IT and telecommunications law

IT and telecommunications law is a highly innovative area of criminal law and is aimed at analysing and governing phenomena such as cybercrimes by converging national, EU and international legislation.

This new area is bound to provide some food for thought including any criminal liability of Internet providers or the implications regarding the illegal use of the Internet (online defamation, social network and social media abuse, cyber-attacks, online child grooming, cyber bullying, etc.).

Furthermore, new scenarios of criminal liability have been emerging through the analysis of risk management from generative AI, of which ChatGPT represents a sophisticated example.

One need only consider the possibility of using it to create fake news, to impersonate individuals online or to automate illegal activities (online scams, phishing, hacking, deepfakes, etc., as well as criminal copyright infringement).

Today the strategic importance of the Internet and the use of devices have increased exponentially along with the rapid increase in the number of users and the value of transactions carried out on the networks themselves. As a result, IT security and related data protection (including against computer viruses, malware, ransomware) play an essential role from both a social and economic point of view.

Italian lawmakers have adopted several countermeasures since 1993, through law no. 547, to address the issue of cybercrime. The amendments made by law no. 48 of 18 March 2008 have been equally important as they ensured to enact the so-called “Budapest Convention” of 23 November 2001. This has also led to the possibility that even companies may be liable for computer crimes (see Article 24 bis of legislative decree 231/2001).

Another important aspect of this area of criminal law is the protection of personal data, which has been bolstered by EU regulation 2016/679 (GDPR) in an attempt to protect individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and the free circulation of such data. This has modified the Italian regulations contained in legislative decree no. 196 of 30 June 2003 (Italian personal data protection code).
It should also be noted that the AI Act, the first European Regulation on Artificial Intelligence, is scheduled to come into force as early as 2024.
As regards international law, a number of interesting developments in 2023 have included the EU-USA Data Privacy Framework programme, the decision made by the European Commission on data protection adequacy in July 2023, and the FADP, the Swiss Federal Act on Data Protection, which also came into effect in 2023.

Another important aspect of this area of criminal law is the protection of personal data, which has been bolstered by EU regulation 2016/679 (GDPR) in an attempt to protect individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and the free circulation of such data. This has modified the Italian regulations contained in legislative decree no. 196 of 30 June 2003 (Italian personal data protection code).

It should also be noted that the AI Act, the first European Regulation on Artificial Intelligence, is scheduled to come into force as early as 2024.

As regards international law, a number of interesting developments in 2023 have included the EU-USA Data Privacy Framework programme, the decision made by the European Commission on data protection adequacy in July 2023, and the FADP, the Swiss Federal Act on Data Protection, which also came into effect in 2023.

To meet the growing need for lawmakers to combat cybercrime, which damages not only property interests but also the integrity of sensitive data and the secrecy of IT communications, new offences have been introduced into our criminal system over the years, including crimes against the person and against property, thus allowing for new ways to protect citizens from cybercrimes. These include:

• unauthorized access to an IT or online system (615 ter of the penal code);
• illegal possession and dissemination of access codes to IT and online systems (615 quater of the penal code);
• the dissemination of equipment, devices or computer programs aimed at damaging or interrupting an IT or online system (615 quinquies of the penal code);
• computer fraud (640 ter of the penal code).

One of Baccaredda Boy Law Firm’s largest clients is a multinational company operating in the field of telecommunications. Hence, the Firm’s assistance in legal consulting ranging from security and privacy policies to protection in criminal matters.

Baccaredda Boy Law Firm has been the civil claimant in the so-called ‘Telecom trial’.

Baccaredda Boy Law Firm also offers an in-depth analysis of IT and telecommunications law through conferences, study groups and publications. In this respect, please refer to the relevant section.