Legislation in Computer Science Flashcards

All 8 cards in this deck

Which piece of legislation must a company follow when it stores personal data about its users?

The Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA / GDPR).

State three actions an organisation must take to comply with the Data Protection Act 2018.

Keep the data secure from unauthorised access; only collect and keep data that is relevant, and not for longer than needed; only use it for the purpose it was collected for.

What does the Computer Misuse Act 1990 make illegal?

Gaining unauthorised access to data or programs on a computer (hacking), especially to commit a further offence or to modify data.

Which Act is broken by copying and sharing software, music or films without the owner's permission?

The Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

What is a software licence, and why do programmers use one?

A legal agreement between the publisher and end user stating what the user may and may not do with the code; it protects the programmer's intellectual property.

True or false? Open source software is not protected by copyright.

False. Open source software still has copyright — both open source and proprietary licences provide copyright; the open source licence just allows users to access, change and redistribute the source code.

Which licence type would you recommend for a company that wants to earn money from its program and keep control of it, and why?

Proprietary — it allows the programmer to earn money, gives more control over what happens with the program, and it is usually well tested.

Which licence type would you recommend for a developer who wants their program used by as many people as possible and improved by users, and why?

Open source — it is usually free so more people can access it (wider customer base and exposure), and users can alter it to fix bugs or improve it.