Which statement best describes the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) of 1986?

Which statement best describes the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA) of 1986?

• A. It regulates privacy by requiring encryption of data in transit.
• B. It relates to privacy of education records.
• C. It Prohibits unauthorized access of computer systems, including government computers, and makes such access a criminal offense.
• D. It governs the sale of cyber insurance policies.

Answer: (C)

The concept being tested is that the CFAA makes unauthorized access to computer systems a crime. The law criminalizes accessing a computer without permission or exceeding the level of access you’re allowed, and this applies to government computers as well as private systems. It focuses on the act of breaking into or misusing access to a protected computer, not on privacy practices or data protection alone. For example, hacking into a network, accessing restricted files, or disrupting service by using someone else’s access can fall under the CFAA and bring criminal penalties. The other statements don’t fit because encryption requirements relate to data protection, FERPA concerns privacy of education records, and cyber insurance deals with risk transfer, none of which describe the criminal unauthorized-access focus of the CFAA.

The concept being tested is that the CFAA makes unauthorized access to computer systems a crime. The law criminalizes accessing a computer without permission or exceeding the level of access you’re allowed, and this applies to government computers as well as private systems. It focuses on the act of breaking into or misusing access to a protected computer, not on privacy practices or data protection alone. For example, hacking into a network, accessing restricted files, or disrupting service by using someone else’s access can fall under the CFAA and bring criminal penalties. The other statements don’t fit because encryption requirements relate to data protection, FERPA concerns privacy of education records, and cyber insurance deals with risk transfer, none of which describe the criminal unauthorized-access focus of the CFAA.