Page 257 - (ISC)² CISSP Certified Information Systems Security Professional Official Study Guide

Categories of Laws

Three main categories of laws play a role in our legal system. Each is
used to cover a variety of circumstances, and the penalties for violating
laws in the different categories vary widely. In the following sections,

you’ll learn how criminal law, civil law, and administrative law interact
to form the complex web of our justice system.

Criminal Law

Criminal law forms the bedrock of the body of laws that preserve the

peace and keep our society safe. Many high-profile court cases involve
matters of criminal law; these are the laws that the police and other
law enforcement agencies concern themselves with. Criminal law
contains prohibitions against acts such as murder, assault, robbery,
and arson. Penalties for violating criminal statutes fall in a range that
includes mandatory hours of community service, monetary penalties

in the form of fines (small and large), and deprivation of civil liberties
in the form of prison sentences.

Cops Are Smart!

A good friend of one of the authors is a technology crime

investigator for the local police department. He often receives
cases of computer abuse involving threatening emails and website
postings.

Recently, he shared a story about a bomb threat that had been
emailed to a local high school. The perpetrator sent a threatening
note to the school principal declaring that the bomb would explode
at 1 p.m. and warning him to evacuate the school. The author’s

friend received the alert at 11 a.m., leaving him with only two hours
to investigate the crime and advise the principal on the best course
of action.

He quickly began issuing emergency subpoenas to Internet service