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2019/20 Undergraduate Module Catalogue

LAW3031 Cyberlaw: Regulation of Information Society

10 creditsClass Size: 30

Module manager: Dr Subhajit Basu
Email: S.Basu@leeds.ac.uk

Taught: Semester 1 (Sep to Jan) View Timetable

Year running 2019/20

This module is mutually exclusive with

LAW3032

Cyberlaw: Law and the Regulation of the Information Society

This module is not approved as a discovery module

Module summary

The internet and networked technologies have changed the nature of our world as we experience it. So much so, that we are becoming an 'information society' in which the creation, manipulation distribution and exchange of information in its various forms has become a significant social, economic, political, cultural and legal activity. This module aims to address all policy and regulatory issues raised by the internet and technology applications enabled by the internet. The borderless nature of the internet and the possibility to transmit information quickly on a global basis has raised difficult questions of state jurisdiction and regulation which this module will explore in depth.

Objectives

On completion of this module the students will be expected to have a thorough understanding of the legal and policy issues which are intimately connected with the regulation of information society. The aim of this module is to introduce students to the legal challenges that arise from the population of cyberspace.

Learning outcomes
Upon completion of the course it is anticipated that students should be able to:
- understand the essential issues concerning the relationship between information technology applications and key legal principles;
- understand the concept of technology, and its application in modern life in the shape of the Information Society;
- critically evaluate national and international policies and initiatives concerning the regulation of the information society;
- critically evaluate on-going developments in the law relating to Cyberspace;
- conduct independent research within the field of information technology and law using appropriate research methods.

Skills outcomes
- Draw on skills developed in the retrieval, collation, and presentation of information (communication).
- Draw on analytical skills developed in the comparative understanding of concepts (problem solving).
- Critically read and comparatively evaluate literature (learning to learn).

Syllabus

Introduction to the possibilities and challenges of the Information Society:
What is the internet and what aspects of IT have produced the basis of the EU programme dedicated to building an 'information society'. We look briefly at the technical side of the internet and the potential legal problems arising from the internet. We will also look at the wider attempts to build information societies – for example the World Summit on Information Society: http://www.itu.int/wsis/.

Governing the Internet: Who should govern the (global) internet?:
Governance in cyberspace is a wide open area of controversy with much uncharted direction, obscure questions and many unresolved issues. How should cyberspace be governed? Where should the power of governance lie? Is it possible to adopt rules of governance which are acceptable to all users of the Internet?

Data Protection and State Surveillance:
In the Information society, personal data becomes a commodity. It is also the case that communication of information becomes enhanced - a private email can be quickly passed across the world. In this lecture we look at the some of the problems caused by these kinds of transformations of the nature of information. We also look at what is omitted from Data Protection - the needs of the State to observe its populations.

Privacy and Freedom of Expression:
In this session we look at attempts to legislate for privacy and its related opposite, freedom of expression. Europe is particularly divided on this topic and the US is even more divergent from Europe. What are the laws and policies that create the right of (and protect) privacy and freedom of expression in the Information Society?

Teaching methods

Delivery type	Number	Length hours	Student hours
Lecture	5	2.00	10.00
Private study hours			90.00
Total Contact hours			10.00
Total hours (100hr per 10 credits)			100.00

Private study

The students will be expected in assessed work to argue for their position rather than list detail, and the marking of assessed work will clearly reward good and well developed argument, hence they will be required to carry out independent research and develop their own critical thinking rather than agreeing to opinion biased towards particular views.

50 hours - 10 hours reading and reflection following each lecture.
50 hours - preparation for writing essay.

Methods of assessment

Coursework

Assessment type	Notes	% of formal assessment
Essay	1 x 3,000-word essay	100.00
Total percentage (Assessment Coursework)		100.00

Normally resits will be assessed by the same methodology as the first attempt, unless otherwise stated

Reading list

There is no reading list for this module

Last updated: 30/04/2019

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