Computer Misuse Act, illegal access
Computer Misuse Act, Cap. 124B, s. 4 (Illegal Access)
A citation is an address, not a summary. The first part names the law; what follows narrows it to the exact section, article or paragraph.
In force since 18 July 2005.
A computer misuse rule binding public and private bodies.
As of 5 September 2026.
What it requires
- Do not gain access to a computer system, cause a programme to execute, or copy, move, alter, or erase data, knowingly or recklessly and without lawful excuse or justification.
- Reading a public, unauthenticated page that the site operator has made generally available has not itself been held to violate this section, though the Act's text leaves the point unsettled.
If you get it wrong
Criminal exposureYes
Private right of actionNo
Criminal exposure note
A fine of $25,000 or imprisonment for a term of two years, or both, on conviction on indictment (s. 4(1)).
Penalty structure
Fine only; the same subsection also allows imprisonment of up to two years instead of or in addition to the fine.
- Rule
- Fixed only
- As of
- 5 September 2026
- Currency
- BBD
- Fixed cap
- 25,000
What this law does
Drafted with AI from the cited sources under the direction of UnGovr staff. UnGovr holds editorial responsibility for this page.
Section 4 prohibits a person, knowingly or recklessly and without lawful excuse or justification, from gaining access to the whole or any part of a computer system, causing a programme to be executed, using a programme to gain access to data, copying or moving data, or altering or erasing it. The offence carries a fine of $25,000 or imprisonment of up to two years, or both.
Section 3(2) separately defines access as unauthorised only where the person is not entitled to it, lacks permission, or exceeds the permission granted; because section 4 does not itself require defeating a security measure, whether a person reading a public, unauthenticated page (which the site operator has made generally available) acts without lawful excuse is an open textual question that no reported Barbadian decision has settled.
When LexLint raises it
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