Digital Literacy and the Law
The four laws that govern computing, how your data is collected and used, and the ethical questions technology forces on all of us.
The four laws
Data Protection Act 2018
Controls how organisations collect, store and use personal data. It brings GDPR into UK law.
Organisations must ensure data is:
- Used fairly and lawfully
- Collected for a specified purpose and not used for something else
- Adequate and not excessive, so only what is actually needed
- Accurate and kept up to date
- Not kept longer than necessary
- Kept secure
You have the right to see the data held about you, to have mistakes corrected, and in many cases to have it deleted.
Computer Misuse Act 1990
Three offences:
- Unauthorised access to computer material, such as logging into someone else's account
- Unauthorised access with intent to commit a further offence, such as breaking in to commit fraud
- Unauthorised modification, such as deleting files or spreading a virus
Even if you change nothing and it was meant as a joke. The offence is the access itself.
Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988
Protects the work of creators: music, films, games, software, images, writing and designs. Copying, sharing or using someone's work without permission is illegal.
This covers downloading films illegally, using a photograph from a search engine in a project you publish, and copying software.
Creative Commons licences are the exception. The creator gives permission in advance, usually on the condition that you credit them.
Freedom of Information Act 2000
Gives the public the right to request information held by public bodies such as councils, schools and the NHS. It is about transparency in public organisations, not about personal data.
Step 1 of 4 Computer Misuse Act 1990
How your data is used
What is collected
- What you search for and which pages you visit
- How long you spend looking at each thing
- Your location, often continuously
- Who you interact with
- What you buy, and what you almost bought
Why it is collected
Mostly targeted advertising. A service that knows your interests can sell far more valuable advertising space than one that does not, which is why so many services are free.
It is also used to recommend content, to improve products, and sometimes it is sold to other companies.
Cookies
A cookie is a small file stored on your device by a website.
- Necessary cookies make the site work, for example remembering what is in your basket
- Tracking cookies follow you across different websites to build a profile of your interests
This is why cookie banners exist, and why you can usually reject everything except the necessary ones.
The trade
You are not paying money for most online services. You are paying with your data and your attention. That is not automatically wrong, but it should be a decision you make knowingly rather than one made for you.
Ethics and the impact of technology
Ethical questions have no legal answer
- Should employers read employees' messages?
- Should facial recognition be used in public spaces?
- Should an algorithm decide who gets a job interview, a loan or a place at university?
- Is it acceptable to automate a job that thousands of people depend on?
- Who is responsible when a self driving car causes a crash?
None of these has a single right answer, which is exactly why they matter and why you should be able to argue both sides.
The digital divide
Not everyone has reliable internet, a suitable device or the skills to use them. As more services move online, those people are excluded from things they need, including applying for support, booking appointments and doing schoolwork.
This affects some groups far more than others: low income households, elderly people, rural communities, and people with disabilities.
Environmental impact
- Manufacturing devices uses rare earth metals, and mining them damages habitats and pollutes water
- Data centres consume enormous amounts of electricity
- E-waste contains toxic materials such as lead and mercury, and much of it is shipped to countries with weaker environmental protections
- Replacing devices every two years makes all of this worse
Positives exist too: video calls replace flights, digital documents replace paper, and smart systems reduce energy use in buildings.
Give both sides, name the specific group affected, and finish with a judgement. "Online council services save money and are available at any hour, however elderly residents without internet access are excluded, so a telephone option should be kept."
- Ethical: questions of right and wrong, such as fairness, privacy and responsibility.
- Legal: the laws that apply, which you must be able to name.
- Cultural: how technology changes the way people live, communicate and work.
- Environmental: the materials and energy technology uses, and the savings it can make.
Key terms you must be able to define
- Data Protection Act 2018
- The law controlling how organisations collect, store and use personal data.
- Computer Misuse Act 1990
- The law making unauthorised access to and modification of computer material a criminal offence.
- Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988
- The law protecting the work of creators from being copied or used without permission.
- Personal data
- Information that can be used to identify a living person.
- Cookie
- A small file stored on your device by a website, used to remember settings or to track you.
- Creative Commons
- A licence where the creator gives permission in advance for their work to be used, usually with conditions.
- Digital divide
- The gap between those with reliable access to technology and those without.
- E-waste
- Discarded electronic equipment, often containing toxic materials.
Flashcards
Say the definition out loud before you flip the card. Retrieving it from memory is what builds recall, reading it again is not.
Reach the top grade on this topic
The top level here is about arguing, not listing.
Name the law correctly, with its year. Getting the Computer Misuse Act mixed up with the Copyright Act loses marks that are otherwise free.
Give both sides of every ethical question. An answer that only says technology is bad, or only says it is good, cannot reach the top level however many points it makes.
Name the specific group affected. Not "some people", but "elderly residents in rural areas without reliable broadband".
Finish with a judgement. Say what you think should happen and why, based on what you have just argued.
- Match any scenario to the correct law instantly
- Explain three principles of the Data Protection Act
- Write a balanced answer on an ethical question with a clear conclusion
- Explain the digital divide and name the groups it affects most
Mistakes that cost marks here
- Confusing the Computer Misuse Act with the Copyright Act. Hacking is Misuse, piracy is Copyright.
- Saying it is only illegal to access someone's account if you change something. Access alone is the offence.
- Writing a one sided answer to an impact question.
- Saying 'it affects people' instead of naming the specific group.
- Forgetting that technology has positive environmental impacts as well as negative ones.
Under the Data Protection Act you can send any organisation a subject access request asking for every piece of personal data they hold about you. They must respond within one month, and it is free.
Knowledge check
Exam-style questions
Five written questions in the style of the real paper. Write a full answer, then let the marker check it against the mark scheme.
- LComputer Misuse Act 1990
The Computer Misuse Act 1990, which makes unauthorised access to computer material a criminal offence even when nothing is changed or taken.
- LData must be used fairly and lawfully
- LData must be adequate and not excessive, collected for a specified purpose
- LData must be kept secure, accurate, and not kept longer than necessary
Organisations must use personal data fairly and lawfully, and only for the specific purpose they stated when they collected it. They must collect only data that is adequate and relevant for that purpose and not excessive, so they cannot gather extra information just in case it might be useful. They must also keep the data accurate and up to date, store it securely so it cannot be stolen or lost, and delete it once it is no longer needed for the purpose it was collected for.
- LThe gap between those with reliable access to technology and those without
- LNames a specific affected group
- LExplains a consequence for that group
The digital divide is the gap between people who have reliable access to technology and the internet, along with the skills and confidence to use them, and people who do not. It matters because more and more essential services assume that everyone is online. One group strongly affected is students in low income households, who may share a single device between several family members or have no home broadband at all. When homework is set online and lessons rely on digital resources, those students fall behind not because of ability but because of access, and the gap widens over time.
- LAdvantage: cheaper to run than staffed offices
- LAdvantage: available at any time rather than only office hours
- LAdvantage: faster processing and easier tracking of requests
- LDisadvantage: excludes residents without internet access or devices
- LNames a specific affected group such as elderly or low income residents
- LRaises data protection responsibilities for personal data collected
- LGives both sides rather than only one
- LReaches a clear conclusion with a recommendation
Moving council services online brings real advantages. Running a website costs far less than staffing offices across the borough, and those savings can be spent on other services. The site is available at any hour, so a resident working shifts can report a problem at eleven at night rather than taking time off work, and requests submitted online can be logged, tracked and processed automatically, which is quicker and less error prone than paper forms. However, the decision has serious disadvantages. Not every resident has a reliable internet connection, a suitable device, or the confidence to use one, and the people most likely to be excluded are elderly residents, people on low incomes and those in rural areas with poor broadband. These are frequently the same residents who most need council support, so a digital only service risks becoming hardest to reach for the people who depend on it most. There is also a legal dimension: the council will be collecting large amounts of personal data including addresses, financial details and information about vulnerable people, so under the Data Protection Act 2018 it must keep that data secure, use it only for the stated purpose and not retain it longer than necessary, and a breach would be both damaging and expensive. Overall the council is right to develop online services, because the cost savings and the convenience for the majority are substantial, but it would be wrong to make them the only option. The best approach is to build the website properly while keeping a telephone line and a staffed counter available, and to fund support that helps residents get online, so that nobody loses access to services they are entitled to.
- LImages are protected by copyright
- LThe creator owns the work and permission is needed to use it
- LNames the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 or suggests using Creative Commons images instead
Images found through a search engine are almost always protected by copyright, which belongs to whoever created them. The Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 makes it illegal to copy, publish or distribute someone else's work without their permission, and publishing an image on a public website counts as exactly that. Using the image without a licence could result in the site being taken down or a demand for payment. The safe alternatives are to take or create the image yourself, to use images released under a Creative Commons licence while following whatever conditions the creator set, usually crediting them, or to use a stock library that explicitly permits the use.