, the political opposition said that it is pleased that after some 15 months, the Government is actually utilizing the option of sending important Bills to a special select committee.

Discover more from Kaieteur News

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

Latest News