The Digital Media Lawyer Blog:  “The Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA, 18 U.S.C. § 1030) is a broadly written statute permits private citizens to recover damages for a wide variety of computer-related injuries.  I use the amorphous term ‘computer-related,’ because CFAA permits recoveries for wrongful acts committed against computers, or for wrongful acts committed using computers.  In some cases, CFAA may permit recovery for acts that have not been recognized under state law — such as the unauthorized accessing or obtaining information from a computer.  Use of CFAA can also permit a plaintiff to bring her suit in federal court, a favorable litigation strategy under many circumstances.  The CFAA was originally written as a criminal statute, and only secondarily extended to permit private claims.  And, it imposes a series of hurdles — in my view, small hurdles — that must be crossed on civil claims.  A recent dismissal of a CFAA class action suit provides an excellent guide to these minimum requirements.”

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