Legislation

The Data Protection Act 2018

· Identify data protection officer

· Keep data secure/safe (from unauthorised access) by example / installing firewall / usernames and passwords / access rights / physical security / encrypt

· Do not share/sell (without consent)

· Don’t store without consent

· Only keep relevant data, do not collect data from users that is not required

· Do not store the data for longer than needed

· Make sure the data remains accurate / up-to-date

· Only use for purpose collected / Data must not be misused, state purpose for collection

· Do not store/share with countries with lower levels of protection

· Change/delete data when requested permanently/securely

· Provide data for users when they request to see it

· Notify individuals of data breaches

· Must use data lawfully/fairly

Computer Misuse Act 1990

• introduced as computers became cheaper and more common at home and work .

• The act attempts to stop and punish those who use computers inappropriately.

• Breaking any of the three principles could result in fines and a jail sentence but only if it can be proved it was done on purpose and not by accident.

• no unauthorised access to data

• no unauthorised access to data that could be used for further illegal activities

Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988

This act makes it a criminal offence to copy work that is not your own without the permission of the creator or the copyright holder. This can refer to text, images, music, videos or software.

Owning the copyright of an image might not prevent others from copying and using it but this act means that the owner can bring legal proceedings in court to those who have stolen their work.

However, it is difficult to trace who has stolen work once it has been uploaded to the internet and copies can easily spread, especially television shows and movies.

This act specifically prohibits the following actions:

• Making copies of copyrighted material to sell to others.

• Importing and downloading illegally copied material (except for personal use).

• Distributing enough copyrighted material to have a noticeable effect on the copyright holder.

• Possessing equipment used to copy copyrighted material, as part of a business.

Software licences

A software license is a legal agreement that lays out rules for how software can and can't be used

types of software license

• open source

• proprietary

what is open source

• software that is available to users [1] to modify /distribute / viewed [1]

• usually free

• can access the source code

• e.g. Linux, Firefox, Python

• allows more people access to the game because there is likely no cost (reverse for proprietary)

• allows more people to take code and possibly change to resell, or adapt in their own programs to resell or claim as their own (reverse for proprietary)

benefits of open source

• Users can view/edit the (source) code / Users can edit the program/software to tailor/improve/adapt it to do what they need/want so errors can be fixed (by anyone)

• users can learn how the software works

• Freely accessible, do not have to pay, can redistribute with changes

• more exposure

• wider customer base

drawbacks of open source

• limited documentation

• little financial gain

what is proprietary

• no access to the source code

• purchased commonly as off-the-shelf

• purchase at a cost

• cannot access/change code

benefits of proprietary

• Authors/programmers can earn money by selling for a fee / using licences to stop unauthorised use

• No-one can see the code so users cannot edit/change the software / by example inserting malware so it cannot be copied/resold/shared

• More control over intellectual property and what happens with the program/ by example e.g. restrict users, restrict what can be done with the software without permission

drawbacks of proprietary

• more restrictions for copyright

• cannot be adapted to meet user needs