With the recent changes brought about by Law No. 14,155/2021 , there has been a considerable increase in the severity of cybercrimes, such as the violation of computer devices, theft and electronic fraud.
This Law introduced a new criminal offense, Article 154-A of the Penal Code, which establishes a prison sentence of 1 to 4 years and a fine for anyone who “ invades a computer device used by another person , whether or not connected to a computer network, with the gambling data pakistan purpose of obtaining, tampering with or destroying data or information without the express or tacit authorization of the user of the device or installing vulnerabilities to obtain illicit advantage ”.
However, it is crucial to emphasize that criminal law, for the most part, does not allow for broad interpretations. Therefore, in certain contexts, a data hijacking attack may be classified as the crime of fraud, as stipulated in article 171 of the Penal Code.
For some time now, authorities, civil society, the legislature and the technical community have been debating the need to create a specific criminal type to discourage the practice of data kidnapping, a type of cyber attack that still does not have a perfect classification in Brazilian criminal legislation.
In this context, Bill 879/2022 stands out as an initiative that aims to classify the seizure of “ personal data, content of private electronic communications, commercial or industrial secrets, or confidential information ” as a specific crime. On the date of publication of this text, the Bill was in the process of being passed in the Chamber of Deputies, awaiting the appointment and review of the rapporteur.
If approved, the law establishes penalties of three to six years in prison for hackers of systems and devices who make user data inaccessible. The penalty increases to four to eight years if a ransom is demanded.