

American officials can have some pretty over-the-top reactions to hackers and so-called cyber terrorists. Once, I saw a briefing comparing our own Kevin Poulsen to Osama bin Laden and Pablo Escobar – seriously. But the U.S. has nothing on Pakistan, when it comes to cyber terror paranoia. Yesterday, Pakistani president Asif Ali Zardari signed a law making cyber terror a crime "punishable with death."

Executions will only be allowed if the hack attack "causes [the] death of any person," the Prevention of Electronic Crimes law states.

But the definition of what is considered "cyber terror" is alarmingly broad in the law, proposed last year and signed Thursday by the Pakistani president. Not only does it apply to "any person, group or organization who, with terroristic intent utilizes, accesses or causes to be accessed a computer or computer network or electronic system or electronic device or by any available means, and thereby knowingly engages in or attempts to engage in a terroristic act." The ordinance also considers cyber terrorism to be:

*(a)

altering by addition, deletion, or change or attempting to alter information that may result in the imminent injury, sickness, or death to any segment of the population;

* *(b)

transmission or attempted transmission of a harmful program with the purpose of substantially disrupting or disabling any computer network operated by the

Government or any public entity;

* (c)

aiding the commission of or attempting to aid the commission of an act of violence against the sovereignty of Pakistan, whether or not the commission of such act of violence is actually completed; or

* (d)

stealing or copying, or attempting to steal or copy, or secure classified information or data necessary to manufacture any form of chemical, biological or nuclear weapon, or any other weapon of mass destruction.

*

In contrast, the maximum penalty for a hacking crime under U.S. law is 20 years in prison.

Although, as we've seen in recent years, Washington seems to give itself a little, um, *leeway *when it comes to perceived terror threats.

[Photo: The Age]