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Florida Statute 815.06 | Lawyer Caselaw & Research
F.S. 815.06 Case Law from Google Scholar
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The 2023 Florida Statutes

Title XLVI
CRIMES
Chapter 815
COMPUTER-RELATED CRIMES
View Entire Chapter
F.S. 815.06
815.06 Offenses against users of computers, computer systems, computer networks, and electronic devices.
(1) As used in this section, the term “user” means a person with the authority to operate or maintain a computer, computer system, computer network, or electronic device.
(2) A person commits an offense against users of computers, computer systems, computer networks, or electronic devices if he or she willfully, knowingly, and without authorization or exceeding authorization:
(a) Accesses or causes to be accessed any computer, computer system, computer network, or electronic device with knowledge that such access is unauthorized or the manner of use exceeds authorization;
(b) Disrupts or denies or causes the denial of the ability to transmit data to or from an authorized user of a computer, computer system, computer network, or electronic device, which, in whole or in part, is owned by, under contract to, or operated for, on behalf of, or in conjunction with another;
(c) Destroys, takes, injures, or damages equipment or supplies used or intended to be used in a computer, computer system, computer network, or electronic device;
(d) Destroys, injures, or damages any computer, computer system, computer network, or electronic device;
(e) Introduces any computer contaminant into any computer, computer system, computer network, or electronic device; or
(f) Engages in audio or video surveillance of an individual by accessing any inherent feature or component of a computer, computer system, computer network, or electronic device, including accessing the data or information of a computer, computer system, computer network, or electronic device that is stored by a third party.
(3)(a) Except as provided in paragraphs (b) and (c), a person who violates subsection (2) commits a felony of the third degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084.
(b) A person commits a felony of the second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084, if he or she violates subsection (2) and:
1. Damages a computer, computer equipment or supplies, a computer system, or a computer network and the damage or loss is at least $5,000;
2. Commits the offense for the purpose of devising or executing any scheme or artifice to defraud or obtain property;
3. Interrupts or impairs a governmental operation or public communication, transportation, or supply of water, gas, or other public service; or
4. Intentionally interrupts the transmittal of data to or from, or gains unauthorized access to, a computer, computer system, computer network, or electronic device belonging to any mode of public or private transit, as defined in s. 341.031.
(c) A person who violates subsection (2) commits a felony of the first degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084, if the violation:
1. Endangers human life; or
2. Disrupts a computer, computer system, computer network, or electronic device that affects medical equipment used in the direct administration of medical care or treatment to a person.
(4) A person who willfully, knowingly, and without authorization modifies equipment or supplies used or intended to be used in a computer, computer system, computer network, or electronic device commits a misdemeanor of the first degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.
(5)(a) In addition to any other civil remedy available, the owner or lessee of the computer, computer system, computer network, computer program, computer equipment or supplies, electronic device, or computer data may bring a civil action against a person convicted under this section for compensatory damages.
(b) In an action brought under this subsection, the court may award reasonable attorney fees to the prevailing party.
(6) A computer, computer system, computer network, computer software, computer data, or electronic device owned by a defendant that is used during the commission of a violation of this section or a computer or electronic device owned by the defendant that is used as a repository for the storage of software or data obtained in violation of this section is subject to forfeiture as provided under ss. 932.701-932.704.
(7) This section does not apply to a person who:
(a) Acts pursuant to a search warrant or to an exception to a search warrant authorized by law;
(b) Acts within the scope of his or her lawful employment; or
(c) Performs authorized security operations of a government or business.
(8) For purposes of bringing a civil or criminal action under this section, a person who causes, by any means, the access to a computer, computer system, computer network, or electronic device in one jurisdiction from another jurisdiction is deemed to have personally accessed the computer, computer system, computer network, or electronic device in both jurisdictions.
(9) This chapter does not impose liability on a provider of an interactive computer service as defined in 47 U.S.C. s. 230(f), information service as defined in 47 U.S.C. s. 153, or communications service as defined in s. 202.11 that provides the transmission, storage, or caching of electronic communications or messages of others; other related telecommunications or commercial mobile radio service; or content provided by another person.
History.s. 1, ch. 78-92; s. 11, ch. 2001-54; s. 5, ch. 2014-208; s. 40, ch. 2019-167.

F.S. 815.06 on Google Scholar

F.S. 815.06 on Casetext

Amendments to 815.06


Arrestable Offenses / Crimes under Fla. Stat. 815.06
Level: Degree
Misdemeanor/Felony: First/Second/Third

S815.06 - FRAUD - REPEALED CH 2001-54 - F: T
S815.06 1a - PROPERTY CRIMES - RENUMBERED. SEE REC # 7725 - F: T
S815.06 2a - PROPERTY CRIMES - ACCESS COMPUTER ELECTRONIC DEVICE WO AUTHORITY - F: T
S815.06 1b - PROPERTY CRIMES - RENUMBERED. SEE REC # 7726 - F: T
S815.06 1c - PROPERTY CRIMES - RENUMBERED. SEE REC # 7728 - F: T
S815.06 1d - DAMAGE PROP - RENUMBERED. SEE REC # 7729 - F: T
S815.06 1e - PROPERTY CRIMES - RENUMBERED. SEE REC # 7730 - F: T
S815.06 2b - FRAUD-SWINDLE - REPEALED CH 2001-54 - F: S
S815.06 2b - PROPERTY CRIMES - DISRUPT DENY ABILITY TRANSMIT DATA COMPTR NTWK - F: T
S815.06 2b - PROPERTY CRIMES - DISRPT DENY ABLTY TRANS DATA CMPTR SYS ELE DEV - F: T
S815.06 2b1 - PROPERTY CRIMES - RENUMBERED. SEE REC # 7733 - F: S
S815.06 2b2 - FRAUD - RENUMBERED. SEE REC # 7734 - F: S
S815.06 2b3 - PUBLIC ORDER CRIMES - RENUMBERED. SEE REC # 7735 - F: S
S815.06 2c - PUBLIC ORDER CRIMES - RENUMBERED. SEE REC # 7737 - F: F
S815.06 2c - PROPERTY CRIMES - TAKE DMGE COMPUTER EQUP SUPPLIES ELECTRNIC DEV - F: T
S815.06 2d - DAMAGE PROP - DESTROY DAMAGE CMPTER OR SYST NTWK OR ELEC DEV - F: T
S815.06 2e - PROPERTY CRIMES - INTRODUCE COMPUTER CONTAMINANT - F: T
S815.06 2f - PROPERTY CRIMES - AUDIO VIDEO SURV ACCESS CMPTR SYS NTWK ELE DEV - F: T
S815.06 2f - PROPERTY CRIMES - ACCES DATA INFO CMPTR SYS NTWK ELE DEV 3RD PTY - F: T
S815.06 3 - PROPERTY CRIMES - RENUMBERED. SEE REC # 7739 - M: F
S815.06 3b1 - PROPERTY CRIMES - COMPUTER CRIME DAMAGE AT LEAST 5K DOLS - F: S
S815.06 3b2 - FRAUD - COMPUTER CRIME TO DEFRAUD OBTAIN PROPERTY - F: S
S815.06 3b3 - PUBLIC ORDER CRIMES - COMPUTER CRIME IMPAIR PUBLIC SERVICE - F: S
S815.06 3b4 - PUBLIC ORDER CRIMES - CMPTR CRIME INTRUPT ACCESS PUB PRIV TRANSIT - F: S
S815.06 3c1 - PUBLIC ORDER CRIMES - COMPUTER CRIME ENDANGER HUMAN LIFE - F: F
S815.06 3c2 - PUBLIC ORDER CRIMES - COMPUTER CRIME MED EQUP IN CARE TRMT OF PERSON - F: F
S815.06 4 - PROPERTY CRIMES - MODIFY COMPUTER EQUIP SUPPLY ELEC DEV WO AUTH - M: F



Annotations, Discussions, Cases:

10 Cases from Casetext:Date Descending

U.S. Supreme Court11th Cir. - Ct. App.11th Cir. - MD FL11th Cir. - ND FL11th Cir. - SD FLFed. Reg.Secondary Sources - All
  1. Umhoefer v. State

    235 So. 3d 989 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2017)
    In Crapps, the First District determined that the State had failed to prove a violation of section 815.06( 1)(a), Florida Statutes (2013), when the defendant accessed his ex-girlfriend's Instagram account without permission and posted nude photos of her. 180 So.3d at 1126–27. The First District stated that the statute's definitions in section 815.03 referred to tangible devices and not the data located on the device. Id. at 1127. The court stated that to prove a violation the State was required to "establish that the defendant accessed one of the listed tangible devices without authorization, not that the defendant accessed a program or information stored on the device without authorization." Id. (citing Rodriguez v. State, 956 So.2d 1226, 1230 (Fla. 4th DCA 2007) ). In determining that the State failed to prove its case, the First District pointed out that it had before it no evidence to "explain[ ] how accessing an Instagram account works from a technological perspective, leaving unanswered whether or how Appellant's actions amounted to accessing a specific computer, computer system, or computer network." Id. In fact, the court stated that it "d[id] not foreclose the…
  2. Plaintiff claims violations of the following statutes or rules: 42 U.S.C. § 249; the Violent Crimes Control Law Enforcement Act of 1994; 18 U.S.C. §§ 241, 242; the Fifth Amendment Double Jeopardy Clause; 18 U.S.C. § 2071 ("falsifying reports"); 18 U.S.C. § 2724 ("civil action for false documents"); 28 U.S.C. § 1346; Fla. Stat. § 112.533 ("receipt and processing of complaints"); Fla. Stat. § 30.09; Fla. Stat. §§ 30.15(g), 30.01; Fla. Stat. § 817.49 ("unfair practices act - copycat crimes first medes [sic] failed to dim"); Fla. Stat. § 112.3173; Fla. Stat. § 815.06 ("offense against film for scheme"); and Fla Rules 6.080, 6.140 (ECF No. 24 at 26).
    PAGE 7
  3. Lastly, Harvey has failed to show that, among other things, the Defendants have previously been convicted of a crime under FLA. STAT. § 815.06, which is a prerequisite to the private right of action he asserts under the state statute. See Mortgage Now, Inc., 2009 WL 4262877, at *6 ("[Florida Statute] Section 815.06 is also criminal in nature but provides a civil remedy for compensatory damages against a person who has already been criminally convicted under the statute. The defendants in this case have not been convicted of any crime under § 815.06, and the statute is inapplicable to them.").
    PAGE 5
  4. Crapps v. State

    180 So. 3d 1125 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2015)   Cited 2 times
    Section 815.06 was enacted in 1978, long before the advent of the Internet and the proliferation of social media accounts such as Instagram. The statute has remained virtually unchanged since its original enactment, and at the time of the events giving rise to this case, the statute provided in pertinent part that “[w]hoever willfully, knowingly, and without authorization [a]ccesses or causes to be accessed any computer, computer system, or computer network ... commits an offense against computer users.” § 815.06(1)(a), Fla. Stat. (2013). The operative terms in the statute—“computer,” “computer system,” and “computer network”—were defined as follows:
    PAGE 1126
  5. Willoughby v. State

    84 So. 3d 1210 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2012)
    Turning first to count one, section 815.06(1)(a) of the Florida Statutes provides that anyone who "willfully, knowingly, and without authorization ... [a]ccesses or causes to be accessed any computer, computer system, or computer network ... commits an offense against computer users." Access is defined as "to approach, instruct, communicate with, store data in, retrieve data from, or otherwise make use of any resources of a computer, computer system, or computer network." § 815.03(1). Subsection (6) of section 815.06 clarifies that the section "does not apply to any person who accesses his or her employer's computer system ... when acting within the scope of his or her lawful employment." Therefore, to prove this offense, the State must show that: (a) the defendant willfully, knowingly, and without authorization, (b) accessed a computer system, and (c) if the employer's system, that defendant acted outside the scope of his or her lawful employment.
    PAGE 1212
  6. The Committee's proposals include revisions to current standard criminal jury instructions 3.6(a), Insanity, and 12.4, Criminal Mischief, as well as five new instructions: 10.6(a), Discharging a Firearm from a Vehicle Within 1000 Feet of a Person; 12.6, Offenses Against Computer Users (sections 815.06(1) and 815.06(2)(c), Florida Statutes); 12.7, Offenses Against Computer Users (sections 815.06(1) and (2)(b), Florida Statutes); 12.8, Offenses Against Computer Users (section 815.06(3), Florida Statutes); and 21.8, Tampering with or Fabricating Physical Evidence.
  7. Johansson alleges that Emmons violated criminal statutes and SAO policies by accessing and disseminating Johansson's personal information in violation of Florida Statutes § 815.06(1)(a), which prohibits the willful, knowing, and unauthorized access of any computer, computer system, or computer network. (Doc. No. 1 ¶¶ 23-26; Doc. No. 1-1 at 2-3, 8.) The parties do not cite, and the Court does not find, any authority for the proposition that this statute, by itself or in combination with any other Florida statute, creates a property interest in the confidentiality of Johansson's social security number, driving history, photographs, tag number, or driver's license number.
    PAGE 13
  8. The court next considers plaintiff's contention that defendants have violated the FCCA. Only § 815.04 of the FCCA, which pertains to offenses against intellectual property, and § 815.06, which pertains to offenses against computer users, appear to have any arguable relevance in this case. There are few cases that interpret the FCCA but it appears that neither section has any applicability here. Both are criminal statutes; while § 815.06 additionally provides that a civil action may be brought, the defendant must first have been convicted of violating the statute. Section 815.04 does not appear to be create any civil remedy and thus implies no private right of action. See, generally, Cort v. Ash, 422 U.S. 66, 95 S.Ct. 2080, 45 L.Ed.2d 26 (1975) (refusing to infer a private right of action from a "bare criminal statute"). Thus plaintiff has not shown there is a substantial likelihood it would prevail on its claim defendants violated the FCCA.
    PAGE 3

    Cases from cite.case.law:

    UMHOEFER, v. STATE, 235 So. 3d 989 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2017)

    . . . Section 815.06(2)(a), Florida Statutes (2014), provides as follows: (2) A. person commits an offense . . . proposition that accessing a person’s specific account was insufficient to prove a violation of section 815.06 . . . foreclose the possibility that the State could present sufficiént evidence to prove a violation of section 815.06 . . . There, an employee was charged with a violation of section 815.06 for accessing his employer’s computer . . .

    CRAPPS, v. STATE, 180 So. 3d 1125 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2015)

    . . . sole issue raised by Appellant on appeal is whether these actions constitute a violation of section 815.06 . . . ■Section 815.06 was enacted in 1978, long before the advent of the Internet and the proliferation of . . . any computer, computer system, or computer network ... commits an offense against computer users.” § 815.06 . . . Thus, to prove a violation of section 815.06(l)(a) the State must establish that the defendant accessed . . . State, 956 So.2d 1226, 1230 (Fla. 4th DCA 2007) (reversing conviction under section 815.06 because evidence . . .

    UNITED STATES v. STANLEY,, 753 F.3d 114 (3d Cir. 2014)

    . . . . § 815.06; Ind.Code Ann. § 35-43-2-3; Iowa Code Ann. § 716.6B; La.Rev.Stat. Ann. § 14:73.8; Mo. . . .

    WILLOUGHBY, v. STATE, 84 So. 3d 1210 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2012)

    . . . Willoughby was arrested and charged with unlawfully accessing a computer database in violation of sections 815.06 . . . Turning first to count one, section 815.06(l)(a) of the Florida Statutes provides that anyone who “willfully . . . Subsection (6) of section 815.06 clarifies that the section “does not apply to any person who accesses . . . network, count one is reversed as the State failed to prove that Willough-by’s conduct violated section 815.06 . . .

    In STANDARD JURY INSTRUCTIONS IN CRIMINAL CASES- REPORT NO., 44 So. 3d 565 (Fla. 2010)

    . . . Firearm from a Vehicle Within 1000 Feet of a Person; 12.6, Offenses Against Computer Users (sections 815.06 . . . (1) and 815.06(2)(c), Florida Statutes); 12.7, Offenses Against Computer Users (sections 815.06(1) and . . . (2)(b), Florida Statutes); 12.8, Offenses Against Computer Users (section 815.06(3), Florida Statutes . . . The Committee also proposes new jury instructions 12.6, 12.7, and 12.8, in light of section 815.06, Florida . . . Instruction 12.7 defines “property” because section 815.06(2)(b) includes as an alternative element that . . .

    RODRIGUEZ, v. STATE, 956 So. 2d 1226 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2007)

    . . . As to the section 815.06, Florida Statutes (2003) violation, I concur with the reversal because I believe . . . that appellant fell under the section 815.06(6) exclusion— he was an employee who “accessefd] his .. . . . wit: the computer system located at the Tropicana Products, Inc., Mir-amar Sales Center.... ” Section 815.06 . . . Additionally, subsection 815.06(6), Florida Statutes (2003), indicates that appellant’s conduct is outside . . . the scope of section 815.06. . . . computer program, or computer data when acting within the scope of his or her lawful employment.” § 815.06 . . .

    NEWBERGER, v. STATE, 641 So. 2d 419 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 1994)

    . . . We note that section 815.06, Florida Statutes (1991), which criminalizes accessing a computer without . . . It may be that section 815.06 more aptly describes the conduct Newberger engaged in. . . . exceeds his authorized access to a computer should not be subject to criminal sanctions under section 815.06 . . . The portion of section 815.06 that might be relevant here provides: (1) Whoever willfully, knowingly, . . .

    THERRIEN, v. STATE, 637 So. 2d 288 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 1994)

    . . . . §§ 815.06, 777.04, Fla.Stat. (1989). . § 812.014(1) & (2)(c), Fla.Stat. (1989). .- § 812.014(2)(d), . . .

    A. GALLAGHER, v. STATE, 618 So. 2d 757 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 1993)

    . . . Appellant argues that her conviction under section 815.06, Florida Statutes (1991), which criminally . . . point to guide its determination of whether “exceeding one’s authorized use” is proscribed by section 815.06 . . . Section 815.06(1), Florida Statutes (1991), provides that: (1) Whoever willfully, knowingly, and without . . . agree with appellant’s argument that this court should adopt the same view when interpreting section 815.06 . . .

    DE CHAMBRUN v. COX, 60 F. 471 (2d Cir. 1894)

    . . . The amount of the reduction was §>13,-815.06 out of a claim of $37,746.96, a sum grossly disproportioned . . .