What is Computer-Related Crime?
The use of computers, the Internet, and telecommunication or information devices has brought us much convenience in all kinds of our daily pursuits, from learning, leisure, personal communication to conducting business activities. However, at the same time, the convenience of this virtual space has created a great potential for abuse by criminals.
Statistics show that there has been a significant increase in criminal activities that are computer and Internet-based. In 1993 the Police handled just 4 cases of computer crime, but by 2000 the figure had risen to 368 cases. The problem has become a major public concern and its nature is complex.
Computer-related Crime Act B.E. 2550 (2007) as amended by the Computer-related Crime Act (No. 2) B.E. 2560 (2017)
For Competent Officials
With the enforcement of Section 19 and for the benefit of an investigation, when it could be reasonably believed that there is a perpetration of an offense under this Act, or there is a request per Paragraph Two, the competent official shall have one of the following powers necessary for the acquisition of evidence to prove the perpetration and to identify the perpetrators:
(1) issue an inquiry letter or summon any person related to the perpetration of an offense to testify, to explain in letter, or to submit any other document, data, or evidence in the comprehensible form;
(2) request computer traffic data, from a service provider related to communication via computer system, or from other related persons;
(3) instruct a service provider to surrender user-related data that must be retained under Section 26, or that is in the service provider’s possession or control, to a competent official, or to keep the data for later;
(4) make a copy of computer data and computer traffic data from a computer system reasonably believed to have been used for the perpetration of an offense, if that computer system is not yet in the possession of the competent official;
(5) instruct a person, who is in possession or in control of computer data or a computer data storage device, to surrender the computer data or the device to the competent official;
(6) inspect or access any person’s computer system, computer data, computer traffic data, or computer data storage device, which is or can be used as evidence related to the perpetration of the offense; or which is for the identification of the perpetrator of the offense; and may instruct that person to surrender relevant computer data and computer traffic data to all necessary extent as well;
(7) decrypt any person’s computer data; or instruct any person related to the encryption of the computer data to decrypt the data, or to cooperate with a competent official in such decryption;
(8) seize or forfeit a computer system as necessary for the benefit of obtaining details of the offense and the perpetrators of the offense.
For the benefit of the investigation and interrogation of the inquiry official per the Criminal Procedure Code, if there is a criminal offense against other laws which has made use of a computer system, computer data, or a computer storage device, as an accessory for the perpetration, or if there is computer data related to the perpetration of criminal offense against other laws, the inquiry official may request the competent official per Paragraph One to execute power per Paragraph One. Or if it dawns on the competent official as a result of the execution of duties per this Act, the competent official shall urgently compile facts and evidence and inform the relevant official for further action.
The person receiving the request from the competent official as to Paragraph One (1), (2), and (3) shall without delay act as requested, but not longer than seven days since the day the request was received; or act within the time specified by the competent official, which shall not less than seven days and not exceeding fifteen days. Except when there is a reasonable cause and with permission from the competent official. The Minister may publish in the Government Gazette prescribing the duration to carry out the request as appropriate to types of the service provider.
Section 19.
In the exercise of power of the competent official under Section 18 (4), (5), (6), (7), and (8), the competent official shall file a petition to the court of jurisdiction for a court order to authorize the competent official to take action. The petition must identify a reasonable ground to believe that the person is perpetrating or going to perpetrate an offense, reasons for the exercise of such power, characteristics of the offense, description of the devices used for perpetrating the offense and of the alleged offender, as much as this can be identified. The court should adjudicate urgently such aforementioned petition.
When the court approves permission, and before taking any action according to the court order, the competent official shall submit a copy of the reasonable ground memorandum to show that an authorization under Section 18 (4), (5), (6), (7) and (8), must be employed against the owner or possessor of the computer system, as evidence thereof. If there is no owner of such computer thereby, the competent official should submit a copy of said memorandum as soon as possible.
In order to take action under Section 18 (4), (5), (6), (7) and (8), the senior officer of the competent official shall deliver a copy of the memorandum about the description and rationale of the operation to the court of jurisdiction within forty eight (48) hours after the action has been taken as evidence thereof.
When copying computer data under Section 18 (4), and given that it may be done only when there is a reasonable ground to believe that there is an offense against this Act, such action must not excessively interfere or obstruct the business operation of the computer data’s owner or possessor.
Regarding seizure or attachment under Section 18 (8), a competent official must issue a letter of seizure or attachment to the person who owns or possesses that computer system as evidence. This is provided, however, that the seizure or attachment shall not last longer than thirty days. If seizure or attachment requires a longer time period, a petition shall be filed at the court of jurisdiction for the extension of the seizure or attachment time period. The court may allow only one or several time extensions, however altogether for no longer than sixty days. When that seizure or attachment is no longer necessary, or upon its expiry date, the competent official must immediately return the computer system that was seized or withdraw the attachment.
The letter of seizure or attachment under Paragraph Five shall be in accordance with a Ministerial Regulation.
Section 20.
When there is an action to disseminate computer data as follows, the competent official, with approval from the Minister, may file a petition with supporting evidence, to the court of jurisdiction, for a court order to suppress the dissemination of or to remove such computer data from a computer system.
(1) Computer data actionable per this Act;
(2) Computer data which may compromise the security of the Kingdom as prescribed in Book II Title 1 or Title 1/1 of the Criminal Code;
(3) Computer data which is a criminal offense per laws related to intellectual property or other laws, where such computer data is a breach to the public order or moral high ground of the people, and the law enforcement official or the inquiry official per the Criminal Procedure Code has made a request about.
When there is an action to disseminate computer data which deemed to be a breach to the public order or moral high ground of the people, the Minister, with approval of the Computer Data Screening Committee, may authorize a competent official to file a petition with supporting evidence to the court of jurisdiction for a court order to suppress the dissemination or to remove such computer data from a computer system. The meeting of the Computer Data Screening Committee shall be governed by provisions on the committee authorized to carry out administrative procedure under the administrative procedure law mutatis mutandis.
The Minister shall appoint one or more of Computer Data Screening Committee per Paragraph Two. Each committee shall be consisted of nine members, three of whom must come from private sector in the fields of human rights, mass communication, information technology, or other relevant fields. The committee members shall be remunerated as per the criteria prescribed by the Minister with approval from the Ministry of Finance.
The act of the court per Paragraph One and Paragraph Two shall be guided by the Criminal Procedure Code mutatis mutandis. When the court issues an order to suppress the dissemination of or to remove such computer data per Paragraph One or Paragraph Two, the competent official may suppress the dissemination of or remove the computer data themselves or instruct the service provider to suppress the dissemination of or remove the computer data. The Minister shall issue a Ministerial Notification precribing the criteria, duration, and procedure to suppress the dissemination or to remove the computer data, for the competent official and the service provider, and they shall be made compatible to each other, with the consideration of the changing technological development, unless the court had instructed otherwise.
In case of necessity and emergency, the competent official may file the petition for the court order per Paragraph One before obtaining any approval from the Minister, and the competent official with approval from the Computer Data Screening Committee may file the petition for the court order per Paragraph Two before obtaining any authorization from the Minister, but it is obliged that they urgently bring the matter to the attention of the Minister.
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