CST4320 - Regulation of Electronic Commerce and Information Technology Coursework 2025/26

Assignment  structure, format and  details

INSTRUCTIONS: 

This assignment will be marked anonymously therefore you must NOT include your  name nor you student ID on your coursework document, nor in the file name of the  uploaded document(s), nor in the title you give to your document. Also, do not  include other kinds of personal identifiers such as pictures of yourself. 

Simply submit your  coursework WITHOUT any identification information on it to Turnitin. The Turnitin system  will issue a random number to your document and it will be used to identify you after  marking. Please submit your document in PDF format.  

You are hired as a consultant to advise on SIX Sections (given below) related to legal  issues associated with running a business. You are to produce a report not exceeding  5000 words (excluding references). 

Relevant legislation and case law from the UK/EU  must be given to support your answers where appropriate. Each question carries 16 
marks and students are awarded an additional 4 marks for presentation (see  marking rubric below). The whole coursework is worth 100 marks.

 Your report should  contain a title page, table of contents, the five section headings as given below and a  bibliography (sources and quotes used should be referenced – please cite references in  the text). Use 1.5 spacing and font 12 (Times New Roman). 
 
 ALL work MUST be your own. You are expected to do further research beyond the lecture notes. Avoid plagiarism.  Do not copy and paste text from the Internet or other sources. Short passages and  legislation can be quoted but they must be referenced.

 Any two or more coursework  scripts having similar text may result in those scripts being cited for plagiarism (and given  a fail grade for the whole module).

Section 1: INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY [16 Marks] 

(a) Copyright protection in the UK exists automatically on creation of an original work in a  tangible form (written or recorded). On the other hand, a trade mark needs to be  registered before a person gains rights to the trade mark. Briefly discuss (i) one  possible advantage and (ii) one possible disadvantage of changing the system of  copyright protection by requiring that copyright protection is only effective on  registration of an original work (in a tangible form).  

(b) Alan is an expert in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and works for a London-based software  company SoftTech Ltd as a programmer/developer focusing on games. At his work  he has access to very expensive computer hardware and software programs. Over  the past three months he spent at least 60 minutes a day of his working hours secretly  developing a software game called “ModelMe” which he recently started selling  privately on eBay.

 Six months ago, Alan signed a contact with a local University to  produce a handbook for a Machine Learning course. The contract contained a clause  transferring all rights in copyright to the university. On delivery of the handbook to the  university, Alan included a letter requesting that his name be included as the author  of the handbook. Later the university published the handbook but did not include  Alan’s name.

 Two months ago, Alan created a website to offer freelance AI software  services. When designing the website he included the following: several paragraphs  from an article on AI recently published in a Springer Journal; a logo similar to a well known software consultancy company and a link for users to freely access a short  documentary film which is only available via a paid subscription.

 The film is located on  a video website for which he pays a monthly subscription. Alan also hacked into the  password protected files of his manager to obtain the client list of SoftTech Ltd (only  known to company management), which he used to contact numerous people to  inform them of his freelance services.  

In the context of the paragraph above, discuss the various actions below in relation to  possible breaches of Intellectual property rights. You must state relevant legal authority  (i.e. specific sections of relevant legislation or case law).  

(i) Alan’s development of the game ModelMe and subsequent sale on eBay.

(ii) The local university not publishing Alan’s name as the author of the AI handbook.
 
(iii) Alan’s inclusion of several paragraphs (on his website) from an article on AI  recently published in a Springer Journal. 

(iv) Alan’s inclusion of a logo (on his website) similar to a well-known software  consultancy company. 

(v) Alan’s inclusion of a link (on his website) to a documentary film located on a  website for which he pays a monthly subscription. 

(vi) Alan’s use of the client list of SoftTech Ltd.  

Section 2: DATA PROTECTION [16 marks]

(a) GreatCare Hospital in London prides itself on providing the best care for over 10  thousand patients. Six months ago it experienced a personal data breach resulting in  the destruction of 134 patient records which were recoverable from backup files.

Due  to small nature of the breach GreatCare Hospital decided not to inform the Information  Commission’s Office (ICO). One month ago, after being fired, a disgruntled IT  manager informed ICO of the personal data breach at the hospital and also reported  that the hospital secretly altered the files of all employees who got very high appraisal  grades so that the employees would not get a bonus as required by hospital  regulations. 

Following the tip-off, the IOC sent an Information Notice to the GreatCare  Hospital asking for the following: (a) to provide their security audit logs for the past  year; (b) to provide the content of any communications with their lawyers regarding  their liabilities under the Data Protection law.  

Discuss the legality of the following conduct by GreatCare Hospital, citing  appropriate sections of the GDPR or DPA 2018. 
(i) Due to the small nature of the personal data breach GreatCare Hospital did not  inform the ICO about the personal data breach.  
(ii) GreatCare Hospital edited their security logs to remove any evidence of the  data breach that they experienced, before submitting the logs to the Information  Commissioner. 
(iii) GreatCare Hospital, told the ICO that they would not disclose any  communications which they had with their lawyers.  
(iv) GreatCare Hospital, secretly altered the files of all employees who got very high  appraisal grades so that the employees would not get a bonus as required by  hospital regulations.  

(b) Janet a patient at the GreatCare Hospital in London, recently received a letter form  the hospital inviting her to join a local gym at a cost of £40 per month which was a  special rate for diabetic people. She was surprised when she received the letter since  she was not aware that she was a diabetic. Later she wrote to GreatCare Hospital,  asking them for a copy of her medical records. After viewing her medical records she  found out that she was listed as a diabetic, her telephone number was incorrect and  that she was referred to as “chubby”. Advise Janet on her legal position regarding the  following below, citing appropriate sections of the GDPR. 

(i) She wants to stop GreatCare Hospital from using her information to target   her to buy products/services.  
(ii) She is concerned about her incorrect telephone number and wants it  corrected.  
(iii) She wants the word “chubby” removed from her record.  
(iv) She would like to have her medical records transferred to a new hospital.  

Section 3: ADVERTISING [16 marks] 

Give advice on the legality of the following four marketing communications below,  making reference to only TWO appropriate sections of the CAP codes for each  marketing communication. 

Section 4: COMPUTER CRIME [16 marks] 

Michelle works at a bank located in the city of London is responsible for overseas clients.  She has access to the bank’s computer system but is only authorised to access accounts  of overseas clients. Recently after seeing her neighbour’s new car, she became curious  about her neighbour’s financial status.

 Using her access to the bank’s computer system,  Michelle decided to investigate the financial records of her neighbour. She was surprised  to discover that her neighbour had over 200 thousand pounds in her bank account and she downloaded her neighbour’s bank statement to read at home.

Later that day Michelle  accessed other UK customer records and downloaded personal information in order to forge credit cards. Desperate to cover her tracks, Michelle downloaded a virus creator  program which she used to create a virus. 

She then planted the virus into the banking  system’s computer. The virus infected the bank’s computer system and rapidly spread to  numerous banks in the UK via connected networks. This resulted in a shutdown of  several hundred banks in the UK and the inability of a few million people to access their  money for several days. 

Two weeks later, the bank manager announced that all bank  employees needed to undergo a lie detector test as part of an investigation into what  happened at the bank. Fearing that she would be discovered, Michelle sent a virus to the  bank manager’s computer via an email message which caused the bank manager’s  computer to randomly flash a screen message “Stop all lie detector tests or you will be  dead” three times every day over three days. Fearing for his life the bank manager  decided to suspend the lie detector tests.  

In the context of the paragraph above, advise on whether there are any offences  committee by the following acts given below, citing relevant legal authority (i.e. specific  sections of relevant legislation or case law). 

(a) Michelle accessed her neighbour’s financial records and downloaded her  neighbour’s bank statement.  
(b) Michelle downloaded personal information in other to forge credit cards.  (c) Michelle downloaded a virus creator program which she used to create a virus. 
(d) Michelle infected the bank’s computer system with a virus which resulted in a  shutdown of over hundreds of banks in the UK. 
(e) Michelle sent a virus to the bank manager’s computer via an email message which  caused the bank manager’s computer to randomly flash a screen message “Stop all  lie detector tests or you will be dead” three times every day over three days. 

Section 5: CONSUMER PROTECTION [16 Marks]  

(a) Carlin needed a new stove for her new kitchen and visited a local retailer. One of the  salesmen showed her a range of stoves and advised her to buy a brand within her  budget saying that it would last for over 25 years. Carlin bought the stove and it was  delivered to her and installed. After using the stove successfully for four months, one  day Carlin noticed that the oven was not getting hot. 

She called the retailer and she  was told that she needed to pay £100 for a repair since she had already used the  stive for over three months.

 Two weeks after the repair, one morning Carlin decided  to use the oven and it was still not getting hot. Carlin also recently purchased a  software photo editing package which claimed to produce top quality editing. After  using the software on the first day, her photos contained blurred sections and a  watermark that could not be removed. 
 
 She did some research online and found out  that this was due to a bug in the software. Carlin hired a painter to renovate her  bedroom and specified in a written contracted that she wanted the walls painted  white. 
 
 On returning home after two days of renovations she found the walls of her  room painted pink and is very unhappy since the pink colour causes her to get  headaches.  
 
 Citing relevant sections of the Consumer Rights Act 2015, advise Carlin on the  following: 
 
 (i) The retailer telling her that she needed to pay £100 for a repair since she had   already used the stove for over three months. 
(ii) Any remedy that she is entitled to since the stove is still faulty two weeks after the   first repair.  
(iii) Any remedy that she is entitled to in relation to the faulty software. (iv) Any remedy that she is entitled to in relation to her pink bedroom wall.  

(b) Citing relevant sections of Schedule 1, The Consumer Protection from Unfair   Trading Regulations 2008 (CPUTR), comment on the conduct of the trader below 

(i) A trader advertises a juicer in his shop window for £330. When consumers ask  him about it, he shows them a model which does not work properly, and then  refers them to a different model of juicer which is more expensive.  
(ii) The trader also telephones consumers to sell them nutritional products, during  his calls he claims to be a registered with the UK General Medical Council as a  doctor which is not the case.  
(iii) Despite being asked by some customers to be removed from his telephone  contact list, the trader calls back these consumers several times.  
(iv) In some instances, in order to get a quick purchase, the trader tells customers  that some products are only available for a limited time when this is not true.  

Section 6: ETHICS [16 marks]

Discuss the ethical dilemmas in the scenarios below using the four-stage ethical  decision-making framework given in Lecture 17, i.e.  
1. What does the Law say on the matter? 
2. What guidance does ethical theory give? 
3. Do Codes of Conduct or other informal guidelines help? 
4. Additional principles - e.g. Religion, Science, Literature? 

At the end of the discussion give advice on the best course of action that the investor  should take.  

(a) The accountant at a company found out that the sales director was unlawfully declaring  fuel benefits as the tax value is high. This has been creating higher profit margins. If  this practice is stopped then the profit margins will go down and there is the potential  that this could push the company into insolvency, which would result in job losses for  around 272 employees.

 The accountant made the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) aware  of the situation but the CEO expressed a wish not to disclose this information to the tax  authorities.

 The CEO also offered the accountant a 50% salary increase if he forgot the  matter. The accountant is aware that by declaring this information to the tax authorities,  as required by law, the organisation may have to declare insolvency and all 272 employees could lose their jobs along with many benefits.

 Using the four-stage ethical  decision-making framework given in your lectures (see above) discuss the ethical  dilemma faced by the accountant and advise the accountant on what to do.
 
 (b) Recently a company Director received a shipment of costume jewellery made in South  America by Aztec Ltd for which he paid £250,000. The jewellery looks the same as  costume jewellery produced in the UK. The investor recently saw a US TV  documentary, which reported that scientists found high levels of nickel, lead and  cadmium in the same costume jewellery made by Aztec Ltd in South America.

 The  investor is aware of the implications of this report and but is concerned that if he does  not sell the jewellery imported from South America then he will lose £250,000 and  possible go out of business resulting in many people becoming unemployed. Since the  jewellery items are indistinguishable from items produced in the UK, it is not possible  for anyone to know where the jewellery was made.

 The investor also thinks that many  customers may not wear the jewellery often or may discard them early (before three  years) to buy new fashion items. He therefore is considering selling the jewellery made  in South America with a new sticker with the words “Made in UK”.

 Using the four-stage  ethical decision-making framework given in your lectures (see above) discuss the  ethical dilemma faced by the investor and advise the investor on what to do.

 Assessed learning outcome 
 
 This coursework will assess all learning outcomes.  

• Knowledge :  

o Gain critical understanding of the underpinning theory and principles  governing the regulation of Electronic Commerce and Information Technology.  
o Identify and critically evaluating legal and regulatory issues relevant to the  development and operation of electronic commerce; and the use of  Information technology  

o Gain critical understanding of relevant professional issues related to  electronic commerce activities and the use of Information Technology. 

 • Skills  
o Advise on relevant legal and regulatory issues governing electronic  commerce activities and the use of Information Technology  
o Organise and synthesise a broad range of legal/regulatory materials and  apply them to addressing practical problems (via case studies) arising from  electronic commerce activities.  
o Apply appropriate professional standards to electronic commerce activities  and the use of Information Technology.

Assessment  weighting:

The assessment is 100% of the module assessment mark. 

Assessment marking criteria  
Marks are awarded for specific answers given in the context of the case study.  

Section 1: INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY  
Appropriate legal advice based on analysis of the scenarios on IP law + citing of  appropriate legal authorities where relevant. [16 marks]

Section 2: DATA PROTECTION 
Appropriate legal advice based on analysis of the scenarios relating to data protection  legislation + citing of appropriate legal authorities where relevant. [16 marks] 

Section 3: ADVERTISING  
Appropriate legal advice based on analysis of the scenarios relating to advertising and  marketing + citing of appropriate legal authorities where relevant. [16 marks] 

Section 4: COMPUTER CRIME  
Appropriate legal advice based on analysis of the scenarios relating to computer crime +  citing of appropriate legal authorities where relevant.  [16 marks] 

Section 5: CONTRACTS AND CONSUMER PROTECTION  
Appropriate legal advice based on analysis of the scenarios relating to contract and  consumer protection + citing of appropriate legal authorities where relevant.   [16 marks] 

Section 6: ETHICS  
Appropriate discussion of the ethical dilemmas using the ethical decision-making  framework, giving appropriate advice + citing of appropriate legal authorities where  relevant. [16 marks]