Category: Information Technology Law

Being an avid fan of Ian Lloyd’s Information Technology Law, I have been looking forward to this new edition since I reviewed the sixth edition back in 2013.  It was a little surprising to learn, in such a fast moving area of law, that three years passed between the sixth and seventh editions.  In that time there have been continued changes in this fast-moving area of law.  For this new edition of Information Technology Law, Lloyd has made substantial revisions including (a) a new chapter on electronic money and online gambling, (b) new sections on expanding topics like cyber-terrorism and cyber-warfare and (c) expanded treatment of issues relating to online criminality.  All of these changes add to the quality of the text meaning Information Technology Law remains one of the key texts on IT law.

Written by an extremely experienced and highly regarded academic, Information Technology Law is split into five parts: privacy, anonymity, and data protection; computer-related crime; intellectual property issues; e-commerce; and internet specific issues.  Each part has a number of chapters.  For example, the first part includes chapters on: the emergence of data protection; the data protection principles; and transborder data flows.  The second part includes chapters on: the phenomenon of computer-related crime; legislating for computer crime; and detecting and prosecuting computer crime.

Information Technology Law continues to be one of my favourite texts.  It is superbly written; Lloyd has the ability to explain difficult topics in a user-friendly and accessible way (and this is very much part of the text’s simplicity).  There are also numerous footnotes which provide a treasure-trove of research material for an essay, dissertation or thesis.  The online resource centre has three resources: web links; an IT law blog (written by Professor Lloyd); and updates.  Unfortunately (and by the time of this review), there are currently no updates and Professor Lloyd’s blog has not been updated since March 2013.

If you are looking for an engaging and thought-provoking text on information technology law then I have no hesitation in recommending Information Technology Law.  It is an impressively written and logical analysis of this evolving, topical and fascinating area of law.  It is very readable because complex legal issues are broken down into a series of small (and understandable) steps.  By adopting this approach, Lloyd ensures that Information Technology Law is a vital text for students and practitioners alike.  Lloyd’s blog is also an excellent idea and gives a real insight into the author’s mind (and it is hoped it is updated in the future).  Information Technology Law already is (and will continue to be) an important text for years to come.

Reviewed on 14 December 2014

There can be no doubt that information technology law is one of the most fast moving areas of law.  As technology continues to advance and develop, so must the law.  This second edition of Information Technology Law: The Law and Society aims to tackle this issue by systematically examining how the law and legal processes in the UK, which is designed to meet the needs of a traditional physical society, interacts with the modern ‘information society’ and the fast moving process of digitisation.  What you have is an engaging and thought-provokingly worthwhile account of this complicated issue.

Written by Andrew Murray, Information Technology Law: The Law and Society is split into seven parts: information and society; governance in the information society; digital content and intellectual property rights; criminal activity in the information society; e-commerce; privacy in the information society; and future challenges for information law.  Each part has a number of chapters.  For example, the part on e-commerce has chapters on: branding and trade marks in the information society; electronic contracts; and electronic payments and taxation.  The part on privacy in the information society has chapters on: data protection; and data and personal privacy.

One of the first things which strikes you when reading Information Technology Law: The Law and Society is the sheer breath of material it covers.  For example, it looks at issues like electronic money, including its development over the years to allow, crucially, payments in different ways (like payments using a mobile phone), super-injunctions and the use of social media (and its criminalisation most recently seen following the riots in 2011).  The fact that so much ground is covered does not mean, however, that the text feels disjointed; in fact, it is both well-written and engaging.  It is also extremely thought-provoking with Murray challenging the law throughout the text.

If you are looking for a textbook on information technology law which explains the law, its development and its limitations, then Murray’s Information Technology Law: The Law and Society is an excellent resource.  It has an online resource centre which, by the time of this review, is already packed with a number of additional resources (which increases the longevity of a text in a fast-moving area of law like IT law).  It is hoped that these updates continue until the next edition is published.  In the meantime, Information Technology Law: The Law and Society is an important and engaging contribution to this fast moving area of law. 

Reviewed on 19 October 2014