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21 J. Am. Acad. Matrimonial Law. 653 (2008)
Spousal Abuse through Spyware: The Inadequacy of Legal Protection in the Modern Age

handle is hein.journals/jaaml21 and id is 665 raw text is: Spousal Abuse Through Spyware Comment, SPOUSAL ABUSE THROUGH SPYWARE: THE INADEQUACY OF LEGAL PROTECTION IN THE MODERN AGE* Introduction Imagine a situation of domestic abuse, where the wife lives in constant fear. The husband is physically abusive only in rare events, so the truth goes unnoticed by outsiders. Yet he is con- stantly mentally and emotionally abusive, controlling where the wife goes, who she talks to, and what money she spends. He tracks her moves by monitoring her computer activity. Any web- sites she visits, he knows about. Any e-mail she sends, he reads. All instant messaging she engages in, he will see. All pin num- bers, credit cards numbers, and passwords she has are exposed to him. When she seeks help by e-mailing a mental health profes- sional or a women's shelter, he learns about it instantly and takes the measures necessary to ensure she goes no further in her search for help. This is just one example of the dangers of spyware1 and why it must be considered as a form of domestic abuse when one spouse uses it to dominate and control the other. The current legal scheme, under both state and federal law, is inadequate to address the problem of spyware within the con- text of the marital relationship. This Comment uses the state of Missouri as a model to demonstrate the flaws. No criminal stat- utes effectively address the problem of marital spying. Some civil causes of action exist that might potentially address spyware, but they are not well developed or targeted to put an end to this * The author would like to thank her husband, Nicholas Clevenger, for his continued support and Nancy Levit, Curators' and Edward D. Ellison Professor of Law, for her guidance, support, and comments. 1 Merriam Webster's On-Line Dictionary defines spyware as software that is installed in a computer without the user's knowledge and transmits information about the user's computer activities over the Internet. Merriam-Webster, http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/spyware (last visited Feb. 28, 2008). For an overview on spyware, see Susan P. Crawford, First Do No Harm: The Problem of Spyware, 20 BERKELEY TECH. L.J. 1433 (2005). Vol. 21, 2008

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