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"The public is reminded that viewing downloading or disseminating extremist material within the UK may constitute an offence under Section 1 and 2 of the Terror

"The public is reminded that viewing downloading or disseminating extremist material within the UK may constitute an offence under Section 1 and 2 of the Terrorism Act 2006." Wow. They really are saying that it can be illegal to read something! Is there any similar law in the US? I'm guessing classified information can get you in trouble somehow.

pessimizer 13y ago
>I'm guessing classified information can get you in trouble somehow. It can't. It's not illegal to read classified material in the US unless you work for the government. Leaking it is a different story.
- scarmig 13y ago
  Is it illegal, or some kind of code violation?
  - mpyne 13y ago
    The entire classified information program is derived from an Executive Order. I.e. it is directive on the government, but not on the populace as a class. The one big exception that I know of is the Espionage Act, but that doesn't even speak to "classified" information as we understand it from the E.O. but more generically to something along the lines of information harmful to the defense of the U.S. (which can theoretically include unclassified information, I suppose). Maybe there's other statute law referencing compliance with the E.O.-driven classified information program which would make the E.O. also statutory law, but I'm not aware of any (but then, nor am I a lawyer).
CWuestefeld 13y ago
It really is troubling. Is there any similar law in the US? I think a conclusion you'd have to draw from the Pentagon Papers controversy is that if the gov't want to keep something secret, it's their own responsibility to do so. Once the information leaked, it was then legal to print the documents. And if that's true, then it must also be legal to read them.
- BuildTheRobots 13y ago
  Actually, I'm relatively certain that within current legal frameworks, public, published documents can be retroactively classified making you a criminal if you refuse to hand back your copy.
  - hga 13y ago
    Something like that can be true for nuclear weapons related stuff: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Born_secret http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Born_secret

pessimizer 13y ago

>I'm guessing classified information can get you in trouble somehow. It can't. It's not illegal to read classified material in the US unless you work for the government. Leaking it is a different story.

scarmig 13y ago
Is it illegal, or some kind of code violation?
- mpyne 13y ago
  The entire classified information program is derived from an Executive Order. I.e. it is directive on the government, but not on the populace as a class. The one big exception that I know of is the Espionage Act, but that doesn't even speak to "classified" information as we understand it from the E.O. but more generically to something along the lines of information harmful to the defense of the U.S. (which can theoretically include unclassified information, I suppose). Maybe there's other statute law referencing compliance with the E.O.-driven classified information program which would make the E.O. also statutory law, but I'm not aware of any (but then, nor am I a lawyer).

CWuestefeld 13y ago

It really is troubling. Is there any similar law in the US? I think a conclusion you'd have to draw from the Pentagon Papers controversy is that if the gov't want to keep something secret, it's their own responsibility to do so. Once the information leaked, it was then legal to print the documents. And if that's true, then it must also be legal to read them.

BuildTheRobots 13y ago
Actually, I'm relatively certain that within current legal frameworks, public, published documents can be retroactively classified making you a criminal if you refuse to hand back your copy.
- hga 13y ago
  Something like that can be true for nuclear weapons related stuff: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Born_secret http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Born_secret