Alteration

Alteration

The term "alter" in statutes defining crimes of computer tampering refers to its ordinary meaning of "change" or "modify". For alteration to occur, the identity of the thing need not be destroyed, nor an entirely new thing substituted. It is sufficient if only some elements, ingredients or details are changed.FN23

Conduct that disconnects the application programs of a corporation's computers and commanding computers to shut down a corporation's telephone system constitutes tampering regardless of whether the defendant uses the existing instructions to direct the phone system off-line or inputs new instructions accomplishing the same thing.FN24