Legal recourse for computer espionage in Canada

March 13, 2007 11:06 AM

Canada and Computer Espionage: What legal recourse is available in this situation?

To make a long story short, I have a close friend in Toronto who once had a long relationship with a prominent lawyer there. Despite the fact the lawyer eventually married someone else, he can't seem to let my friend go and has become verbally abusive to her.

Because they had two children together, he still comes to her house on a regular basis and is sometimes left alone in her house with the children while she works or runs errands. On one of his recent visits, he installed some spyware (a keylogger and something which allows remote access). She knows he has done this as he's admitted he's spied on her and has used the information from the spyware as fodder for his many temper tantrums.

And apparently the spyware doesn't only report to the lawyer. The backdoor in her computer has also led to identity theft and loss of funds in her bank accounts.

While it would be possible to clear out this spyware, I've suggested to her that we keep it on the system temporarily. as evidence for possible legal action, if that becomes necessary.

But I'm pretty clueless as to Canadian law. Is this a prosecutable offense in Canada? If so, would a preserved hard drive, a journal kept of the things he's said, and bank records showing the theft be sufficient evidence? As far as I know, there are no other witnesses other than her small children.

And, I know in the US, most states would disbar a lawyer upon conviction and the lawyer would be under a cloud just from the charges. Would this be the case in Canada?

Thanks in advance. I know ultimately she needs to get a lawyer of her own, but she's trying to avoid that as long as possible because of her ex's status in the legal community. So I wanted to know if she's on the right track with her actions or if this is a fruitless endeavor.

posted by pandaharma to computers & internet (10 comments total)

She should tell her story to a police detective. He'll know what to do.
posted by lee at 11:32 AM on March 13, 2007

Maybe have a look at phonebusters.
posted by loiseau at 12:20 PM on March 13, 2007

Oh -- and under our law stalking is called criminal harrassment. Here's some info on that.
posted by loiseau at 12:22 PM on March 13, 2007

She needs a lawyer, period. I know you recognize that, but police and lawyers need to become involved yesterday.

If this person's status is really that high, it means there's definitely a number of people who want to see him brought down. If she ends up suing in civil court as well, she'd be well-served by finding one of those.
posted by dirtynumbangelboy at 12:28 PM on March 13, 2007

So let's see:

a) he comes over, she lets him in, and he remains in there, alone, with her (and his) children, routinely
b) she wants to file a criminal complaint against him

What's wrong with the above picture? Come on now.

The steps are clear. Stop letting him in. Stop leaving him alone with the children. (So, what's the custody/child support situation like?) Contact the police if you have reason to believe he is spying on you or stealing money from your bank accounts or taking out credit under your name (identity theft). Yes, these are crimes in Canada. But she's making the situation murky by letting the guy have free run of her house.

There are so many abused spouse/women's shelter/women's support programs in Toronto that you can't throw a stick without hitting one. Why don't you call the YWCA to start with?
posted by jellicle at 12:48 PM on March 13, 2007

If he is lawyer in Toronto he will be a member of the Law Society of Upper Canada, which requires its members to follow certain ethical guidelines. If you feel like you have legitimate complaint, LSUC will listen. Information here.

The lawyer's status in the legal community is irrelevant to the Law Society. They take misconduct seriously.
posted by modernnomad at 1:21 PM on March 13, 2007

What's wrong the above picture is that he admitted to installing spyware on her computer. It's not out of the realm of possibilities that, as the kids' dad, she thought she could trust him alone in the house for a little while.

In any case: preserve the hard drive - though you might want to disconnect it from the internets for now. Call a lawyer, and call the cops. Don't go poking around in the computer, if possible, since the forensics folks will want to take a look. Have her take and keep notes about her conversations with the ex; save all phone messages and emails.
posted by rtha at 1:40 PM on March 13, 2007

If so, would a preserved hard drive, a journal kept of the things he's said, and bank records showing the theft be sufficient evidence?

IMHO, no, not enough to convict him. Because he's a lawyer and knows the system, probably not even enough to get it brought to trial. There's no smoking gun. A significant percentage of home computers in Canada and the US are infected with spyware, including keyloggers. That he had access to the computer is not evidence that he installed any malware.

Even a record of intrusion, pointing towards his remote access to the computer may not be evidence of criminal intrusion because he has legal access to the household due to the presence of dependent children.

So, no, your friend is hooped. Clean the computer of malware, and keep it (physicaly) locked to prevent his access when he's around.

IANAL. I am an interested amateur.
posted by solid-one-love at 4:06 PM on March 13, 2007

I should add: he wasn't verbally abusive until recently and he was never physically abusive. And he has never once raised his voice to the children. He won't ever end up as dad-of-the-year but he does seem fond of them and he pays his child support regularly. This is why she thought he could be trusted and, as a single mom, she needs all the help she can get. Besides, she really wanted her kids to have a dad.

dirtynumbangelboy: I should have thought of the Machivellian angle and I don't know why I didn't. I'm sure he's made more than his fair share of enemies on the brutal path to partner in his large firm, and there will be plenty who would like to go after him. Thanks for that point.

S-O-L: I was afraid that might be the case. I'll suggest to her to keep the hard drive and get a forensics report anyways, just as future leverage even if she can't actually use it in a criminal case.
posted by pandaharma at 4:44 PM on March 13, 2007

The windows event viewer has a system and application log that tracks installs, when a process runs, etc. If she could remember the time of day dude was there (likely installing some sort of keylogger,) there might be a correlation between that window of time, and when the app was installed/started running...
posted by stenseng at 9:30 PM on March 13, 2007