INFORMATION MANAGEMENT LEGAL AND SECURITY ISSUES Andrzej Adamski 1. Introduction This section discusses the legal protection of information and the security issues of computer data and electronic information systems and is organised into four parts: First, it focuses briefly on the basic conceptual distinction between information and data, providing a basis of understanding of the primary object of legal and technical means of protection. Second, access to Government information will be discussed. Third, protection of personal data in the administration of criminal justice will be presented. Finally, security of data and network communications will be explored 2. Information and data: Legal Protection of information and data 2.1 Information and data Data is a formal representation of concepts, facts or instructions. Information is the meaning that data has for human beings. Data has, therefore, two different aspects: as potential information for human beings or as instructions meant for a compute Information is not material, but a process or relationship that occurs between a person's mind and some sort of stimulus Information, therefore, is a subjective notion that can be drawn from its objective representation which we call data Different information may be received from the same data. As in the various natural languages the same word may have different meanings, so in computer programming the same byte or set of digits(e.g. 01100010)may serve as a carrier of different content 2.2 Legal Protection of lnformation and data The new legal doctrine of information law and law on information technology recognises information as a third fundamental factor besides matter and energy. This concept realises that modern information technology alters the characteristics of information, especially by strengthening its importance and by treating it as an active factor that works without human intervention in automatic processing systems. In this new approach, it is obvious that the legal eval of corporeal and incorporeal(information)objects differs considerably Information, being an intangible and an entity that can be possessed, shared and reproduced by many, is not capable of being property as most corporeal objects do. Unlike corporeal objects, which are more exclusively attributed to certain persons, information is rather a public good. As such it must principally flow freely in a free society. This basic principle of free flow of information is essential for the economic and political system, as indispensable for the government's accountability and the maintenance of a democratic order A second difference between the legal regime of tangibles and intangibles is that the protection of information has not only to consider the economic interests of its proprietor or holder, but at the same time must preserve the interests of those, who are concerned with the contents of information-an aspect resulting in new issues of privacy protection a third difference originates from the vulnerability of data for manipulation, interception and erasure proprieties that constitute a major concern of computer security, and the criminal law provisions on computer crime 3. Access to government informationINFORMATION MANAGEMENT: LEGAL AND SECURITY ISSUES Andrzej Adamski 1. Introduction This section discusses the legal protection of information and the security issues of computer data and electronic information systems and is organised into four parts: First, it focuses briefly on the basic conceptual distinction between information and data, providing a basis of understanding of the primary object of legal and technical means of protection. Second, access to Government information will be discussed. Third, protection of personal data in the administration of criminal justice will be presented. Finally, security of data and network communications will be explored. 2. Information and Data: Legal Protection of Information and Data 2.1 Information and Data Data is a formal representation of concepts, facts or instructions. Information is the meaning that data has for human beings. Data has, therefore, two different aspects: as potential information for human beings or as instructions meant for a computer. Information is not material, but a process or relationship that occurs between a person=s mind and some sort of stimulus. Information, therefore, is a subjective notion that can be drawn from its objective representation which we call data. Different information may be received from the same data. As in the various natural languages the same word may have different meanings, so in computer programming the same byte or set of digits (e.g. 01100010) may serve as a carrier of different content. 2.2 Legal Protection of Information and Data The new legal doctrine of information law and law on information technology recognises information as a third fundamental factor besides matter and energy. This concept realises that modern information technology alters the characteristics of information, especially by strengthening its importance and by treating it as an active factor that works without human intervention in automatic processing systems. In this new approach, it is obvious that the legal evaluation of corporeal and incorporeal (information) objects differs considerably. Information, being an intangible and an entity that can be possessed, shared and reproduced by many, is not capable of being property as most corporeal objects do. Unlike corporeal objects, which are more exclusively attributed to certain persons, information is rather a public good. As such it must principally flow freely in a free society. This basic principle of free flow of information is essential for the economic and political system, as indispensable for the government=s accountability and the maintenance of a democratic order. A second difference between the legal regime of tangibles and intangibles is that the protection of information has not only to consider the economic interests of its proprietor or holder, but at the same time must preserve the interests of those, who are concerned with the contents of information - an aspect resulting in new issues of privacy protection. A third difference originates from the vulnerability of data for manipulation, interception and erasure - proprieties that constitute a major concern of computer security, and the criminal law provisions on computer crime. 3. Access to Government Information