Digital rights activists decry computer crime proposal

A proposal in the U.S. Congress to strengthen the penalties in the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act is a "giant leap in the wrong direction" for digital rights activists calling for changes in the law after the suicide of hacktivist Aaron Swartz earlier this year.

The draft legislation, uncovered by tech policy blog Techdirt, would expand the CFAA by raising the penalties for some hacking-related crimes and expanding activities covered by the statute. The draft legislation, being circulated by staff of the House of Representatives Judiciary Committee, comes as several lawmakers and digital rights groups have called for a rewrite of CFAA to rein in some types of prosecutions after Swartz's suicide.