A crime in need of a law

Now law enforcers have the suspected hacker, or the Love Bugger, or whatever you want to call the person suspected to have unleashed the most virulent virus ever on millions of computers worldwide. Agents of the National Bureau of Investigation and the International Police swooped down on a house in Pandacan yesterday, where they apprehended Rommel Amores. The 32-year-old computer specialist of Equitable Bank denied creating the virus that started with an "ILOVEYOU" e-mail message. His wife Irene de Guzman, another suspect, was not home but is also expected to be arrested.

Experts are still investigating the allegation of a computer expert in Sweden that the Love Bug hacker is an 18-year-old German exchange student in Australia. But even if the NBI and Interpol come up with incontrovertible evidence that Amores and De Guzman are the hackers, the bureau has another problem: What exactly is the crime? Hacking, cyber terrorism and other forms of cyber crimes are not yet in the Philippines' statute books. NBI officials said they had trouble even obtaining a search warrant from a court; it took some explaining to finally convince the judge.

The only crime government prosecutors can think of imputing against Amores at this time is malicious mischief -- a felony punishable with imprisonment of six months to six years. In the United States, gaining illegal access to computer files is a felony punishable with a prison term of 5 to 20 years.

If Amores and De Guzman can't be prosecuted under Philippine laws, the next best thing is for another country to file an extradition request. There are gray areas here, however. Where was the crime committed? If the answer is Pandacan, Manila, then another country such as the United States cannot assume jurisdiction over the case, and it can't be regarded as an extraditable offense. But if the virus struck millions of computers in the United States, can it be considered a crime committed in that country?

Whatever the answer, Philippine lawmakers have a job ahead of them. This new set of legislation for the Information Age must be passed as soon as possible. Not for Amores' case; even if laws on cyber crimes are passed, they can't be retroactive. But Amores and De Guzman have attracted the attention of computer experts worldwide. The couple's alleged notoriety may land them top-paying computer jobs. Then we'll have more Philippine hackers waiting to be recognized.