Hawaii lawmakers push forward bills that tackle computer crimes

The state Legislature has renewed efforts to stop cyberbullying and strengthen online protection against people who post fake pornographic images of real people.

Senate Bill 309, which was introduced by Sen. Karl Rhoads (D, Downtown- Nuuanu-Liliha), would make it an offense for someone to steal a person’s face online and post it on another body for their own pleasure.

Specifically, the bill would make it a Class C felony if a person intentionally manipulated images called deepfakes — edited pictures or videos created by computer software that virtually cuts the face off an existing image of a person and then pastes it onto the body of another.

The measure went to the House on Feb. 10 for further review.

A bill that takes aim at cyberbullies was introduced by Rep. Ryan Yamane (D, Mililani-Waipio-Waikele). He said the ultimate goal of the bill is to make parents responsible for their children’s actions.

House Bill 1107, which passed March 2 in the House Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs Committee, clarified that if a child is lent a computer from a school or uses their personal electronic device, the school or parent can confiscate it if the child is caught bullying. The bill also would add aggravated harassment by stalking to the list of offenses.

The Department of Education supported the measure in written testimony, citing that it has procedures dealing with cyberbullying.

“The department would address the bullying and harassment pieces through its cross-office processes and would cooperate with law enforcement should there be information needed for an investigation,” the DOE said in written testimony.

The Office of the Public Defender opposed the bill because of how it could effect poor families who might share only one computer.

“If a 14-year-old teenager who is secretly using a device to engage in harassment of a classmate, this measure would require seizure of a phone or computer that may also be used by others in a household for distance learning (other minors or young adults included), to communicate with other family members, to arrange or confirm child care, or to communicate with employers,” the department said in written testimony.

Another measure moving forward is House Bill 125, which would protect online privacy of employees, unpaid interns, students and employee applicants from employers and schools.

The measure, introduced by Rep. Gregg Takayama (D, Pearl City-Waimalu- Pacific Palisades), would strengthen the Uniform Employee and Student Online Privacy Protection Act by prohibiting employers and educational institutions from asking employee and students for access to their social media or other online accounts.

The Commission to Promote Uniform Legislation supported the measure in written testimony, saying that in recent years there have been incidents in which employers and schools demanded and received access to employees’ and students’ accounts.

“Ordinarily, individuals decide for themselves who will have access to information that is not otherwise publicly available in their social media profiles and other online accounts,” the commission said in its testimony. “Employers and educational institutions, however, may have the power to coerce access to non-public information of students’ and employees’ personal online accounts.”