The difference between lawfully entering a 7-11 and trespass is just as you describe the situation with a server. Authorization can be implied, and "unauthorization" can be trivial.
The real problem is that a lock on a door is more obvious than a URL scheme. The government is saying that entering a 7-11 that is unlocked, but walking in backwards, is criminal trespass because that's not what the 7-11 intended for the customer to do. That's nonsense. Implicit authorization in physical property is just so much more straightforward, and the government is trying to maliciously take advantage of the lack of common sense on what is unauthorized, helped along by a Congress that willfully authorizes such action.
And I like your server dealer analogy. The question is whether or not a computer is an agent of its owner and whether its decisions, right or wrong, can be relied upon in business dealings as the actions of its owner.
So what is the digital equivalent of a lock on a door? Must the law explicitly say a lock on a door signifies lack of authorization to enter? Is walking into a 7-11 store backwards implicitly unauthorized?
The real problem is that a lock on a door is more obvious than a URL scheme. The government is saying that entering a 7-11 that is unlocked, but walking in backwards, is criminal trespass because that's not what the 7-11 intended for the customer to do. That's nonsense. Implicit authorization in physical property is just so much more straightforward, and the government is trying to maliciously take advantage of the lack of common sense on what is unauthorized, helped along by a Congress that willfully authorizes such action.
And I like your server dealer analogy. The question is whether or not a computer is an agent of its owner and whether its decisions, right or wrong, can be relied upon in business dealings as the actions of its owner.
So what is the digital equivalent of a lock on a door? Must the law explicitly say a lock on a door signifies lack of authorization to enter? Is walking into a 7-11 store backwards implicitly unauthorized?