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South African Police Service Act, 1995 (Act No. 68 of 1995)

Chapter 13 : Offences

71. Unauthorised access to or modification of computer material

 

(1) Without derogating from the generality of subsection (2)—

 

"access to a computer" includes access by whatever means to any program or data contained in the random access memory of a computer or stored by any computer on any storage medium, whether such storage medium is physically attached to the computer or not, where such storage medium belongs to or is under the control of the Service;

 

"contents of any computer" includes the physical components of any computer as well as any program or data contained in the random access memory of a computer or stored by any computer on any storage medium, whether such storage medium is physically attached to the computer or not, where such storage medium belongs to or is under the control of the Service;

 

"modification" includes both a modification of a temporary or permanent nature; and

 

"unauthorised access" includes access by a person who is authorised to use the computer but is not authorised to gain access to a certain program or to certain data held in such computer or is unauthorised, at the time when the access is gained, to gain access to such computer, program or data.

 

(2) Any person who wilfully gains unauthorised access to any computer which belongs to or is under the control of the Service or to any program or data held in such a computer, or in a computer to which only certain or all members have restricted or unrestricted access in their capacity as members, shall be guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to a fine or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding two years.

 

(3) Any person who wilfully causes a computer which belongs to or is under the control of the Service or to which only certain or all members have restricted or unrestricted access in their capacity as members, to perform a function while such person is not authorised to cause such computer to perform such function, shall be guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to a fine or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding two years.

 

(4) Any person who wilfully performs an act which causes an unauthorized modification of the contents of any computer which belongs to or is under the control of the Service or to which only certain or all members have restricted or unrestricted access in their capacity as members with the intention to—
(a) impair the operation of any computer or of any program in any computer or of the operating system of any computer or the reliability of data held in such computer; or
(b) prevent or hinder access to any program or data held in any computer,

shall be guilty of an offence and liable on conviction to a fine or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding five years.

 

(5) Any act or event for which proof is required for a conviction of an offence in terms of this section which was committed or took place outside the Republic shall be deemed to have been committed or have taken place in the Republic: Provided that—
(a) the accused was in the Republic at the time he or she performed the act or any part thereof by means of which he or she gained or attempted to gain unauthorised access to the computer, caused the computer to perform a function or modified or attempted to modify its contents;
(b) the computer, by means of or with regard to which the offence was committed, was in the Republic at the time the accused performed the act or any part thereof by means of which he or she gained or attempted to gain unauthorised access to it, caused it to perform a function or modified or attempted to modify its contents; or
(c) the accused was a South African citizen at the time of the commission of the offence.