LCR4805 Assignment 2
Semester 2 | Due 4
September 2025
NO PLAGIARISM
[Pick the date]
[Type the company name]
, Exam (elaborations)
LCR4805 Assignment 2 Semester 2 | Due 4
September 2025
Course
Selected Private and Criminal Law Principles of th (LCR4805)
Institution
University Of South Africa (Unisa)
QUESTION 1 1. We live in an "information age" and the question which often
arises is whether information can be stolen. Refer to the common law
definition of "theft" and critically discuss whether the law in South Africa has
adapted to keep up with technological advancements. Discuss comparatively
by referring to the positions in other jurisdictions and include case law,
legislation and academic commentary where applicable.
Theft and Information in the Information
Age: Has South African Law Kept Pace?
Introduction
We live in what many call the "information age" — a world in which data, digital files and
electronic systems are integral to commerce, governance and social life. This raises a deceptively
simple question: can information be stolen? On the face of it, the common-law crime of theft in
South African law is rooted in the appropriation of movable corporeal property. Digital
information, however, is intangible, replicable and often remains even after being copied. This
essay critically examines whether South African law has adapted to technological change and
whether the conceptual and doctrinal tools of the common law — or statutory developments —
capture the moral wrongs and social harms of taking information without permission. The
discussion proceeds in four parts.
1. A primer: the common-law definition of theft under South African law and doctrinal
obstacles in capturing information.
2. Statutory and criminal-law responses in South Africa — the Electronic Communications
and Transactions Act and the Cybercrimes Act — and their interaction with the common
law.
3. Comparative perspectives: how England & Wales, the United States and Australia
approach "theft" or the broader category of cybercrime and misappropriation of data.
4. Critical assessment and recommendations: doctrinal coherence, prosecutorial practice,
civil remedies and final conclusions.
Semester 2 | Due 4
September 2025
NO PLAGIARISM
[Pick the date]
[Type the company name]
, Exam (elaborations)
LCR4805 Assignment 2 Semester 2 | Due 4
September 2025
Course
Selected Private and Criminal Law Principles of th (LCR4805)
Institution
University Of South Africa (Unisa)
QUESTION 1 1. We live in an "information age" and the question which often
arises is whether information can be stolen. Refer to the common law
definition of "theft" and critically discuss whether the law in South Africa has
adapted to keep up with technological advancements. Discuss comparatively
by referring to the positions in other jurisdictions and include case law,
legislation and academic commentary where applicable.
Theft and Information in the Information
Age: Has South African Law Kept Pace?
Introduction
We live in what many call the "information age" — a world in which data, digital files and
electronic systems are integral to commerce, governance and social life. This raises a deceptively
simple question: can information be stolen? On the face of it, the common-law crime of theft in
South African law is rooted in the appropriation of movable corporeal property. Digital
information, however, is intangible, replicable and often remains even after being copied. This
essay critically examines whether South African law has adapted to technological change and
whether the conceptual and doctrinal tools of the common law — or statutory developments —
capture the moral wrongs and social harms of taking information without permission. The
discussion proceeds in four parts.
1. A primer: the common-law definition of theft under South African law and doctrinal
obstacles in capturing information.
2. Statutory and criminal-law responses in South Africa — the Electronic Communications
and Transactions Act and the Cybercrimes Act — and their interaction with the common
law.
3. Comparative perspectives: how England & Wales, the United States and Australia
approach "theft" or the broader category of cybercrime and misappropriation of data.
4. Critical assessment and recommendations: doctrinal coherence, prosecutorial practice,
civil remedies and final conclusions.
