[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 58 (Tuesday, April 21, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2304-S2305]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. WYDEN (for himself and Mr. Paul):
  S. 1030. A bill to amend title 18, United States Code, to provide for 
clarification as to the meaning of access without authorization, and 
for other purposes; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
  Mr. WYDEN. Mr. President, today I am reintroducing the Aaron's Law 
Act of 2015 to reform the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, a sweeping 
anti-hacking law that criminalizes many forms of common Internet and 
computer use. This overly broad law currently allows breathtaking 
levels of prosecutorial discretion that invites serious overuse and 
abuse.
  Together with Senator Rand Paul, and my colleagues in the House of 
Representatives, we introduce legislation to fix the Computer Fraud and 
Abuse Act which is long overdue for reform. Aaron's Law would curb the 
abuses of this outdated law while still preserving the tools needed to 
prosecute malicious attacks.
  Our bill, inspired by the late Internet innovator and activist Aaron 
Swartz, who faced up to 35 years in prison for an act of civil 
disobedience, would reform the quarter-century-old law to better 
reflect computer and Internet activities in the digital age. Numerous 
and recent instances of heavy-handed prosecutions for non-malicious 
computer crimes have raised serious questions as to how the law treats 
violations of terms of service, employer agreement or website notices.
  Aaron's Law is smart legislation that keeps up with the constant 
evolution of the Internet, and honors the late Aaron Swartz.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be 
printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be 
printed in the Record, as follows:

                                S. 1030

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Aaron's Law Act of 2015''.

     SEC. 2. CLARIFYING THAT ``ACCESS WITHOUT AUTHORIZATION'' 
                   UNDER SECTION 1030 OF TITLE 18, UNITED STATES 
                   CODE, MEANS CIRCUMVENTION OF TECHNOLOGICAL 
                   BARRIERS IN ORDER TO GAIN UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS.

       (a) In General.--Section 1030(e)(6) of title 18, United 
     States Code, is amended by--
       (1) striking ``exceeds authorized access'' and all that 
     follows; and
       (2) inserting the following: `` `access without 
     authorization' means--
       ``(A) to obtain information on a protected computer;
       ``(B) that the accesser lacks authorization to obtain; and
       ``(C) by knowingly circumventing one or more technological 
     or physical measures that are designed to exclude or prevent 
     unauthorized individuals from obtaining that information;''.
       (b) Conforming Amendment.--Section 1030 of title 18, United 
     States Code, is amended--

[[Page S2305]]

       (1) in subsection (d)(10), by striking ``unauthorized 
     access, or exceeding authorized access, to a'' and inserting 
     ``access without authorization of a protected''; and
       (2) by striking ``exceeds authorized access'' each place it 
     appears.

     SEC. 3. ELIMINATING REDUNDANCY.

       (a) Repeal.--Section 1030(a) of title 18, United States 
     Code, is amended--
       (1) by striking paragraph (4); and
       (2) by redesignating paragraphs (5), (6), and (7) as 
     paragraphs (4), (5), and (6), respectively.
       (b) Conforming Amendments.--Section 1030 of title 18, 
     United States Code, is amended--
       (1) in subsection (c)--
       (A) in paragraph (2), by striking ``(a)(6)'' each place it 
     appears and inserting ``(a)(5)''; and
       (B) in paragraph (3)--
       (i) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``subsection (a)(4) or 
     (a)(7)'' and inserting ``subsection (a)(6)''; and
       (ii) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``subsection (a)(4), 
     or (a)(7)'' and inserting ``subsection (a)(6)''; and
       (C) in paragraph (4)--
       (i) in subparagraph (A)(i), in the matter preceding clause 
     (i), by striking ``subsection (a)(5)(B)'' and inserting 
     ``subsection (a)(4)(B)'';
       (ii) in subparagraph (B)(i), by striking ``subsection 
     (a)(5)(A)'' and inserting ``subsection (a)(4)(A)'';
       (iii) in subparagraph (C)(i), by striking ``subsection 
     (a)(5)'' and inserting ``subsection (a)(4)'';
       (iv) in subparagraph (D)(i), by striking ``subsection 
     (a)(5)(C)'' and inserting ``subsection (a)(4)(C)'';
       (v) in subparagraph (E), by striking ``subsection 
     (a)(5)(A)'' and inserting ``subsection (a)(4)(A)'';
       (vi) in subparagraph (F), by striking ``subsection 
     (a)(5)(A)'' and inserting ``subsection (a)(4)(A)''; and
       (vii) in subparagraph (G)(i), by striking ``subsection 
     (a)(5)'' and inserting ``subsection (a)(4)''; and
       (2) in subsection (h), by striking ``subsection (a)(5)'' 
     and inserting ``subsection (a)(4)''.

     SEC. 4. MAKING PENALTIES PROPORTIONAL TO CRIMES.

       (a) Section 1030(c)(2) of title 18, United States Code, is 
     amended--
       (1) in subparagraph (A)--
       (A) by striking ``conviction for another'' and inserting 
     ``subsequent''; and
       (B) by inserting ``such'' after ``attempt to commit'';
       (2) in subparagraph (B)(i), by inserting after ``financial 
     gain'' the following: ``and the fair market value of the 
     information obtained exceeds $5,000'';
       (3) in subparagraph (B)(ii), by striking ``the offense was 
     committed'' and all that follows through the semicolon, and 
     inserting the following: ``the offense was committed in 
     furtherance of any criminal act in violation of the 
     Constitution or laws of the United States or of any State 
     punishable by a term of imprisonment greater than one year, 
     unless such criminal acts are prohibited by this section or 
     such State violation would be based solely on accessing 
     information without authorization;'';
       (4) in subparagraph (B)(iii), by inserting ``fair market'' 
     before ``value''; and
       (5) in subparagraph (C)--
       (A) by striking ``conviction for another'' and inserting 
     ``subsequent''; and
       (B) by inserting ``such'' after ``attempt to commit''.
                                 ______