The Internet's effect on South African and global law. Chapter 3

• Date: 01 January 2005
• DOI: 10.10520/EJC74033
• Published date: 01 January 2005
• Pages: 15-22

CHAPTER 3

THE INTERNET’S EFFECT ON SOUTH AFRICAN AND

GLOBAL LAW

3.1 Influence of the Internet on global law

There is absolutely no doubt that the advent of the Internet will

have a marked effect on global legal principles.The Inter net, legally

speaking, is the ultimate in dualism. On the one hand it represents

what is arguably the greatest advance in technology the planet

has seen, and on the other, it wreaks total havoc with the legal

systems in the international community.

Due to the borderless and international nature of the Internet

viewed in conjunction with the increasing amount of e-commerce

taking place over the World Wide Web, basic legal principles will

have to be formulated (or present ones amended) to account for

the changes brought about by the Internet.

Countries with little or no laws regulating transactions over the In-

ternet may eventually become targeted as “international safe-

havens”, for people wishing to conduct illicit activity without legal

repercussions. The changes necessitated in a particular country

will depend largely on the existing legal infrastructure as well as a

variety of factors, such as the level of technological development,

number of Internet users and estimated frequency of problems arising.

As previously mentioned Cyberlaw touches upon a wide range of

legal fields, from criminal law to the law of defamation and con-

tract. Each country will have to conduct an investigation into it own

domestic laws to determine, which of those will be effected by the

Net. Once this has been determined, it will have to be decided

whether it is possible to amend existing legislation to accommo-

date the digital influence or whether completely new legislation will

need to be investigated and developed.

Types of changes required, may vary from amendment of legisla-

tion to the enactment of brand new law to the variation of Common

Law principles which are in opposition to accepted principles of IT

Law.

Irrespective of the precise level of variation required very few

countries will, be able to escape the influence of the Internet and

they may only elect to ignore its vast influence at their own peril.

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