Impossibility

Impossibility

Given the technology involved in computer crime, and the generally untested nature of the definitions establishing computer crime, it is conceivable that the defense of legal impossibility might be applicable.

If, for example, the defendant accessed a database that is not considered part of a computer system as that term is defined in the jurisdiction's computer crime statutes, then even admitting all the facts alleged by the prosecution, it would be possible to argue that the doctrine of legal impossibility precludes prosecution.