온라인게임 아이템 침해행위의 재산범죄 성립가능성

Applicability of Property Crime Into Infringement of Online Game Items

Nowadays the development of information technology based on computer and internet has changed every aspects of social life such as internet banking, online shopping, online game etc. So online game users think online game items as their own property, and trade with others by cash. But the illegal act such as stealing of other's online game items by hacking other's game account has not been regulated by property crimes in criminal law. It is due to the unapt interpretation on property clause which defines property as "objects and manageable energy". So this article reviews the theories about property and examines the possibility of other property crimes such as fraud, embezzlement, and blackmailing. So this paper proposes that the illegal infringement of other user's online game items by hacking should be regulated by fraud among three parties. To admit of fraud many requirements like deceiving acts, mistake of being deceived, disposition of property, the property damage of owners etc. In illegal obtaining of online game items all these requirements can be met, because the online game company mistakes the connecting of illegal user as legal one, gives authority for use of online game characters and items and the legal user suffer the loss of online game items. But, the basic problems of interpretation in property crimes still remains unsolved. I would like to suggest new clauses for electronic theft in criminal law by comparing similar clauses of other countries such as USA, Germany, UK and Japan. In the future, the cyberspace will take more importance and the laws of real space can be challenged.