Businessmen seeking a competitor's trade secrets and disgruntled bank staff wanting to sabotage their company's records could fall within the reach of a new computer crime, the Chief Judge ruled yesterday.
But it may not apply to a curious employee who cannot resist peeping at his bosses' files.
Mr Justice Patrick Chan Siu-oi gave his interpretation of legislation creating the crime of 'access to a computer with criminal or dishonest intent'.
He considered the circumstances in which the crime could be committed when ruling on an appeal by Tsun Shui-luen, who was convicted of the offence after obtaining the Secretary for Justice's confidential medical records and leaking them to the press. It was only the second case of its kind.
The judge said it was not necessary for offenders to intend the information they gained from a computer to be used to commit fraud or some other crime.
Stealing commercial secrets and sabotaging records would also breach this law.
'All these acts may result in a gain to the perpetrator or cause huge losses, great embarrassment and serious harm to others,' he said.